Internet sensation Moo Deng is set to celebrate her second birthday this week, with her home zoo gearing up for a three-day festival.
The pygmy hippopotamus, whose chaotic antics and perpetually startled expression have propelled her to global superstardom, turns two on Friday.
To mark the milestone, the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand’s Chonburi province, east of Bangkok, announced the “Moo Deng Happy Deng Day” festival from 10 to 12 July.
On her birthday, the celebrity calf will see visitors join a mass sing-along around her enclosure and eat a specially crafted, hippo-friendly birthday cake made of her favourite vegetables.
Her first birthday was also celebrated with a days-long festival attended by throngs of adoring fans. The highlights included a birthday cake sponsored by a skincare entrepreneur at a cost of almost £2,100, mascot parades, and a photo exhibition, titled “Moo Deng in Every Moment”, chronicling her journey from a 5kg newborn to a 93kg toddler, according to The Nation.
This year, organisers are preparing for thousands of fans to descend on the park. They are offering free admission throughout the three-day festival for children aged 12 and under as well as to senior citizens over 60.
The festival will feature daily wildlife mascot parades, game booths, and a dedicated station where fans can write birthday cards to the toddler hippo.
Visitors will also get a rare chance to meet Moo Deng’s keepers for behind-the-scenes insights into her daily routine.
For dedicated collectors, the zoo is releasing a highly exclusive "Moo Deng Tail Print" souvenir. Limited to just 999 pieces worldwide, the collectible is priced at around £43, with the proceeds going towards wildlife conservation. Local vendors will set up stalls showcasing regional Thai food and handicrafts.
Zoo director Narongwit Chodchoi said that the festival would also launch "Hippo Village", a major modernisation project for the habitat.
The initiative aims to significantly improve animal welfare and expand conservation education, ensuring the global spotlight on Moo Deng leaves a lasting legacy for her species.
Moo Deng – meaning "bouncy pork" in Thai – was born on 10 July 2024 and quickly rose to stardom after her keeper, Atthapon Nundee, began sharing her antics online. The videos went viral, prompting the zoo to livestream her enclosure and capitalise on her fame with corporate sponsorship deals and merchandise.
In the final quarter of 2024 alone, Khao Kheow Open Zoo saw visitor numbers triple to 600,000.
Moo Deng appeared in a Saturday Night Live sketch and correctly predicted Donald Trump’s 2024 US presidential win by choosing between two vegetable cakes. Google honoured her with a doodle, and a Thai music label released a viral techno anthem bearing her name.
Her popularity has begun to dip in recent months, however, mirroring the short-lived fame of other internet-famous animals like China’s Hua Hua the panda and Australia’s Pesto the penguin. Still, Mr Nundee insists Moo Deng enjoys the attention.
The pygmy hippopotamus is an endangered species, native to West Africa, with fewer than 2,500 left in the wild according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.
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