Finland’s President Sauli Niinistro is known to work discreetly, having each of his moves highly calculated. He has never made any major mistake, said the University of Helsinki political scientist Teivo Teivainen. However, during the campaign period for his re-election, it seemed like the president got robbed of his own show. The culprit – Finland’s first dog named Lennu.
Lennu is the lolling-tongued, wrinkly-nosed Boston terrier who had quite a memorable first term. He has made himself a bona fide celebrity in his homeland and beyond. Naughty Lennu’s grinning photo, while lovingly being scolded by the president during a formal occasion, took Twitter by storm. The photo, which was posted by a reporter, garnered thousands of likes and retweets.
excuse me but are you aware of Lennu, the Finnish president's dog pic.twitter.com/sBVSOiExw6
— Kelly Weill (@KELLYWEILL) February 22, 2017
The said photo even exceeded the likes and retweets of the president’s posts, which he cautiously makes a few times a month. Despite Lennu’s popularity, he doesn’t always join the president’s campaign. It’s probably because of an illness.
During one of Finland’s major occasions, Lennu’s vet was noticeably at the ceremony too. President Niinisto said that Lennu had a dog flu, which worried many of his fans. The president announced later on that the first dog has already recovered but needed to have “an election vacation”.
Lennu’s wide smiles and lolling tongue may seem adorable. However, he may actually have difficulty breathing. His facial muscles are too large and wrinkly for his skull size. Because of that, he, and many of his fellow Boston terriers, has become prone to respiratory problems.
Lennu has many fans including the employees of Café Esplanad in Helsinki. They have even designed a special cake to honor the First Dog. The president himself has visited the café many times, said the café’s owner, Gunvor Backman. Unfortunately, dogs are not allowed inside. However, Gunvor noted that her son is lenient on these things.
Lennu isn’t the first pet to make it to the news in Finland. Tarja Halonen, the country’s former president, had three cats named Rontti, Miska, and Meggi. Meggi was Russian President Dmitri A. Medvedev’s gift. There were times when the cat was suspected to have a bug.
Credits: Kelly Well, Nenäpäivä