How many two-month-old babies become overnight internet sensations? While the answer to this question is probably more than any of us realize, Moo Deng would still give them a run for their money. An adorable pygmy hippopotamus , she was born at the Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand on July 10, 2024.
Since her summery arrival, she’s stolen millions of hearts while bringing public awareness to a highly endangered species. She’s also inspired many to stroll down memory lane, evoking historical celebrities of her species like William Johnson Hippopotamus.
United States presidents have been making waves with their animal menageries since George Washington. In fact, our first president was renowned for his vast collection of dogs, horses, a goldfish, and even a pet camel. He also had a herd of pigs that he let free range, although they probably didn’t fall into the “pet” category.
To catch up with a presidential pet that received regular attention in the news, however, we must fast forward to William G. Harding’s presidency. President Harding had famous pooches like Laddie Boy, an Airedale terrier, and Rob Roy, a stunning white collie. Many beloved pets would follow, from FDR’s Scottish terrier, Fala, to Bill Clinton’s tuxedo cat, Socks.
But no first family holds a candle to the Coolidges when it comes to neat creature friends, including the pinnacle of presidential pets: a pygmy hippo. Calvin and Grace Coolidge had serious animal fever. Furry and feathery sidekicks abounded at the White House. From cats and dogs to a goose, songbirds, a donkey, and a raccoon named Rebecca.
Grace Coolidge was heartbroken after Rebecca required relocation to a local zoo for a less starstruck lifestyle. (Fame can stress out furry beings, too.) So, family friends intervened with an exotic parade of animals that would make Noah’s Ark look tame. These included a baby antelope and two lion cubs gifted by the mayor of Johannesburg, South Africa! Fast on the heels of these gifts came more—a wallaby, a bear, and even a bobcat. But none compared to William Johnson Hippopotamus, a sheep-sized, semi-aquatic mammal with a weighty title.
Unfortunately, there’s a darker side to this story. William Johnson Hippopotamus, or Billy as he was more commonly known, was gifted to the Coolidges as a baby by Harvey Firestone of the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company.
Workers captured the animal at a Firestone Rubber Plant in Liberia. This was no coincidence. Rubber production activities at the plant actively destroyed the habitat for these mini hippos, pushing them to the brink. Sadly, the media of the day didn’t pick up on this tragedy. And no public outcry to save Billy’s homeland followed, despite what can only be described as monumental fame. Before the British invasion came the Liberian invasion, thanks to this cute-as-a-button critter.
At the time of his arrival, Billy measured six feet long and three feet tall. He proved a handful, even for the Coolidges. So, keeping a hippo at the White House, even a miniature one, wouldn’t last long. Soon, Billy made his home at the Rock Creek Zoo. Despite the new crib, his celebrity didn’t fade. He soon became even more famous than Rebecca, the raccoon.
Newspapers lauded him “as frisky as a dog.” The zookeepers loved him. Billy also earned a reputation as a man about town. According to media reports, he made new friends wherever he went. Eventually, the zoo paired Billy with a female pygmy hippo named Hannah. At first, they experienced trouble raising their calves, losing the first three. The zookeepers blamed Hannah. But they figured out the bigger problem came from housing the diminutive animals next to a terrifying, natural-born enemy: lions.
Eventually, zookeepers adjusted the hippos’ enclosure, removing the constant threat (in the hippos’ minds) of predation from lions. The result? A cute, chunk-a-lunk infant just like Moo Deng! Only Americans in 1929 called Billy and Hannah’s daughter Gumdrop.
Crowds flocked to meet the happy family. All told, Billy would go on to father 18 surviving calves with various female hippos. All were named Gumdrop , with a Roman numeral added to the end of their name to distinguish them. Despite the popularity of Billy’s babies, they never eclipsed their dad’s fame. He even traveled to New York City’s World’s Fair in 1939.
Memories of this fantastic presidential pet faded over time. But Billy proved invaluable in buttressing pygmy hippo populations stateside. And he was wildly famous during his lifetime. He also helped raise awareness about an incredible lifeform on the edge of extinction. Kind of like Moo Deng today.
The sad edge to Billy’s story is that he ended up in the United States due to the destruction of his habitat. This trend has continued into the twenty-first century. Today, there are an estimated two thousand pygmy hippos left in their native West Africa. They live primarily in Liberia, with smaller populations along the Ivory Coast, Guinea, and Sierra Leone. Hopefully the current conversation around Moo Deng will spark new efforts to save this one-of-a-kind species for many generations to come.
