Puppy Bowl IX preview: Better than the real Super Bowl pre-game show?

Are you ready for some … cute puppies? It first started years ago as a pretty niche event with only a small but loyal audience, but since that time, the Puppy Bowl has become nothing short of a phenomenon. You have viewers more excited to see this than the actual Super Bowl, even if for some people all you really need to see is about 15-20 minutes of this in order to get your fill.

No matter how you look at it, there is no questioning that Animal Planet now relies on the show as a ratings tentpole. This is one of their top broadcasts of the year, and it is also one of the few times that the network receives mainstream attention from every media outlet under the sun.

While there are not too many changes to the format of the big game this year, we want to at least make you aware of some of the ways in which the game will be played differently this time around:

1. There will be tiny “spa” ares for the puppies to cool off.

2. There are also going to be some more cameras to capture the cuteness, including some that move in slow motion.

3. The kitten halftime show is always a tradition, but on this occasion some of the other animals featured throughout the game will include hamsters as well as hedgehogs.

There is one other reason why the Puppy Bowl is great TV viewing: the message. Every year, the animals featured end up becoming adopted long before the game even airs; and with that in mind, the network uses it to promote adoption in general.

Just in case you want to look back at some of the highlights from the Puppy Bowl last year, all you have to do is pay a visit over to the link here.

Photo: Animal Planet