Animal Planet will once again feature the wildly popular Puppy Bowl during the NFL Super Bowl.
This year’s Feb. 3 contest, dubbed Puppy Bowl IV, showcases puppies turned loose on a miniature football field. For the first time, the puppies’ antics will be broadcast in high definition.
Veteran NFL Films announcer Harry Kalas will provide the puppy play-by-play; a “water bowl cam” offers a close-up look at the action. Viewers will get to vote for their favorite players, or Most Valuable Puppy, at AnimalPlanet.com.
Kittens will take the field during a halftime show.
“Puppy Bowl has become an annual viewer favorite, and in fact, we receive notes from viewers about how they try to incorporate Puppy Bowl into their Super Bowl activities,” says Animal Planet president and general manger Marjorie Kaplan. “By luring in viewers with adorable puppies and cuddly kittens, our goal is not only to entertain them but to raise awareness about all of the wonderful animals in need of loving homes and to encourage them to look into pet adoption if they are looking to add a furry friend to their family.”
The puppies featured in Puppy Bowl IV come from shelters in the Washington, D.C. area, including the SPCA of Anne Arundel County, Md., and Homeward Tails Rescue, Kaplan says.
This year's Puppy Bowl will air Sunday, February 3, at 3 p.m. EST/PST on Animal Planet.