Moo Deng, the baby pygmy hippopotamus recently crowned the unofficial darling of the internet, is such a hit that her caretakers, the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Chon Buri, Thailand, are looking to trademark her image.

“Now the zoo is in the process of patenting and trademarking Moo Deng, whether in cartoon form or her image,” zoo director Narongwit Chodchoi told Sky News. “The benefits we will get from this will come back to the zoo to improve the life of all the animals here.”

How exactly the zoo would distinguish a cartoon drawing of Moo Deng from one of other baby hippos remains to be seen.

But Apollo magazine suggested that the zoo might have trouble securing the rights to Moo Deng’s image, pointing to the battle between nature photographer David Slater and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) over the copyright for the famous monkey selfie of Naruto the macaque.

The issue there, however, wasn’t merely that the photographer was looking to copyright an image of Naruto—it was that the Indonesian primate was actually the one who pressed the shutter and took the image, and was technically the image’s author. That’s why the court denied Slater the copyright for the photo—but a judge also ruled that an animal cannot be a copyright holder.

Legal issues aside, the zoo has good reason to want to lock down the right to Moo Deng’s image—her adorably plump visage is already being coopted for use by brands. Sephora Thailand, for instance, has promoted its makeup products by telling its Instagram followers to “wear your blush like a baby hippo.”

 

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The zoo, south of Bangkok, has been overrun with tourists following Moo Deng’s ascent to stardom, necessitating timed visits à la a Yayoi Kusama Infinity Room. She first went on display on July 25.

Moo Deng’s delightfully rolly polly frame and sassy attitude in videos shared by her keeper, Atthapon Nundee, made her an instant hit on social media.

“I think I am close with her to the point I can share lovely day-to-day activities,” he told the New York Times. “Most people like that and watching her grow up.”

Thailand newest celebrity is a baby pigmy hippo from the Khao Kheow Zoo and they are giving the public an opportunity to vote for the baby’s name 😭 [translation of the names below] https://t.co/w6qIs2SGR5

— yammi (@sighyam) August 12, 2024

Some 20,000 Facebook users voted to select her name, which is a type of Thai meatball that roughly translates as “bouncy pork.” A ceramicist and content creator named Yammi Saracino helped translate the poll into English and introduce her to a global audience.

Now, the zoo is hoping to capitalize on the hippo calf’s popularity before the news cycle inevitably moves on to the next viral sensation.

Artnet News senior writer Sarah Cascone’s husband and son at the Hippo Playground in Riverside Park. The hippo sculptures by Bob Cassily date to 1993. Photo by Sarah Cascone.

Meanwhile, if you are a New Yorker in need of a hippo fix and unable to hop the next plane to Thailand, may I recommend the Hippo Playground in Riverside Park? It may not have Moo Deng, but it does have a delightful family of hippos.

The sculptures, by Bob Cassily, founder of St. Louis’s interactive and art-filled City Museum, double as water features and have been bathing in the park since 1993. I used to play there as a child myself, and recently began taking my nine-month-old son to the park, along with my colleague Katie White and her two-year-old. The adorability, while perhaps not Moo Deng-level, is high.