Animal Planet

The Puppy Bowl is this Sunday, and Ref. Andrew is back as the game's referee! We were lucky enough to talk to him last year, so to get pumped up for the game, check out part two of our interview with Ref. Andrew. We already learned a bit of background on the pups and the referee in Part I, now let's hear more about the action, including last year's "streaker" (!) on the field, in the interview below.

PetSugar: What do you say to yourself when you get up that morning?
Ref. Andrew: I look myself in the mirror for a long time, in the eye, and I say: 'This is your calling, this is what you're meant to do.' It's what I'm born into, my destiny.

PS: Do you have any secret weapons on hand in case things get a little hairy?
RA: Just experience and I consult the Puppy Bowl referee guidebook. I like to keep a little peanut butter behind the ears sometimes, but otherwise it's just my strong bond with the dogs and they know who's boss when I'm out there.

PS: How many pups play at a time?
RA: There are 10 to 12 dogs out there but we do have substitutions. You'll see that on the field, if a puppy's acting up and has too many penalties or is being a dirty dog, I have to eject him from the game. We give everyone a fair shot and I tell you, the puppies we have this year are some of the cutest but also you'll see there's so much action, touchdowns being scored, tackles, it's an exciting year for Puppy Bowl.

PS: Which penalty do you see most and how do you keep order?
RA: There's two: The first is unnecessary ruffness (r-u-f-f, of course) and then the other one is a personal foul. As you can imagine, there are a lot of foul things on that field with puppies. But I throw my yellow flag on it — it's a dirty job but someone's got to do it.

Learn about the special guest performer before Puppy Bowl, kitty halftime, and last year's "streaker" (!) when you read more

The Puppy Bowl is this Sunday, and Ref. Andrew is back as the game's referee! We were lucky enough to talk to him last year, so to get pumped up for the game, check out our interview with Ref. Andrew, who had tons to say about what he describes as "puppies pretending to play football in a miniature football stadium with 'Puppy Penalties,' 'Fido First Downs,' and 'Terrier Tackles' — it's the cutest two hours of television you could ever ask for."

We agree and will absolutely tune into Animal Planet on Feb. 6 at 3 p.m. EST to the action on the gridiron. Find out what it's like behind the scenes and start the first of our two-part interview below.

PetSugar: How did you get this job?
Ref. Andrew: I'd say that it's very similar to American Idol where they fill arenas with potential hopefuls that want to be the ref . . . but, in reality, I was already working for Animal Planet. I like to think I was born into the position. Some people are teachers, some people are firemen, and I referee adorable little puppies pretending to play football — it was meant to be.

PS: What's your practice like in the off-season?
RA: It's a strict regimen. I mostly eat carbohydrates and sugars to stay fueled and I train in dog parks with big dogs so that I'm ready for the little ones. I've got a really strict exercise regimen as well — gotta be in tip-top shape for the puppies.

Learn more about the "athletes" themselves when you read more

Move over Travis from Greatest American Dog! There's a new handsome animal-loving fella on during primetime. Brandon McMillan, 31-year-old animal trainer and host of Animal Planet's The Night, is a nature lover's dreamboat. He has no formal training himself, but he's trained lions, bears, tigers and reptiles for flicks like The Jungle Book II, I Am Sam and TV shows 24 and Jackass.

His current show, The Night, which premiered last month and airs Wednesday nights at 10 p.m., is a dark look at what happens in the wild when the rest of us are cozied up in bed. Brandon goes on expeditions around the world to catch rare animal behaviors at night on camera. He recently chatted with OK!:

• On his unusual job: When girls ask me what I do and I say I'm a wild animal trainer, they think I'm lying. I was telling a story in a bar and the bartender thought I was drunk and kicked me out.
• On dangerous dates: My perfect date would be sitting in a Land Rover in Africa with a bottle of wine and some snacks...watching a lion kill.
• On being fearless: I've had lions, snakes, leopards and buffalo come at me. I've been bitten, but I've never truly been attacked. Ninety-nine point nine percent of people who are attacked don't live to tell the tale.

For a video preview of Brandon scoping out a mama hippo on the show, read more

Can you believe last night's episode?! I'll be sharing my take – and asking for your opinion – tomorrow but 'til then, let's brush up (ha ha) on the terms we learned last year as we tune in each week for Season Two.