Gambiaj.com – (DHAKA, Bangladesh) – A viral albino buffalo nicknamed “Donald Trump” for his striking blond tuft of hair has been saved from ritual sacrifice at the last minute by Bangladeshi authorities, and will now take up residence at the country’s national zoo.
Just hours before the animal was due to be slaughtered for Eid al-Adha, the Islamic festival of sacrifice observed across Muslim-majority Bangladesh, the government stepped in to spare the 700-kilogram bull. The rare albino buffalo had captured widespread attention on social media in recent weeks, with his spectacular blond forelock drawing instant comparisons to the iconic hairstyle of U.S. President Donald Trump.
The curator of the national zoo, Atiqur Rahman, confirmed the animal would be properly cared for. “We have reserved a shelter for the albino buffalo and assigned a keeper to him,” he said, adding that the animal would first be placed in quarantine for two weeks.
From Internet Sensation to Police Intervention
The buffalo’s original owner, Zia Uddin Mridha, 38, said his brother had given the animal its now-famous nickname in tribute to its “extraordinary hair.”
In the weeks leading up to Eid, the beast had become a local celebrity, drawing a steady stream of curious visitors, social media fans, passersby, and children alike, who flocked to take photographs with the unlikely star.
Despite the animal’s fame, Mridha decided to sell the bull ahead of the holiday. Eid al-Adha is one of the most significant occasions in the Islamic calendar, during which more than 12 million head of livestock, including goats, sheep, cows, and buffalo, are expected to be sacrificed in Bangladesh alone.
For many poor families, it represents one of the rare opportunities in the year to eat meat in abundance.
However, a dramatic last-minute twist unfolded when police were dispatched following a government order to protect the animal. “The livestock services asked us to retrieve the buffalo from its owner, as it is a rare animal,” Mohammad Ruhul Quddus, chief officer at the Keraniganj police station in Dhaka, where the bull was subsequently taken, told AFP.
Authorities also noted that “Donald Trump” was “still very young and could be raised for a few more years.”
The buffalo now joins a growing list of animals made famous by their resemblance to public figures, trading his moment of viral celebrity for a long and comfortable life behind zoo walls.
Source: AFP
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