The picture raked in millions of views, inspiring illustrations, gifs, and memes of the iconic little hippo Moo Deng, adding to the generous collection of popular animal memes.

We’ve gathered 30 hilarious memes featuring the adorable hippo you won’t want to miss. Dive into the charm of Moo Deng and pick your favorite meme to share, tag a friend, and don’t forget to slip one into a colleague’s inbox for a surprise giggle.

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A Moo Deng meme showing a baby hippo in a UFC cage with text above reading, “A new fighter has been added to the roster,” with a hippo emoji.

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A Moo Deng meme featuring a giant baby hippo facing off against Godzilla on a burning battleship, labeled “Thai Poster Parody” in the corner.

A Moo Deng meme with four photos of a baby hippo doing various activities, captioned “she’s literally just a girl” by Women Posting W’s.

What Species is Moo Deng?Moo Deng is a Pygmy Hippopotamus, a rare breed found only in four countries in West Africa. According to the San Diego Zoo, they’re highly endangered; possibly less than 3,000 are left in the wild.Their forest homes are being cut down and burned, while the rivers where they swim are now polluted (1). Aside from being an online sensation, Moo Deng has become an icon for conservation and wildlife preservation worldwide.Fortunately, zoos have made significant strides in breeding these animals. Additionally, the attention Moo Deng has been receiving on social media is helping to raise awareness about the species’ situation and the conservation efforts to safeguard its natural habitats.

What Species is Moo Deng?

Moo Deng is a Pygmy Hippopotamus, a rare breed found only in four countries in West Africa. According to the San Diego Zoo, they’re highly endangered; possibly less than 3,000 are left in the wild.

Their forest homes are being cut down and burned, while the rivers where they swim are now polluted (1). Aside from being an online sensation, Moo Deng has become an icon for conservation and wildlife preservation worldwide.

Fortunately, zoos have made significant strides in breeding these animals. Additionally, the attention Moo Deng has been receiving on social media is helping to raise awareness about the species’ situation and the conservation efforts to safeguard its natural habitats.

A Moo Deng meme showing a baby hippo and a pufferfish both reacting to streams of water being sprayed into their mouths, side by side.

A Moo Deng meme featuring a small, shiny baby hippo being held up with text above reading, “this is how your email finds me."

Born on July 10, 2024, Moo Deng’s name means “bouncy pork” in Thai. Its mother is Jona, 25, and father is Tony, 24. It has siblings, Moo Too (Pork Stew) and Moo Waan (sweet pork). Moo Deng’s name resulted from a callout on the Home Zoo’s X account asking for name preferences.

In a social poll, they asked the Internet to select the name picks with Moo Sap (“minced pork”) and Moo Daeng (“red pork”) as choices. Tweets rolled in, and the option Moo Deng led the polls, becoming the name of the now-viral pygmy.

A Moo Deng meme showing a baby hippo sitting in a McDonald’s ball pit with the caption, “what would u do in this situation."

A Moo Deng meme with two images of a baby hippo, captioned “If you can’t handle me at my” (left) and “Then you don’t deserve me at my” (right).

When is a Creature Considered Endangered?

Roughly 99 percent of threatened species are at risk because of human activities alone, which is staggering (Brittanica) (4). This means that we’re the biggest threat to biodiversity on earth.

Human activities lead to the loss of habitats for other creatures, we introduce non-native species that skew the balance of ecosystems, we practice unsustainable hunting, and our modernization has caused destructive global warming and chemical pollution.

A Moo Deng meme showing a baby hippo labeled “Introverts minding their business” being held by someone labeled “Extroverts looking for friends."

A Moo Deng meme with three images of a baby hippo labeled “Working,” “Lunch Break,” and “Off Work,” showing different poses for each stage.

What Can We Do To Help in Conservation Efforts?

Saving threatened species is a tumultuous endeavor. But just because it is overwhelming, it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t step up to the challenge.

According to the Animal Welfare Institute, awareness and involvement are the first steps to helping in conservation efforts (5).

A Moo Deng meme comparing a baby hippo to gummy bears, with photos of colorful gummy bears and two images of the hippo lying down and yawning.

A Moo Deng meme showing a muddy baby hippo with its mouth open, captioned “Realizing you’re gonna need another shower."

A Moo Deng meme showing a baby hippo looking stressed, with water splashing on it, captioned “When you’re drowning at work and your boss gives you another assignment."

A Moo Deng meme showing a sandy-faced baby hippo with its mouth open, captioned “When you find out your boss makes 3x your salary but can’t convert an Excel sheet into a PDF."

A Moo Deng meme of a baby hippo nuzzling a person’s leg, labeled “me” and “potatoes in every form."

A Moo Deng meme of a baby hippo looking worried, captioned “Hearing everyone talking about the exam” and “Not hearing a single answer that I put down."

A Moo Deng meme showing a close-up of a baby hippo looking bored, captioned “Me waiting for people to stop talking about their latest diet."

A Moo Deng meme titled “NYC Mood Board” with four baby hippo images labeled: best city, costly shoebox, rats everywhere, and $22 cocktails.

A Moo Deng meme showing a baby hippo with its mouth open, captioned “My cat 30 seconds after I start petting her."

A Moo Deng meme featuring a baby hippo peeking around a tree with the caption “Me when I hear a bag of chips open."

A Moo Deng meme featuring a giant baby hippo facing off against armed warriors in a dark, fantasy battle setting.

See Also on Bored Panda

A Moo Deng meme with a painting labeled “I’m on vacation” next to a photo of a crowd watching a baby hippo, with a woman taking a selfie.

A Moo Deng meme showing a tired baby hippo lying down, captioned “It was all Sunday zoomies, now it’s all Monday phooeys."

A Moo Deng meme of a baby hippo peeking from behind a tree, captioned “Introverts observing people talking about their favorite topic."

A Moo Deng meme showing a baby hippo labeled as a “Fall makeup trend” with captions like “Natural glitter freckles” and “Sandy bar matte lipstick."

A Moo Deng meme showing a pill bottle spilling out various images of a baby hippo, captioned “These could fix me."

A Moo Deng meme featuring a baby hippo wearing a firefighter helmet, walking alongside firefighters in full gear in front of a fire truck.

A Moo Deng meme featuring a baby hippo in front of a lineup of hot sauce bottles, captioned “Moo Deng is going on Hot Ones."

A Moo Deng meme featuring a baby hippo in an anime-style battle arena, alongside a trainer character pointing forward as if in command.

A Moo Deng meme featuring a baby hippo wearing glasses in a modern office setting with a sign reading “MooPay” on the conference room wall.

A Moo Deng meme with a simple drawing showing “Moo deng’s mom” holding a leash on an angry figure labeled “Moo deng."

References

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