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• Players: 2-5
• Ages: 8+
• Time: 30 Minutes

In the game Pups you take the role of an aspiring dog trainer with dreams of winning big at the dog show. Each round you will gather a new pack of 7 lovable pups. You must groom them for success by bidding on how well you think they can perform at the show. After everyone has placed their bids the action begins as the pups start facing off! If your pups can win the number of showdowns you bid before the round ends you will earn the reward treats. But watch out… if you miss your bid you must gain the penalty poos. The player who can collect the most treats is the winner!

How to Play

You can download the PDF rule book here.

00:00  Object of the Game
00:43  Setup
01:14  The Game Round
01:48  The Bid Phase
02:47  What is Bidding?
03:47  What is a Rebid?
04:08  Exactly 0 Bid
05:16  The Showdown Phase
07:25  The Pup Cards
10:07  The Results Phase
11:24  End of the Game


Q: Can I use more than one "Exactly 0" cards I've collected to gain multiple bonus tricks? (I've missed my "Exactly 3" bid by two tricks... Can I use two Exactly 0 cards to complete it?)
A: Yes.

Q: Can a Mutt be the Alpha suit? If so, how does that work?
A: Yes they can. When Mutt cards turn up as Alpha, they work as the Alpha suit just the same as any other suit does. Example- The leader plays out a 9 Lap dog but you have none in your hand. If Mutts are the Alpha suit for the round, playing a 1 Mutt would win this trick. However, if Mutts are not the Alpha suit, a 1 Mutt play in this example is useless sluff. 

Q: When do I add a Mutt card to my play? Can it be anytime during the showdown?
A: You must play both cards simultaneously. Example- You play 5 Guard Dog + 3 Mutt on your turn, for a result of 8 Guard Dog.

Q: I play a 7 Family Dog with a +3 Mutt card on my turn. Does this mean my play is considered both Family dog and Mutt suit?
A: No. Mutt cards always conform to the suit they are played with. In this case, the result of your play is 10 Family dog.

Game Variants

Two-Player Variant

For a more suspenseful and competitive two-player game, we recommend this new game setup: Only the EXACTLY side of the 2 Bid card is available from the Bid card row.The 0,1 and 3 Bid cards remain the same. A player may only bid At Least 2 if they are forced to Rebid a failed Exactly 2 card from a previous round. All other game rules remain the same!

A big thanks to    Dan King of Game Boy Geek    for inventing this great new variant!


Variable Game Length

Normally a Top Dog card is either awarded OR burned each round, which limits games to a max of 7 rounds. Instead, if there is a tie for Top Dog, do not burn the card. This may allow for longer games and less predictable end conditions.


Here is what folks are saying about Pups:


Game Design by Charlie Bink
Art by David Jackson
Play Tested by Terry Binkele, John Binkele, Alexa Coon, Jessica Divers, Andrew Spindler, Alex Black,
Greg Dickson, Stephanie Dickson, Brett Kitani, Aundrea Moulton, Kevin Kitani, April Gallegos, 
Alexandra Overton, Kristen Jaffe, Hendrick McDonald, Aaron Satterlee, Val Brazier, Scott Brazier