The zoo defended its care for Moo Deng, arguing the baby hippo receives the best possible care and is part of a conservation programme Thailand has dismissed as outdated, animal rights group Peta's accusations that an internet-famous female baby pygmy hippo "faces a lifetime of confinement" at a local zoo cashing in on the mammal's stardom.

Only a month after the adorable baby hippo Moo Deng was unveiled on Facebook, her fame became unstoppable both domestically and internationally.