Twitch finally adds a category exclusively for animal streams

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Animals, Aquariums, and Zoos is immediately the best category on Twitch, hands down

Two turtles, vibing.
(Image credit: Twitch, TurtlesAndChill)

Twitch has always hosted animals, be they furry, fishy or otherwise. But until now there was no specific category to visit if you just wanted to watch some creatures hang out for a bit. This week, the streaming site rectified this tragic omission with the creation of a new Animals, Aquariums, and Zoos category.

Kicking off the site's Animal Week with a blog post on Monday, Twitch announced that it had created a new home for all animal content on the site—whether it's an aquarium hosting educational streams or just your pal filming their pet cat sleeping for a few hours.

"Historically, animal streams run across a variety of categories: ASMR, Travel & Outdoors, Just Chatting, Science & Technology, Music and Pools, and Hot Tubs & Beaches," Twitch wrote. "The time has come to give our animal friends, and the people who—literally—love to see them, a good home."

That does, unfortunately, mean that these delightful otters will no longer be the best channel in the Hot Tubs category. But Twitch also says its working directly with zoos, aquariums, and other animal non-profits to help give them a platform on the site—giving them an audience even as real-world venues remain shut due to covid regulations. Some of these institutions have taken to online streaming with ferocious energy, too, and I can't help but recommend Monterey Bay Aquarium's Lo-Fi Squid-hop videos if you're having a slow work day.

The blog post links to several channels to get started with if you're looking for chill animal vibes. Some channels will also have interactive elements if you want to, say, feed the ducks or change the lights in a turtle enclosure, and there's a fresh batch of cutesy critter emotes to get your hands on.

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Natalie Clayton
Natalie Clayton
Features Producer

20 years ago, Nat played Jet Set Radio Future for the first time, and she's not stopped thinking about games since. Joining PC Gamer in 2020, she comes from three years of freelance reporting at Rock Paper Shotgun, Waypoint, VG247 and more. Embedded in the European indie scene and a part-time game developer herself, Nat is always looking for a new curiosity to scream about—whether it's the next best indie darling, or simply someone modding a Scotmid into Black Mesa. She also unofficially appears in Apex Legends under the pseudonym Horizon.