Bissell and Puppy Bowl Help Animals in Shelters/Foster Care

It’s become a Super Bowl Sunday tradition and 2016 is no exception. Puppy Bowl XII, which promotes pet adoption, is set to air on Animal Planet this Sunday February 7th.

This year, Puppy Bowl teamed up with 44 animal shelter and rescue organizations to fill the rosters of #TeamRuff and #TeamFluff with adoptable dogs. The network also is partnering with the Pro Football Hall of Fame to introduce the Puppy Bowl Hall of Fame to honor legacy players throughout the show and promote the adoption of older "veteran" animals in addition to puppies and kittens.

The Kitty Half-Time Show brings a cat-astrophic San Francisco inspired kitten takeover to the Bay Area. These ferocious felines are on a spree of cat-aclismic destruction as they paw across historic landmarks including the Golden Gate Bridge, Fisherman's Wharf and infamous "Al-Cat-Raz."

Bissell, a long time Puppy Bowl sponsor, is giving an extra dose of adorable to Puppy Bowl viewers on PetHappens.com. Starting at 3 p.m. ET, 10 rescue puppies will be released into an all-white room. Live viewers will be encouraged to tweet or post on Instagram with #PetHappens. Their posts will unlock a series of different messes into the room with the pups.

When all of the messes have been unleashed and the puppies are ready for a nap, Bissell will clean the space and restore it to its original sparkling white condition. Each use of #PetHappens between now and March 31 will trigger a $5 donation (up to $100,000) to the Bissell Pet Foundation to support animals in shelters and foster care.

Baby's best friend

Past studies have suggested that children exhibit a natural interest towards animals, and different intervention programs have shown the presence of an animal being able to increase children's attentiveness and motivation levels.

However, until recently, few research efforts have been devoted to the identification of specific animal characteristics able to attract and engage children. A recent report appearing in the Human-Animal Interaction Bulletin tested children based on a number of features present in the most common pets (and their appeal for humans).

What the study ascertained, is that overall, children showed a preference for kittens over cats but dogs of all ages over cats or kittens. 

READ THE REPORT

How much is that doggy in the window?

Petland will no longer be asked that question, as it will immediately begin phasing out the sale of the animals at its stores nationwide.

It says the decision “reflects the fundamental change in the way consumers are sourcing and purchasing puppies, resulting in a decrease of sales within pet stores.”

Some stores had already begun phasing out the sale of animals. Now, all Petland stores will be required to do so.

Read it on Global News: Global Calgary | Petland to phase out sale of cats and dogs nationwide