Meet the pups and the ‘rufferee’ making historical past

Yearly, he will get to spend hours with dozens of pups of all breeds. And sure, he is presupposed to self-discipline them, however principally he simply has the time of his life. 

“When you’ve ever been round a pet, you may multiply that by 100, and that is my job,” stated “rufferee” Dan Schachner, who’s returning for his thirteenth straight yr because the Pet Bowl’s solely human on the sphere.

This yr, America’s cutest pre-game leisure turns 20, and it is greater than ever, with a document 131 puppies divided between Crew Ruff and Crew Fluff.

Schachner’s job this yr is made simpler because of a brand new all-canine manufacturing crew. 

“I am speaking from the coaches to the cheerleaders, backstage, paparazzi, canines within the management room. And I’ve a doggie assistant ref, so it is sort of loopy,” he advised Scripps Information.

Six particular wants canines may even be featured on Sunday, together with Mr. Bean, who solely has two again legs.

“When you ever wish to watch one thing that can simply encourage you, watch this two-legged canine hop round and play soccer,” Schachner stated.

The sport, which is pre-recorded and contains pups of all breeds from 73 shelters, is supposed to encourage adoptions.

“Earlier than you go and suppose you can purchase a canine, when you’re even , contemplate connecting along with your shelter. Even when you do not discover the appropriate canine the primary day, you’ll finally,” Schachner stated.

Schachner himself discovered the appropriate canine this yr: his new assistant ref, Whistle. After fostering over 40 canines prior to now 10 years, he fell in love with the pup on the job and gave her a furever residence.

The rufferee refused to disclose an excessive amount of concerning the consequence of the sport, however he admitted that his new assistant, Whistle, wants extra coaching.

“I had a tough time making any calls as a result of each time I threw the penalty flag, she’d run after it and fetch it. We have now to work on that for subsequent yr,” he stated.

The Pet Bowl airs Sunday, Feb. 11 at 2 p.m. ET. You possibly can catch it on Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, TBS, truTV, Max and Discovery+.

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