Ed Sheeran's crew got a puppy party before Minneapolis show

A Minnesota animal rescue group got an unusual request from crew members in town for Ed Sheeran's concert Saturday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

They wanted to play with puppies.

The concert workers sent a message to Princeton-based Ruff Start Rescue asking the non-profit if it could help put together a puppy party to help crew members relax before the concert.

Foster volunteers from the organization responded by bringing eight puppies from two different litters to the stadium to spend a couple hours cuddling with lighting, sound and stage crew workers before the show Saturday.

"They requested puppies — and we made it happen," said Brittany Murnan, events manager with Ruff Start Rescue.

Ed Sheeran himself wasn't at the puppy party, Murnan said, possibly because he was making a surprise appearance at the Lego Store at the Mall of America.

But Murnan estimated about 100 crew members got to interact with the puppies named Barney, Pebbles, Gretchen Wieners and Regina George.

Afterwards, six of the Ruff Start volunteers got to see the Sheeran show with floor tickets.

"It was just a really fun experience," said Murnan, who noted that most of the puppies at the party are still available for adoption.