BETHEL, CT — Three dogs rescued by the Danbury Animal Rescue Society in Bethel will join the competition for the Lombarky Trophy at this year's Puppy Bowl.
Marigold, an 8-month Chihuahua mix, Sprinkle, a 7 ½ month Australian shepherd, and Zoey (formally Sprite), an 8 ½ month Staffordshire bull terrier will join 142 rescue puppies from 80 shelters across 40 states and two countries in the 21st annual pre-Super Bowl match-up on Sunday.
The three-hour television event — what organizers understandably call “the cutest competition of the year” — is already paying dividends for the DAWS trio, who have all since been adopted after the event's filming. Marigold, out of West Virginia, found her forever home in Danbury, and Kentucky's Sprinkle and Georgia's Zoey have been taken in by families in Norwalk.
New this year for Puppy Bowl XXI will be the addition of 11 inspiring special needs dogs, including Sprinkle.
“Being visually and hearing impaired can make any new situation scary, but Sprinkle was outgoing and ready to make new friends. Sprinkle shined and played just like all the other pups. All on set were aware of Sprinkle's impairments, so they made sure to be use a gentle touch with him, and engaged with extra positive reinforcement,” DAWS spokesperson Amelia Anderson told Patch. “They spent extra time to allow Sprinkle to familiarize himself with his surroundings. They used treats as an incentive to help him become comfortable more quickly.”
Anderson called the televised showcase for special needs dogs “extremely beneficial” for animal welfare organizations, as it helps potential adoptive families understand that special needs animals make excellent pets.
All the dogs compete as part of either Team Ruff or Team Fluff. Julep, the first-ever St. Bernard-mix, and Smoosh, the only Pekingese to compete in the games, will head up Team Fluff, which will include Marigold and Zoey. Mr. Pickles, a Pug-Chihuahua from Dallas, and Tuani, a Chihuahua-German shepherd from Nicaragua, will look to bring Sprinkle and the rest of Team Ruff to victory.
The Puppy Bowl, the original and longest running call-to-adoption television event, will air at 2 p.m. on Feb. 9 on Animal Planet, Discovery, TBS, truTV, Max and Discovery+.