Akbar Gbajabiamila joins Purina to highlight sporting dogs
In partnership with Purina, American Ninja WarriorIt is Akbar Gbajabiamila highlights the athletic dogs in the Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge. And that includes telling us why he wanted to be part of this collaboration and what it’s like to be a dog parent!
If you are not familiar with the Amazing dog challenge, this is a program set up with the aim of showcasing sporting dogs. Whether these pups are good at dock diving, catching Frisbees, or in the agility arena, these dogs are showing the world their skills with help from Purina.
And for 2020, Akbar Gbajabiamila has teamed up with Purina to help share more information about these dogs. As a host for American Ninja Warrior, Gbajabiamila is already used to highlighting the sporting exploits of others, and this time, it is about dogs. And now we had the chance to hear from him about his collaboration with Purina and why he chose to partner with them for the Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge.
Akbar Gbajabiamila answers our questions about working with Purina and his own dogs
Dog O’Day: What inspired you to partner with Purina for the Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge?
Akbar Gbajabiamila: “I’m a huge dog lover, but I’m also competitive and I know what it takes to be an incredible athlete. Training and nutrition are two topics that I am very familiar with due to my experience as a competitive athlete, and these two things really make a big difference when you are competing at a high level like these canine athletes.
D.O.D.: Do you compare the Incredible Dog Challenge to American Ninja Warrior?
AG: “The Incredible Dog Challenge is a very similar experience to American Ninja Warrior: these dogs go through their own obstacle course. There are a variety of events these dogs compete in that feature obstacles, but my favorite is the dock diving event where dogs race off a 40-foot dock into a 19,000-gallon pool of water . Watching these events, it is very clear that these dogs are truly incredible canine athletes. The Purina Pro Plan Incredible Dog Challenge is streaming now, so check your local listings or visit proplan.com/incredible to see where you can watch these incredible dogs in action.
D.O.D.: What is the best part of this partnership for you?
AG: “The best part was taking my own dogs, Yuri and Simba, to try the obstacle course in our backyard. Although it was a lot of fun to try, it was definitely a challenge and it gave me a lot of respect for the dogs competing.
D.O.D.: Can you tell us more about your dogs, Yuri and Simba?
AG: “My dogs are fun and energetic with lots of personality! Simba is the pack leader of the dogs, and Yuri has a lot of energy and really taps into his herding instincts. Both dogs are well trained, but Simba has even more tricks up his sleeve. Yuri is a stereotypical dog: she loves to bury her toys and bones.
D.O.D.: What do you think is the best part of being a dog parent?
AG: “The best part about being a dog parent is that they force me to go on walks and the time spent bonding frees my mind work and other stresses. Sometimes I can get lost in my walking time and log miles.
When it comes to learning more about sporting dogs and what they can do, Purine is doing its part to make these puppies known to the public. And with the help of Akbar Gbajabiamila, it looks like more people might be interested in seeing these dogs in action.