It’s dark outside. The news cycle is relentless. But Finland’s national broadcaster has a solution. It’s an adorable puppy that is available at any time of the day or night.
Yle attracts millions of people to its website with “Pentulive,” which means “puppy live” in Finnish. This is a 24/7 live stream of the Lagotto Romagnolo dog Hirka and her newborn puppies as they enthusiastically sleep, play, and suckle.
Hirka gave birth to two females and four males on October 10th. The webcams will be switched on shortly after and the puppies will remain in the spotlight until they leave for their new homes in December.
Given that puppies need up to 20 hours of sleep a day, their behavior may be limited, which may explain why “Pentulive,” now in its sixth season, has been dubbed “slow TV.” The concept was first tried out in Norway in 2009 when the Norwegian public broadcaster broadcast a seven-hour train journey.
Nevertheless, viewers who tune in to the anonymous breeder’s home are promised the chance to witness “puppy milestone moments,” from opening their eyes to learning how to walk to playing outside for the first time, according to a Yale press release.
Despite Finland’s small population of just under 5.66 million people, the Pentulive webpage received 6.5 million page views last year, and its social media channels attracted 20 million views, Yle said. And based on the number of observations so far, this year’s puppies are likely to outperform that.
Finland, one of the world’s northernmost countries, is preparing for a long, dark winter. Temperatures can drop as low as -50°C (-58°F), and the sun does not rise above the horizon for weeks in areas north of the Arctic Circle.
It’s no surprise, then, that residents enjoy a pleasant distraction from the harsh outdoors.
PuppyCam was first launched in 2021 by Yale science reporter Pirjo Koskinen as part of a series on canine science. She told CNN in an email that part of the idea was to “shed light on a dog’s critical first few weeks,” adding, “Just like with human children, what happens at the breeder impacts the rest of a dog’s life.”
Koskinen believes that part of Pentulive’s appeal is that it provides a distraction from the harsh realities of everyday life. “It’s all about compassion, love and nurturing, all the positive aspects of humanity that are often pushed aside by the constant stream of unpleasant news,” she said.
“‘Puppy Live’ provides peace and relaxation in the hectic pace of daily life. It’s a wonderful escape from the human world into the ‘Puppy Bubble’.”
Sonya Mutanen, a postdoctoral researcher in media and animals at the University of Eastern Finland, explained its special appeal to Finns.
“For many viewers, these live broadcasts are a long-awaited highlight during Finland’s dark winter,” she told CNN. “This kind of feel-good content can foster a sense of belonging and mental well-being, which is important in late fall and winter when people are home more often.”
Miiamaaria Kujala, an adjunct professor of comparative cognitive neuroscience at the University of Helsinki, said in an email to CNN that live feeds affect us in a very different way than the short reels that are now common on social media.
“Livestreams offer something that seems to be missing in much of modern, hectic life: something authentic, real, and fragile,” she said. “Pentulives are life-paced; they contain periods of very calm and unexpected behavior. As a live feed, they can elicit a more intense emotional response from the observer…but observing a sleeping puppy can also be very calming.”
It also gives “a sense of continuity in the way the puppies grow,” she said, adding, “They learn to know individually, rather than just being random animals.”
This will be the second birth for 5-year-old Hilka. Hiruka is currently taking a break from her role as a “school dog” who provides emotional support to students.
So far, the furball has only been given a nickname by its breeder, but the name will be officially changed on Saturday. The viewer narrows down the choice of names, and the puppy himself “selects” the name he likes, sitting in a circle of sealed envelopes and sniffing the name he likes.
