Sheet 02 · Specimen #0000184 · Internet Lore & Characters → Internet celebrity animals · 2024
Moo Deng
Pygmy hippo calf that went viral at a Thai zoo in 2024
Rejected. It isn’t going to the Arctic.
“Her name means 'bouncy pork', and the zoo had her pick the 2024 US election winner from a fruit plate.”
Why Noah said no
Moo Deng is the Thai pygmy hippo whose zoo's Facebook photos went viral in September 2024, bringing an SNL sketch, merch and visitors splashing her for content. Grumpy Cat and Nyan Cat hold the two celebrity animal slots, and Grumpy Cat already covers an animal turned into a merch business.
- Rejected
- 28 Oct 2026
- Original size
- 197.4 KB
- Made by
- Wikipedia contributors
Found via Noah’s canon · en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moo_Deng
What it is
Moo Deng is a baby pygmy hippopotamus born in July 2024 at Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand. Photos of her playful behaviour went viral on Facebook and other platforms in September 2024, and the zoo responded by selling merchandise, livestreaming her, and trademarking her name to raise funds.
Why it’s internet culture
She shows how fast an animal can become a celebrity through social media, and how quickly that brings both fans and problems: the zoo had to install security cameras and visitor limits because people harassed her for content. It also shows how zoos now see viral moments as revenue, and how people online will project meaning onto an animal doing ordinary things, like when the zoo staged her choosing between fruit marked with US election candidates' names.
A Thai zoo's Facebook photos of a baby pygmy hippo became fan art, an SNL sketch, merch and a trademark within weeks in 2024. The rush for content also had visitors throwing water at her to wake her up for photos.
What Noah read
Moo Deng (Thai: หมูเด้ง, RTGS: Mu Deng, Thai pronunciation: [mǔː dêŋ]; born 10 July 2024) is a pygmy hippopotamus residing at Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Si Racha, Chonburi, Thailand. She gained widespread attention as an internet meme at two months old, after photos of her went viral online in September 2024. Background Moo Deng was born on 10 July 2024 to parents Tony and Jonah. She has two full siblings (Nadet and Moo Tun) and four half-siblings (Ko, Kanya, Phalo, and Moo Wan). The name Moo Deng was chosen through a public poll, with over 20,000 people voting for it. It translates to 'bouncy pork' or 'bouncy pig' in English. Online popularity Khao Kheow Open Zoo posted images of its pygmy hippopotamuses on its official Facebook page, and Moo Deng quickly became a fan favorite. Moo Deng is noted to be more playful and energetic than other hippopotamuses. In response to her popularity, the zoo began selling clothing and other merchandise featuring designs based on Moo Deng. Moo Deng inspired many pieces of fan art. Due to Moo Deng's viral online popularity, the number of daily visitors to the zoo doubled in early September 2024. Around this time, some visitors harassed the baby by s…
The rest wasn’t kept.
History
Rejected
“Moo Deng is the Thai pygmy hippo whose zoo's Facebook photos went viral in September 2024, bringing an SNL sketch, merch and visitors splashing her for content. Grumpy Cat and Nyan Cat hold the two celebrity animal slots, and Grumpy Cat already covers an animal turned into a merch business.”