May 17, 2025, 9:39 am | Read time: 5 minutes
PETBOOK editor Louisa Stoeffler believes: The story of the first female dog in space is not material for a pop anthem—it is a memorial to animal suffering in the name of progress.
Did you also study the “Space Race” during the Cold War in school? I could still recite the milestones in my sleep: First human in space: Yuri Gagarin. First woman in space: Valentina Tereshkova. The first person on the moon: Neil Armstrong. But who was in space before all humans? Laika, the dog, in 1957.
Unfortunately, the dog did not lead a long, happy life after her mission. Laika’s story is so tragic that it hurts to tell it. And it’s certainly not material for a pop anthem!
Laika’s Story Is Not Space Romance—or ESC Pop
As a child, Laika was a heroic animal to me, just behind Lassie. Her name means “Barker” in Russian—something I didn’t have to learn in school since East Germany was dissolved shortly after I was born. As a child, I also wasn’t told how a dog ended up taking a flight in Earth’s orbit.
That wasn’t known until 2002, when Russian scientist Dmitry Malashenkov revealed at a conference in the U.S. how Laika had suffered. Yes, she was never meant to return from her flight, as “Sputnik 2” didn’t even have the technology to bring Laika back. 1
All the more disturbing is what happened this year at the Eurovision Song Contest: Norwegian singer Emmy is representing Ireland with the song “Laika Party”—a cheerfully packaged pop number about a creature that was practically sacrificed.
“She wasn’t afraid,” “She loves to fly,” “Laika Party in the Sky”—so go the lyrics. No mention of the suffering. Not a word about her agonizing death. A party song about an animal that perished alone, stressed, and helpless in space.
Stray Dog Laika Was Supposed to Be Poisoned
We now know about Laika’s end in the space capsule: The three-year-old stray dog was picked up from the streets of Moscow in 1957 and put into a scientific research project. Why a stray dog? Because purebred dogs were considered too fragile by Soviet scientists. Why a dog with dark markings on her face? Because she would be visible on black-and-white television.
The documentary “Space Dogs,” released in 2019, revealed more facts about Laika’s fate. According to it, Laika orbited the Earth 2,570 times—but she was already long dead. An implanted breathing sensor on her ribs and a pulse sensor on her carotid artery documented Laika’s cruel fate. Her heart rate was three times what it should have been, and the animal was breathing four times as fast. In a rocket where she had about as much space and view as in a washing machine.
Malashenkov revealed in 2002 that Laika died five to seven hours after launch. The telemetry system on the Sputnik 2 spacecraft failed, and the temperature inside rose above 104 degrees Fahrenheit. However, a return to Earth was never planned for Laika. Instead, it was originally intended to give her poisoned food after a few days in orbit to spare her a painful death upon reentry into Earth’s atmosphere. She was sacrificed to test the technology—ethical standards for animal testing did not exist at the time. 2
Laika’s Suffering Began on Earth
In light of the “Laika Party” song, the Animal Protection Party (also known as the Animal Welfare Party) highlighted in a post that peppy anthems celebrating Laika do not reflect reality.
To prepare her for space flight, she was subjected to extreme physical and psychological stress for weeks, writes the Animal Protection Party. “She was confined in tiny cages to get used to the cramped space of the capsule. She was placed in centrifuges to accustom her to the enormous acceleration forces during the rocket launch.”
Laika also had to wear a wired corset permanently to monitor her heartbeat, breathing, and other vital functions. “Her food consisted of a specially developed gel meal that was also to be administered in space.”
Therefore, Laika’s story is not a heroine’s epic, the Animal Protection Party continues. “It is a warning. A reminder that scientific progress should never come at any cost—especially not at the expense of sentient beings. It is all the more shocking that 68 years later, Laika’s fate is the inspiration for a party song for the Eurovision Song Contest.”
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A Song Like a Slap in the Face
Instead of giving a stray dog a good life, Laika was captured in 1957 only to survive a scientific experiment for a certain period. I am not against art. Not against irony. And not against artistic freedom. But it has limits—where it trivializes crimes. Where it downplays systematic animal suffering. And that is exactly what “Laika Party” does, in my opinion.
The song is loud, colorful, and euphoric—but it ignores what Laika’s story really means: That progress without ethics is cruel. That animals are sentient beings, not measuring instruments. And that it is not the job of a piece of music to suppress reality but ideally, to make it visible. Instead, we hear: “She loves to fly.” No, she didn’t love it! She had no choice. Laika was not a voluntary astronaut—she was a victim.
For me, there’s more than the bitter aftertaste of not knowing for a long time that Laika was not a heroine, but a frightened animal that deserved better. The song also leaves an aftertaste because it exploits her story without honoring it. A song that makes millions of people dance—once again on the back of a tormented creature—no matter how long ago the injustice done to Laika occurred.
Ironically, on the grand stage of the ESC, where diversity, peace, and justice are usually celebrated, this song is presented uncritically. No context, no engagement. Just party vibes.