Moo Deng, Pesto and other viral baby animals stealing our hearts
Internet stars
The internet has always adored animals, whether it’s for their cute appearance or their natural memeability. Think the Shiba Inu ‘Doge’ or the Huh Cat that have been immortalised on the web with the amount of memes they generated. Now, animals—specifically baby animals—are having another moment on the internet all thanks to a feisty baby hippo.
Ahead, we’ve rounded up five (it was a difficult task) of our favourite viral baby animals that have stolen our hearts. Prepare for cuteness overload!
Moo Deng: Sassy girlboss
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Species: Pygmy Hippo
Country of origin: Thailand
Born on 10 July in Thailand, it didn’t take long for Moo Deng (which means bouncy pork or meatball in Thai) to start running things at Khao Kheow Zoo. Full of sass and energy, Moo Deng is the epitome of female rage and chaos packaged in a fun-sized plump with enviable glass skin. Her angry expressions and tantrums make her the perfect candidate for memes and even inspired an SNL skit.
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But the little princess also has a duality to her: when she’s not biting at her zookeeper or fighting with the water hose, the baby pygmy hippo—an endangered species native to West Africa—enjoys rubs on her blushy cheeks and blows snot bubbles while napping (be still, heart). Long lines have formed at Khao Kheow Zoo to catch a glimpse of Moo Deng but you can also check in on her from the zoo’s 24/7 livestream. Happy watching!
Pesto the Penguin: An absolute unit
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Species: King Penguin
Country of origin: Australia
If Moo Deng is the Queen of the baby animal kingdom, then Pesto the Penguin is the undisputed King—just look at the size of him. Weighing at a whopping 22 kilograms, Pesto’s enormous stature quickly garnered him viral fame at Sea Life Melbourne Aquarium. Being the big baby he is, Pesto eats about 25 fish per day and waddles slowly to get around, giving him the aura of true royalty among his penguin peers.
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“Pesto’s impressive weight is due to a number of factors. Firstly, his biological dad, Blake, is our biggest and oldest penguin. Secondly, he’s had amazing parents raising him! So, the combination of good genes and good parents explains his current weight, but he will lose a lot of this when he fledges (develops his adult feathers.),” the aquarium explains. All hail King Pesto!
Hua Hua: Very demure, very mindful
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Species: Giant panda
Country of origin: China
If we’re going to continue with the royalty theme, then Hua Hua (which means flower in Mandarin) is the people’s princess. The internet has a soft spot for the round giant panda because she was born with developmental delays which made her smaller and weaker than her fellow pandas. In fact, Hua Hua was so small that her siblings would often roughouse her or steal her food. However, her onigiri-shaped body only made her more endearing to the public.
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Despite all of this, the adorable fluffball is known for her gentle and sweet demeanour. Currently residing in the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, she’s happy to nibble on bamboo stalks all day and has a playful side with her caretaker, Grandpa Tan, whom she formed a close bond with. With her round eyes and even rounder body, we can’t help but melt when we see Hua Hua.
Molé: Just happy to be there
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Species: Two-toed Sloth
Country of origin: Costa Rica
Sloths may not come to mind when someone mentions cute animals but this baby sloth will change your mind. Meet Molé, an orphaned baby sloth who stole our hearts with its adorable smiling face. The little creature first gained popularity after appearing in a series of videos with creator Kyle Thomas while he was volunteering at the Kids Saving the Rainforest rehabilitation centre.
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The baby sloth’s typical day involves going into the jungle for his daily dose of vitamin D and partaking in various behavioural enrichment activities such as tree crawling. He even has a teddy bear he likes to cling to for comfort (our eyes are not watering). With his dopey smile, little Molé reminds us to take things slow and live in the present. The centre hopes to eventually release Molé back into the wild so all the more reason to follow his journey now before that happens!
Beardsley Zoo’s Anteater: Mysterious marvel
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Species: Giant anteater
Country of origin: United States
If you never thought anteaters could be cute, think again! While they’re not fluffy or endearingly plump, anteaters are still entertaining to look at because of a certain appendage. As its name suggests, their diet is purely made up of ants and termites. The mammal belongs to the suborder Vermilingua which means “worm tongue”. They don’t have teeth and instead, suck up insects with its tongue which can grow up to two feet long!
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Connecticut’s Beardsley Zoo recently welcomed a baby giant anteater to its enclosure. But it seems like the zoo isn’t preoccupied with chasing fame with the little one (in fact, it hasn’t even named the baby yet) so the anteater has only made a few appearances on its social media pages so far. Perhaps this tactic is a way to garner more intrigue—and we can say it’s definitely working judging by netizens’ comments! Baby anteaters are known to ride on their mother’s back for a full year so hopefully, we’ll get to see more of these adorable moments soon.
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