When the New England Patriots hosted a dog adoption event on the first day of training camp this July, the hope was to find a few dogs their forever homes and help amplify the cause.

No one could have anticipated how wildly successful the event would be -- not even Dr. Dana Kraft, a driving force behind the "Pawtriots" initiative.

"I was honestly amazed by that," said Dr. Kraft, wife of Patriots chairman and CEO Robert Kraft, on Tuesday.

"We thought, OK, let's try a small event at training camp and see how that goes. We'll bring in some shelters and see if we can get a couple of dogs adopted and hopefully raise the profile of adoption. We were immensely lucky to have all 41 dogs get adopted from three shelters. The animal rescue league reported a subsequent uptick of 79 dogs that got adopted in the following days and weeks. So, it was a real success. But in addition, I also saw the pure joy and excitement it brought to the players and fans. One of the cheerleaders told me it was their best day at Gillette. Given the success and enthusiasm, we realized it was something that we could amplify over the course of the year."

After seeing the impact made at training camp, the next dog adoption event will come sooner rather than later. On Oct. 19, as New England travels to Tennessee to take on the Titans, the Patriots Foundation will host a "Tail-gate Party" at Gillette Stadium.

Starting at 11 a.m. in Patriot Place plaza, the family-friendly event will feature face painting, music, food trucks, photo opportunities with the Patriots cheerleaders and Pat Patriot mascot, and most importantly, adoptable dogs of all breeds, ages, and sizes.

And when the game kicks off, fans can enjoy watching the Patriots on a big screen. Ideally, with their new furever friend.

"The primary reason to adopt is to give an animal in need a loving home. But there are other benefits too -- when you adopt, you can find a dog that's the right personality for you," said Dr. Kraft. "You don't always know that's going to be the case when you get a puppy. But really, it's about the tremendous need."

To help promote the event, Patriots players Mike Onwenu, Brendan Schooler, Caedan Wallace, Bryce Baringer, and Andy Borregales joined Dr. Kraft at the Animal Rescue League of Boston's campus in Dedham, Mass., on Tuesday.

The group took a tour of the Dedham ARL facility and helped train some of the dogs that will go up for adoption.

"We're fortunate to be working with the Animal Rescue League," said Dr. Kraft.

"I'm on the board here and they do a remarkable job of both helping get dogs adopted as well as preventing dogs from needing to be surrendered by providing social services for families in need."

Borregales brought his wife, Stephanie, along to volunteer.

The couple made headlines when Stephanie surprised her husband by adopting one of the dogs at training camp – a black shepherd mix they fittingly named Rook.

"She really is one of the best dogs we've ever had," said Stephanie.

"She's something else. Her personality is amazing and I can't believe how well she gets along with our other dogs. You can tell she made herself home very quick. It's special to say that not only were we able to bring Rook home, but with the organization and the Patriots Foundation we were able to help a lot of other people give a dog a forever home."

The rookie kicker and his wife now have four dogs in total, including a pit bull that Stephanie rescued as a puppy.

And while they likely won't be adopting any more pets any time soon, Borregales hopes to continue involvement with the cause through the Patriots.

"A cause like this hits a little deeper," Borregales said.

"My family, we always had a dog growing up, and dogs truly are man's best friend. And when you adopt, it makes for a special type of connection."