Regional canine athletes to participate in Sunday’s Puppy Bowl XVIII

Canine athletes from four regional nonprofit animal rescues will be among the star players in Puppy Bowl XVII, which will be broadcast on Feb. 13 at 2 p.m. on Animal Planet and the Discovery+ streaming service.

The annual event, which airs the same day as the Super Bowl, pits Team Fluff and Team Ruff for the Lombarky trophy, with the standout athlete earning the title of MVP ”“ Most Valuable Pup. And while the rules of the game often seem to be improvised as the game progresses, the event is less concerned on scoring points and more focused on encouraging the adoption of furry friends from reputable organizations.

Local representation in this year”™s Puppy Bowl includes dogs from three Fairfield County animal shelters ”“ Luna, the Beagle/Basset Hound mix from Danbury Animal Welfare Society; Scout, the Pitbull/Norwegian Elkhound mix from Norwalk”™s Paws CT; and Sky, the Cattle dog/Golden Retriever mix from Ridgefield”™s ROAR Animal Rescue. Westchester”™s sole representative is Chorizo, the Dachshund / American Staffordshire Terrier from Paws Crossed in Elmsford.