# Puppy Bowl Puppy Bowl is Animal Planet's annual Super Bowl Sunday special where puppies romp on a miniature football field while a human referee calls the action with mock sports commentary. First aired on February 6, 2005, it started as a joking pitch to counterprogram the NFL and grew into a Super Bowl Sunday staple, with Puppy Bowl X pulling 13.5 million viewers. ## Origin The first Puppy Bowl aired on Animal Planet on February 6, 2005, opposite the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX out of Jacksonville, Florida[1]. It was shot in Silver Spring, Maryland, where the original 12-hour montage drew 5.8 million viewers[1]. Executive producer Margo Kent later described the concept as a throwaway meeting joke about pointing a camera at puppies and calling it a day, framed as a canine version of the televised burning Yule Log. The original broadcast is archived on YouTube[2]. - **Platform:** Animal Planet (cable television) - **Creator:** Animal Planet (Margo Kent, executive producer of Puppy Bowl I) - **Date:** 2005 ## Overview The broadcast frames dog play as a football game. Piped-in crowd cheers back the action, a human referee patrols the sidelines, and penalties are handed out for on-field fights (dubbed unnecessary "ruffness") and bathroom accidents[3]. The whole gag lives in the contrast between earnest sports-broadcast conventions and puppies chewing on plush footballs. Later editions layered on more structure. The second Puppy Bowl added a Kitty Halftime Show, with kittens turned loose on the field between the two halves. Starting in 2015, competing puppies wore colored bandanas splitting them into Team Ruff and Team Fluff, giving viewers something closer to actual rooting interest. Most of the puppies used in the show are shelter dogs, and they are typically placed with adoptive families by the time each broadcast airs[3]. ## How to Use Viewers typically play Puppy Bowl during or around Super Bowl Sunday, often streaming it in the background of viewing parties as light counterprogramming to the NFL game. Fans commonly pick a side (Team Ruff or Team Fluff), track penalties like unnecessary "ruffness" for laughs, and look up which shelters the featured puppies came from since almost all are adoptable dogs. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is Puppy Bowl? Puppy Bowl is Animal Planet's annual Super Bowl Sunday special featuring puppies playing on a miniature football field, presented with mock sports commentary and a human referee[1]. ### Where did Puppy Bowl come from? The show first aired on February 6, 2005, opposite Super Bowl XXXIX, after Animal Planet executives half-jokingly pitched pointing a camera at puppies as counterprogramming[1]. ### What does Puppy Bowl mean? The name puns on the Super Bowl and refers to a football-style broadcast built around puppies rather than NFL players, complete with a stadium set, referee and penalties[3]. ### How do you use Puppy Bowl? People watch Puppy Bowl during Super Bowl Sunday viewing parties, often streaming it as a lighter alternative or background feed alongside the NFL game[1]. ### Is Puppy Bowl still popular? Yes, Puppy Bowl X in 2014 drew 13.5 million viewers, and the show was still a Super Bowl Sunday staple in its 16th year as of 2020[1]. ## References 1. [https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/2/4/14480722/puppy-bowl-explained]() 2. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dxANjGsZCM]() 3. [https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/puppy-bowl]() --- Source: https://meme.com/memes/puppy-bowl Published by meme.com — The Internet Meme Library