All the pieces’s prepared for the large recreation this Sunday: treats, poop baggage, pee pads and all. No, not that recreation. The Pet Bowl is again once more for its twentieth 12 months, that includes sports activities’ most revered face-off between Workforce Ruff and Workforce Fluff.

It takes a small village to tug off the match-up, with 120 crew members and 132 volunteers, together with representatives from animal shelters. “Pet Bowl XX” options 131 pet gamers from 73 completely different rescues.  

And all these pups require fairly a little bit of tender loving care through the multi-day shoot in Glen Falls, N.Y. This 12 months’s recreation used 600 pee pads, 200 toys, 30 water bowls, 10 baggage of treats and 200 poop baggage. 

On the coronary heart of the motion is ruff-eree Dan Schachner, who’s had the cutest gig in present enterprise for the final 13 years. He can’t imagine how a lot the annual occasion has grown throughout that point. “The quantity of adoptable puppies we have now yearly has greater than doubled since I began,” he tells Selection. “There are extra cameras than ever, extra angles, extra video packages that present the pups’ backstories and a much bigger stadium set as properly.” 

Within the Pet Bowl’s twenty years, there have been 1,429 pet gamers and about 600 completely different rescues represented. Schachner says organizations are wanting to take part due to the highlight that the occasion can shine on their adoptable animals.

“All of them report a rise in adoptions after being on ‘Pet Bowl’ and the native and nationwide press they obtain will increase consciousness for his or her organizations exponentially,” he says. “All of it helps with not solely adoptions, however volunteers, fosters and donations.” 

Not all of this 12 months’s pups have been adopted but, however Schachner expects that every one the pups can have fur-ever properties by the point the sport airs: “Peanut Pretzel from the Pug Queen in Los Angeles and Sprint from Florida Little Canine in Orlando are nonetheless on the lookout for a house. However all of those rescues have so many puppies, in addition to older canines, who want households.” 

This 12 months’s recreation options some star gamers competing for the coveted Lombarky Trophy. “Look out for the pugs,” Schachner says. “Francine the Pug and Peanut Pretzel the Pug have a whole lot of power. Patrick Mabones, Bark Purdy and Levi the Nice Dane make fairly the impression!” 

“Pet Bowl XX” airs this Sunday at 2 p.m. ET / 11 a.m. PT on Animal Planet, Discovery, TBS, TruTV, Discovery+ and Max.