Naples-area dog to appear Sunday on TV in Animal Planet’s ‘Puppy Bowl XIII’
Luke Franke/Naples Daily News
When Veronica Bertrand and Jesse Peterson showed up at the Humane Society of Naples’ Coastland Center location Oct. 7, the couple had no idea they were in the presence of a soon-to-be TV star.
The Weimaraner and pit bull mix named Mocha, with her grayish-green eyes and white and brown spotted coat, caught their attention right away.
Turns out the 3-month-old puppy had just returned that morning from New York City, where she competed on Team Fluff in Animal Planet’s “Puppy Bowl,” the annual TV show that mimics the Super Bowl, but with puppies.
“We already were playing with her when they told us,” Peterson said.
“Pretty much when we were saying we wanted to sign some papers, they were like, ‘just to let you know,’” Bertrand added.
If anything, Mocha’s celebrity status made her adoption so much more special, they said.
On Sunday, Mocha — renamed Dakota — will appear on “Puppy Bowl XIII,” which will start at 2 p.m. with a pregame show, followed by three hours of romping, ruff-housing and roll overs. And in case you miss it, the action will repeat all day and night for a total of 10 hours.
Nowadays, when she’s not making celebrity appearances at Humane Society events, 6-month-old Dakota is chewing sticks and digging in the dirt at her Golden Gate Estates fur-ever home.
Dakota is the first dog adopted by Bertrand and Peterson as a couple. Now they also have Rogue, a chunky, 3-week-old American bulldog…