‘The people’s pygmy princess!’ How Moo Deng captured the world’s hearts
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The moist, ungovernable hippo combines the aesthetic of a potato and the iron will of a toddler – and her name means ‘bouncy pork’. Here’s how she became 2024’s most in-demand mammal. It’s been a rough year and we all craved solace. Thankfully, the universe provided in the moist, ungovernable form of a baby pygmy hippo. To the uninformed, here is a brief primer on 2024’s hottest It-mammal.
![[Emma Beddington]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/uploads/2020/03/20/Emma_Beddington,_R.png?width=75&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
On 10 July 2024, a female pygmy hippo was born at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand, to mother Jona and father Tony. The zoo launched a public poll to choose a name for the infant. There were three meat-themed names to choose from: Moo Deng (bouncy pork), Moo Sap (minced pork) and Moo Daeng (red pork). Moo Deng won with 20,000 votes and soon captured the world’s imagination. Photographs of the infant – a slippery, chaotic and yes, bouncy beast shaped like a large potato, with a rolling eye, frequently open mouth and seemingly strong opinions – brought wonder to a jaded world.
![[Moo Deng is given a shower by a boy with a hose]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/3e5948504f1f895008cd9045b94a5e0cd3a39621/0_0_4642_3501/master/4642.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
Some basic pygmy hippo facts. They are rare, shy, native to west Africa and belong to the genus choeropsis (which, I learn, is ancient Greek for “looks like a pig”). At birth they weigh between 4.5kg and 6.2kg, barely more than a human baby, but adults can reach a chunky 270kg. They secrete hipposudoric acid (also known as “blood sweat”, though it’s neither), which probably acts as sunscreen and gives Moo Deng her characteristic soapy sheen. Although pygmy hippos can make noises (from low grunts to high-pitched squeaks), they are apparently “usually silent”. In captivity they can live up to 55 years, which I think we can all agree is nowhere near long enough.
![[Haggis, a pygmy hippo born in October at Edinburgh Zoo.]](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/df10b1aef2c77de78f113824f657a6bfcac44407/0_0_4294_2863/master/4294.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none)
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