The beloved Puppy Bowl returns for its twenty-second edition with a heartwarming twist that shifts the spotlight onto older canine companions. This year's event features a special halftime showdown between Team Oldies and Team Goldies, highlighting senior dogs who are often overlooked in adoption centres.
A Celebration of Senior Canine Companions
While the Puppy Bowl has traditionally focused on adorable puppies, this year's edition makes a conscious effort to promote the adoption of older dogs. The special halftime segment serves as a poignant reminder that senior dogs desperately need loving homes and can make wonderful pets.
Victoria Schade, the show's lead dog trainer and wrangler, explains the unique appeal of older dogs. "Everyone wants the puppy and, unfortunately, the reality of puppyhood is it's tough," she says. "I think people don't realize that until they're deep in the thick of it. That's the beauty of an older dog, an adult dog, a senior dog: They bring a different sort of calm."
Expanding the Puppy Bowl Legacy
Puppy Bowl XXII brings together an impressive 150 dogs from 72 shelters across the United States, Puerto Rico, and the British Virgin Islands. The event continues its tradition as counter-programming to the Super Bowl, a concept that began in 2005.
Joseph Boyle, head of content for Discovery Channel, emphasises the programme's advocacy mission. "The message of Puppy Bowl is about helping animals who would otherwise not have a great chance in life, especially even more acute in some cases with older dogs because they are often overlooked," he states.
Record Viewership and Shelter Impact
The Puppy Bowl has evolved into a programming cornerstone for Discovery networks, with viewership growing substantially since its inception. The inaugural event attracted nearly 6 million viewers, while last year's edition drew an impressive 12.8 million viewers. For comparison, this figure surpasses the 8.66 million who watched the recent Golden Globes ceremony.
Boyle describes the show as "gigantically important" for the network and notes its unique position in television advocacy. "I don't know that there's a lot of television out there that does advocacy in such a strong way," he observes.
Supporting Animal Rescue Organisations
The programme provides crucial exposure for animal shelters and rescue groups that typically lack advertising resources. Mallory Kerley, marketing director for Muddy Paws Rescue in New York City, explains how the show helps potential adopters consider shelter animals.
"If they can see a puppy that they fall in love with onscreen, hopefully they can find that one also in a local shelter or rescue," she says. Kerley notes that the pandemic adoption surge has levelled off recently as families face economic challenges.
"When you can't afford to put food on your own table, you can't even think about feeding or adopting a dog," Kerley explains. "So that has been a challenge in the rescue world as a whole."
The Unique Appeal of Senior Dogs
Schade, who adopted a puppy during last year's Puppy Bowl to accompany her older dog, highlights the special qualities senior dogs bring to the event. "They bring a different energy to the field," she describes. "With the puppies, we have that unbridled puppyhood enthusiasm, whereas the senior dogs they've got a playbook. They've been through a lot and they're going to strategize a little harder than those puppies are."
Practical Advantages of Older Canines
Senior dogs offer several practical benefits over puppies that make them ideal companions for many households:
- They are often already house-trained
- They can typically tolerate being alone for reasonable periods
- Many have already learned basic commands like sit or stay
"They really make great dogs for people who don't want to be home every two hours checking in on an eight-week-old puppy, who want to be able to take their dog and have them be calm," Kerley advises.
Dispelling Shelter Animal Myths
Schade emphasises how the Puppy Bowl helps challenge misconceptions about shelter animals. "It is such a challenging environment — it's loud, it's crowded, it's unfamiliar — so, of course, you're going to see a different version of who that dog is at their core," she explains regarding shelter assessments.
She notes that dogs typically need about three months to properly decompress in a new home before their true personality emerges. "Once they're through that, you get to see this incredible devotion, love and gratitude for their new life," Schade adds.
The trainer also addresses the common saying about old dogs and new tricks. "There's the expression, 'You can't teach an old dog new tricks,' which is not true," she asserts. "Dogs love learning for their entire lives and as long as we're focused on science-backed dog friendly training, there's no reason why an older dog can't learn anything and everything."
How to Watch Puppy Bowl XXII
The Puppy Bowl airs on Sunday, February 9th at 2 p.m. Eastern Time/11 a.m. Pacific Time. The event will be simulcast across multiple channels including:
- Animal Planet
- Discovery Channel
- TBS
- truTV
The show will receive multiple repeats throughout the day on these channels. For streaming audiences, the Puppy Bowl will be available on HBO Max and discovery+ platforms.
As Kerley from Muddy Paws Rescue concludes about the annual event, "It's definitely the cutest day on television. Even my dog loves watching along." With two puppies from her organisation participating on different teams, she faces the delightful dilemma of choosing which team to support, ultimately deciding to "root for them all."
