While the 49ers fell short of the “Quest for Six” this year, San Francisco will still be represented on the field this Super Bowl Sunday. But this player’s stats are a bit unusual: weighing in at less than 10 pounds and standing under 12 inches tall, Foggy, a 3-month-old, black-and-white puppy, is making history as the first competitor from the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to appear at the Puppy Bowl.
Airing on Animal Planet and other channels at 11 a.m., Puppy Bowl 22 will feature Foggy decked out in an orange bandana, representing Team Ruff.
The event, which started off as a joke, has become a cultural phenomenon. Last year, Animal Planet executives told People the Puppy Bowl counterprogramming was inspired by the seasonal, crackling Yule Log on television and launched in 2005 with a shoestring budget of $88,000. These days, the show brings in very serious numbers — Puppy Bowl 21 drew 12.8 million viewers, making it the day’s No. 1 most-watched non-sports cable show.
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Foggy, a rescue puppy representing the San Francisco SPCA at the Puppy Bowl, plays on an outdoor field for the SFSPCA on Feb. 3, 2026.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
Central California roots
Foggy’s journey to the arena started in the Central Valley, where she was found wandering the streets of Fresno and taken to a local shelter before being transferred to San Francisco.
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Rob Lightner, director of adoptions at the San Francisco SPCA, and his husband, Gordon Vassallo, fostered the spotted, floppy-eared pup. Training her for the big game was a family effort — with their three kids handling the bulk of the prep.
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“We have so many toys, and they would have them out, they would go on opposite ends of the room, call her over with the toys, try to get her to make, you know, make the touchdown,” Lightner said.
“The foster experience was, honestly, it was so enjoyable and so easy,” Vassallo said. “… It was so rewarding watching her personality come out from this shy little cub to this very pro-social dog who was like everyone’s friend.”
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Rob Lightner, director of adoptions at the San Francisco SPCA, and his husband Gordon Vassallo hold Foggy, a rescue puppy they fostered, at the SFSPCA on Feb. 3, 2026. Foggy will represent the San Francisco SPCA at the Puppy Bowl this year.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
Fortunately, she still gets to be in their lives. Vassallo’s parents met and fell in love with Foggy, who now lives with them on 2 acres in the Sacramento area. “They’re her forever family and she — and it’s so nice that she gets to still be part of our family,” Lightner said.
The show rundown
This year’s broadcast is bigger than ever, featuring 150 rescue puppies from 72 shelters around the United States, Puerto Rico and the British Virgin Islands. For the first time ever it’s also not just puppies being featured: 15 special needs dogs will be competing, as will senior dogs on Team Goldies and Team Oldies during the halftime show.
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“It’s an opportunity for them to highlight the range of dogs that are out there in shelters that are looking for homes,” Lightner said. “You know, there’s a dog for everyone.”
And fans of the Kitty Halftime Show need not fret, as felines will be featured as well, organizers confirmed.
Foggy, a rescue puppy representing the San Francisco SPCA at the Puppy Bowl, plays on an outdoor field for the SFSPCA on Feb. 3, 2026.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
To get the distracted stars to comply, the production team deploys a number of creative tactics, including swapping out toys every 20 minutes and smearing peanut butter on camera lenses. In order to capture the most eye-achingly cute moments, cameras are also placed under glass water bowls. “She was really obsessed with going back and drinking water … she shoved her whole face in the water at one point,” said Lightner of Foggy’s scene-stealing antics.
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Unlike the actual Super Bowl, the Puppy Bowl is pre-recorded to allow ample time for editing. Filming took place in October at the Cool Insuring Arena in Glens Falls, New York, where the event has been recorded for the past few years. But don’t expect to get any spoilers from Foggy, as the now 7-month-old puppy is under a strict nondisclosure agreement about the outcome of the game.
Foggy, a rescue puppy representing the San Francisco SPCA at the Puppy Bowl, scratches her ear on Feb. 3, 2026.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
The Puppy Bowl has become a highlight for Glens Falls, which anticipates the annual arrival of the canine competitors. “I was going around the community with her, and people were like, ‘Oh, it’s Puppy Bowl season, I’m so excited,’” Lightner said. It was a similar scene at the hotel, with fans eager to greet the cuddly stars.
To celebrate the event, San Francisco SPCA is running a Name Your Price adoption special through Feb. 8 — puppy fees are typically $400, adult fees are $175. “We don’t want price to be the barrier for someone to bring an animal into their lives, if they have the love,” Lightner said.
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Foggy, a rescue puppy representing the San Francisco SPCA at the Puppy Bowl, plays on an outdoor field for the SFSPCA on Feb. 3, 2026.
Douglas Zimmerman/SFGATE
On Puppy Bowl Sunday, some of the shelter staff plan to hold a watch party at the Battery in San Francisco, where something aside from the winning team will be broadcast — all the contestants took DNA tests and their breeds will be revealed for the first time.