Zoo officials reportedly said the move was intended to protect the animal amid the viral attention and to give visitors a chance to see it safely.
A buffalo that went viral online for its resemblance to Donald Trump has been rescued from an Eid sacrifice and relocated to Bangladesh’s national zoo, news agency Reuters reported. The animal, weighing nearly 700kg, drew attention on social media in the days leading up to Eid al-Adha after photos and videos showed its distinctive white forehead patch and comb-over-like hair pattern. Viewers quickly dubbed it the “Donald Trump buffalo,” and clips racked up millions of views.
The animal was earlier sold by its owner, 38-year-old Zia Uddin Mridha. But amid growing public interest, government officials intervened at the last minute. They purchased the animal and transferred it to Dhaka’s Bangladesh National Zoo, where it will remain on public display rather than being sacrificed.
A ministry official said that the animal was saved because of the security concerns. “At the last moment, the decision was taken to spare the buffalo from sacrifice due to security concerns and the unusual level of public interest,” the official said as quoted in multiple reports.
Zoo officials reportedly said the move was intended to protect the animal amid the viral attention and to give visitors a chance to see it safely. The buffalo is now housed in a designated enclosure and is expected to become one of the zoo’s most photographed residents.
#Watch | People gather to see the viral albino buffalo with blond locks, nicknamed ‘Donald Trump,’ before it is sacrificed as part of the Eid al-Adha festival’s ‘Qurbani’ ritual. pic.twitter.com/jrzX8go4LJ
— NDTV (@ndtv) May 26, 2026
Earlier this month, when the animal had become popular, its owner, as quoted by The Business Standard, said, “My younger brother jokingly named it Donald Trump after seeing the hair on its head.”
“It is very calm in nature. Albino buffaloes are generally peaceful and do not become aggressive unless provoked,” Mridha.
Those who saw it in person had also embraced the comparison. “When I saw his pictures on Facebook, he looked exactly like Donald Trump,” one woman recently told Bangladeshi newspaper, Prothom Alo.
“His facial structure and even hairstyle match that of Trump.” But she was quick to add a key difference as she noted that the buffalo is very “calm and polite” in nature.
