Punch The Monkey, who was occupying every page, scroll and every minute on social media, has outgrown his attachment to his orange plushie, as he found a new bestie, Mo.
Punch the Monkey, a tiny Japanese macaque, left global netizens relating to him after he was seen carrying an orange plushie everywhere he went. Punch the Monkey sparked a viral surge, and it happened due to a very emotional relatability.
First, the internet was obsessed with a penguin's video, which showed the penguin leaving all behind and moving forward, and followed by that, Punch the Monkey's emotional attachment to his plushie, after being abandoned by everyone, not only struck an emotional chord but also led people to launch campaigns, even well, that was because of virality. However, Punch the Monkey is trending again, and this time, not because he was clinging to his orange plushie, but because he had left him, rather outgrown him.
Punch the monkey was born in July 2025, and his real name is Panchi-Kum. When he was just 6 months old, his mom abandoned him, and he was left lonely. Not only that, while Panchi was already abandoned, he was also not able to form any connection to the older macaques in the Ichikawa City Zoo in Japan, where he was staying. As he was struggling and all alone, the Zoo authorities gave him an orange plushie, which became his home and someone he relied on, just like a surrogate mother.
In the videos that went viral, he was seen clinging to the plushie, carrying it around anywhere he goes, or protecting it, which was a clear sign of his emotional safety with the soft toy. Punch the Monkey started going viral, and it was just then that it was revealed that he was being kept with other macaques. He was making progress, and while he was scared, he was trying. However, he still had his plushie by his side.
Now, new reports suggest that he had outgrown his attachment to his orange plushie. Recently, the Zoo authorities, who have been sharing continuous updates on Panchi, revealed that the tiny one is thriving well in his troop and continuously developing his social skills. As per a staff member, he also formed a deep bond with a macaque named Mo. Several videos of Panchi and Mo went viral, where they were seen playing, grooming and clinging onto each other. As per the staff members, the monkey has accepted Punch, and they are getting along well, which made the viral one attached, leading to his outgrown attachment to his orange plushie.
The staff members of the Zoo had earlier revealed that the visitors had increased soon after Punch's videos sparked a viral surge. They now shared that the little one continues to do well, and as the little one is a zoo animal, the members keep on focusing on his health and development. To mention, Japanese macaques often have social issues during the early stage of life. For Punch, as he was left abadoned from his mom, it was even tougher for him to socialise, and while the other monkeys were initially a bit arrogant to him, as per the Zoo members, they are now accepting him broadly, making him feel included, and thereby continuously evolving his social skills.
Watch the video here.
What do you think about Punch outgrowing his attachment to his plushie?
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