Unless you’ve been living under a rock, we’re sure you’ve heard of Moo Deng. The super adorable baby pygmy hippo from a Thai zoo was recently in the news for having predicted who would win the presidential race in the USA. Biting into the Trump cake, she made quite an announcement. While animal oracles are nothing new, Moo Deng is simply the cutest yet. At the Khao Kheow Open Zoo, which has now gotten famous all over the world has the Moo Deng hippo zoo, and quite aptly so, had given the tiny adorable political analyst two carved watermelons, which a candidate’s name carved on each. Without second thoughts, Moo Deng chomped her way into Trump’s watermelon, sending the internet into a tizzy.
How did Moo Deng hippo get famous?
Moo Deng was born in July to 25 year old Jonah and 24 year old Tony. The pygmy hippos at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand are an endangered species and only 2000-2500 specimens are known to exist. A pygmy hippo is generally much smaller than a regular hippopotamus, and the species is native to West Africa, especially the country of Liberia.
Given how sassy she was, Moo Deng’s zoo keeper started posting her on the zoo’s social media, and one fine day, it was time to name the baby pygmy hippo. The options that the zoo shared were Moo Deng which roughly translates into bouncy pork, Moo Sap which means minced pork, and Moo Daeng which means red pork. Moo Deng won easily, and this poll on their Facebook page was translated and posted to the internet by the Bangkok-based Yammi Saracino, a ceramicist and content creator. What followed was love from all over the world.
Where can one see the Moo Deng hippo?
Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand has been around for a while but post this, it is better known to the world as the Moo Deng Hippo Zoo. The popularity of Moo Deng brought so many more tourists to the zoo in September that they had to regulate the visiting time for the hippo enclosure. Moo Deng hippo Instagram memes have been all the rage, and that has also translated to more merch sales for the zoo, bringing much-needed revenue. The zoo facility ensures the welfare and quality of life for more than 2,000 animals, as stated by the zoo director, and Moo Deng’s popularity has quite significantly contributed to it.
Other baby animals like Moo Deng
Very recently Edinburgh Zoo witnessed the birth of Haggis the baby pygmy hippo, and then there’s Toni the baby pygmy hippo at Zoo Berlin, who have all attempted but have barely gotten the attention that Moo Deng has gotten, and also sustained. The little pygmy hippo is adorable, and so are other baby animals, but what makes Moo Deng stand out is her sassy personality. Whether it is her biting the zookeeper during bath time, or throwing tantrums, Moo Deng’s personality shines. She isn’t just another cute baby animal but a diva and has been celebrated accordingly too. Her zookeeper, Mr Nundee says that he engages the baby pygmy hippo in conversations and Moo Deng promptly responds to her name being called as well. A spiritual successor to Cincinnati Zoo’s Fiona we say!
Pygmy hippos and conservation
Pygmy hippos are endangered species, and the experts believe Moo Deng’s popularity will be a game changer in getting more people to notice it, like Fiona’s helped the Cincinnati Zoo draw attention to the state of common river hippos. Just like Moo Deng, Fiona, who was born prematurely in 2017, saw her popularity grow online, as did the demand for zoo tickets and viewings.
The Thai zoo released a clothing line based on Moo Deng, and immediately sold out, and her 24x7 livestream has people obsessed with her. As she grows, we can’t wait to see what magic Moo Deng and her spunky personality brings for the conservation of pygmy hippos which happen to be far lesser in number than common or Nile hippos. These nocturnal creatures share their temperament with the better known cousins, and while they are herbivores, attacks on humans when triggered are always a possibility.