Six-month-old Japanese macaque Punch has become an internet star, but for somewhat sad reasons.
Punch was left by his mom right after he was born, so the caretakers at Ichikawa Zoo in Japan gave him a plush orangutan as a substitute. The little monkey formed such a strong bond with the toy that he started taking it everywhere with him. It quickly became a viral sensation.
Integration Issues
Recently, a video went viral showing little Punch being dragged across the ground by another monkey. People were concerned about his well-being. The zoo itself responded to explain what happened.
"When Punch tried to communicate with another youngster from the troop, the youngster avoided him. Punch then sat down, seemingly giving up on interacting with the monkey, and was scolded and dragged away by an adult monkey," reports Ichikawa Zoo.
"In our efforts to integrate Punch with other groups of Japanese macaques, we anticipated that similar issues might arise. Although Punch has been scolded by other monkeys multiple times, none have shown him serious aggression," the zoo adds. Posts surfaced online claiming that the other monkeys were trying to kill Punch.
The zoo also mentioned that Punch behaved just like any other day during feeding later that day.
