Watching the animals on Dublin Zoo’s webcams is surprisingly meditative

We can’t make a trip to the zoo to see all our favourite animals, but Dublin Zoo are making sure we get our daily dose of cuteness thanks to their webcam streams

I don’t know about you, but looking at cute animals is about 60% of what’s getting me through the day right now. That video of the dog playing volleyball? Shared with everyone I know. An Instagram picture of my friend’s cat? Have declared my love for him in all caps. It might be totally frivolous, but at a time of such uncertainty and with frightening news updates multiple times a day, I’m leaning more than usual on my furry friends for a hit of feel-good positivity.

That’s why I was so excited to find out that Dublin Zoo are giving us a glimpse of their most popular inhabitants via webcam links. Of course, they probably launched this idea with the presumption that it would be mostly kids tuning in to watch the creatures, but I have to say, there is something truly calming about watching giraffes elegantly lope around, or elephants gently trundle about their business. Of course, it will also be a welcome distraction for children, for at least five minutes, anyway.

There’s also humour to be found, and we could all do with a giggle at the moment. I tuned in yesterday just as two penguins were having a tiff about something, squawking and flapping their wings at each other until one eventually dived into the water in a huff.

Dublin Zoo have even told us the best times to tune in. For example, to catch the diving, splashing spectacle that is the penguins being fed, make sure to tune in at 2.30pm, while to get the best chance of catching the elephants, it’s advised to check between 10.30am and 12.30pm.

You’ll also sometimes get a glimpse of the keepers who still have to work hard to care for these animals, even when there are no visitors — just some of the many people who don’t have the luxury of working from home in these difficult times.

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