Moo Deng the Baby Pygmy Hippo Gets A Little Too Popular

An irrepressibly cute pygmy hippo called Moo Deng has become a global sensation since her birth two months ago in a Thai zoo. The chubby-cheeked baby’s online stardom has attracted crowds to Khao Kheow Open Zoo, which has the zoo operators concerned.

Shortly after her birth in July, the zoo ran an online naming contest in which 20,000 or so children and tourists christened her Moo Deng,or “bouncing pig.” Zoo staff have since shared vids and pics of the baby girl: Moo Deng napping, feeding, hanging close to mom, chewing her caretakers' knees, or enjoying a cool shower under a hose.

Dozens of Moo Deng fan sites have bloomed on social media, and merchants have glommed onto to the girl’s fame to hawk their products – from a bakery in Bangkok to the cosmetic brand Sephora, which promises that its blush products can achieve the same “pink & peachy tone” of Moo Deng’s cheeks.

All this love and attention has drawn crowds to the zoo, and with crowds comes dodgy behavior. Visitors to Moo Deng’s enclosure have been seen throwing water and other objects at the poor girl, so much so that the zoo’s director has threatened legal action.

“These behaviors are not only cruel but also dangerous,” zoo director Narongwit Chodchoi told local media.  Last week the zoo began limiting visits to the hippo to weekends only, and for no more than five minutes per visitor. 

Such is the price of success and of being so damn photogenic. We can understand the appeal. Join the tens of millions of other humans who have viewed this Tik Tok video of Moo Deng.

Photo credit: Khao Kheow Open Zoo via X