Finland’s ‘Puppy Live’ livestream becomes an international hit

Yle’s 24/7 broadcast of newborn puppies, started during the pandemic, is now being picked up by broadcasters in Sweden and the Netherlands.

By LineZotpaper AI staff

Published24 October 2026

Updated24 October 2026

Read Time2 min

Sources5 outlets

A 24/7 livestream of newborn puppies, broadcast by Finland’s public broadcaster Yle, has become a national phenomenon and is now expanding internationally. Started during the coronavirus pandemic as a respite from bad news, the show has attracted more than a sixth of Finland’s population as viewers and has been licensed by broadcasters in Sweden and the Netherlands.

Puppy Live, or “Pentulive” in Finnish, is a continuous livestream of a litter of puppies from birth to adoption. Now in its sixth year, the stream shows six puppies, four male and two female, with their mother Hilkka. Veterinarians carefully select and support the mothers, and all puppies on the show have been born healthy, according to Yle.

The broadcast is an example of “slow television”, a distinctly Nordic genre that includes hours of firewood burning or views from a train. Norway pioneered the form, while Sweden has a popular moose migration livestream. Viewers find it soothing, helping them slow down and stop panicking, said Annette Hill, a professor of media and communication studies at Jonkoping University in Sweden.

Puppy Live has attracted more than 1 million unique viewers in past years, and this season its content has already been seen by 1.85 million unique viewers with about six weeks remaining. Fans describe it as a form of stress relief. “I love all the puppies equally,” said Mandi Salo, a nine-year-old viewer. Kalle Kurittu, 32, said it was a form of stress relief. In Finland, where the job market is tough and some worry about neighbouring Russia, the puppy box offers an escape. “Nothing bad happens in the puppy box,” said Elina Peltonen, 25.

Minttu Hahtola, host of the Puppy Live podcast, called it “puppy therapy”. The show has spawned a podcast and a prediction-market game for the eight-week season. Sweden’s SVT has started streaming it, and a Dutch broadcaster has bought the rights for a spinoff with Dutch puppies.

Kristine Visanen, who watches from New York City, summed up the appeal: “There’s no advertising. There’s no algorithm. I don’t feel like there’s some kind of agenda.”

Analysis

Why This Matters

The phenomenon highlights a growing demand for comforting, low-stakes content in times of geopolitical tension and economic uncertainty.
It demonstrates how public broadcasters, free from commercial pressures, can create programming that resonates deeply with audiences.
The international expansion of a concept built on sleeping puppies shows the global appeal of “slow television” as an antidote to digital frenzy.

Background

Slow television is a genre that originated in Norway, where broadcasters aired hours of footage such as a fire burning in a fireplace or the view from a train journey. Sweden has a popular livestream of a moose migration. Finland’s Yle has experimented with other slow content, including a livestream of groceries moving along a checkout conveyor belt, freshwater seals playing in a lake, and ospreys nesting. Puppy Live began in 2020 as a way to offer Finns a respite from pandemic gloom.

What to Watch

Whether the Dutch spinoff and any further international adaptations replicate the Finnish success.
How viewership trends for this season’s remaining six weeks compare with previous years.
Any expansion to other countries or new slow TV concepts from Nordic broadcasters.

Sources

In troubled times, Finland’s public broadcaster has an answer: puppies · WAtoday
Finland's round-the-clock puppy cam is a TV hit · WAtoday
Finland's round-the-clock puppy cam is a TV hit · Brisbane Times
In troubled times, Finland’s public broadcaster has an answer: puppies · The Sydney Morning Herald
In troubled times, Finland’s public broadcaster has an answer: puppies · Brisbane Times

Checked

12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 8 supported.

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Partly supportedThe livestream has become an “international hit.”WA Today - Latest News: “Broadcast by Yle, Finland’s public broadcaster, the stream is a phenomenon, with well over 1 million viewers. Now, in its sixth year, the show is going international.”
Partly supportedBroadcasters in Sweden and the Netherlands have picked up Yle’s broadcast.WA Today - Latest News: “Sweden’s public broadcaster, SVT, has started streaming it. A Dutch broadcaster has bought the rights for a spinoff (with Dutch puppies).”
Partly supportedThe show has attracted more than a sixth of Finland’s population as viewers.WA Today - Latest News: “Last year, the livestream and video clips attracted more than 1 million unique viewers, more than a sixth of the Finnish population.”
Partly supportedPuppy Live has attracted more than 1 million unique viewers in past years.WA Today - Latest News: “Last year, the livestream and video clips attracted more than 1 million unique viewers, more than a sixth of the Finnish population.”
SupportedThis season’s content has been seen by 1.85 million unique viewers, with about six weeks remaining.WA Today - Latest News: “This year, Puppy Live content has already been seen by 1.85 million unique viewers, with about six weeks to go.”
SupportedPuppy Live is now in its sixth year and features six puppies—four male and two female—with their mother Hilkka.WA Today - Latest News: “This year on Puppy Live there are six puppies, four male and two female. The mother, Hilkka, stays calm even as her progeny kick, thrash, and scramble over one another to nurse.”
SupportedPuppy Live began during the coronavirus pandemic as a respite from bad news.WA Today - Latest News: “Puppy Live started during the coronavirus pandemic. Finns, like everyone else, needed comfort.”
SupportedAnnette Hill said viewers find the show soothing and that it helps them slow down and stop panicking.WA Today - Latest News: ““That’s what this slow TV does,” Hill said. “It makes you be in the present, and it makes you slow down and stop this frenzy and stop scrolling and stop panicking about what’s going to happen tomorrow.””
SupportedMandi Salo said, “I love all the puppies equally.”WA Today - Latest News: ““I love all the puppies equally,” said Mandi Salo, 9, also of Helsinki, who said she was excited when one pup opened its eyes.”
SupportedKalle Kurittu said Puppy Live was a form of stress relief.WA Today - Latest News: ““It’s a form of stress relief,” said Kalle Kurittu, 32, who lives in Helsinki and has watched for years.”
SupportedMinttu Hahtola called the show “puppy therapy.”WA Today - Latest News: “Minttu Hahtola, one of the new podcast’s hosts, echoed the sentiment. “We call it puppy therapy,” she said.”
SupportedKristine Visanen said, “There’s no advertising. There’s no algorithm. I don’t feel like there’s some kind of agenda.”WA Today - Latest News: ““There’s no advertising,” said Kristine Visanen, 51, who watches from her New York City apartment. “There’s no algorithm. I don’t feel like there’s some kind of agenda.””