The Story of Punch the Monkey

Written by: Madison vHO

Abandonment is a harmful thing, it happens to people and animals much more than you’d think. It can leave serious effects on one. The popular monkey Punch, that became extremely viral after his mother abandoned him only a few days after he was born, is one big example of this. He was bullied and alone without his mother there to protect him or help him get accepted into the group.   

Punch Getting "Bullied" by the Older Monkeys

Punch or Punch-Kun was born last July at the Ichikawa Zoo in Japan. He began to go viral when videos of him being bullied by the other macaque’s in his habitat were posted. The monkeys continued to attack him and drag him around. Zookeepers believe that his mother abandoned him due to the July heatwave and long, exhausting labor, as well her being a first-time-mother, they believe that this may have led to her prioritizing her own survival instead of his.

Punch is a macaque monkey, a species that don’t normally abandon their kids in the wild. Researchers believe that it could be because of how wild macaques grow up in groups and mothers will normally get help and support from relatives, while she could’ve wanted help, it may have also been stress from captivity. The caretakers at the zoo had to raise Punch and didn’t know how they would help him survive, that’s when the orangutan plush came in. When Japanese macaques are born they immediately begin to cling to something so the keepers attempted to use many substitutes for him to cling to or act as his “mother”, such as rolled up towels and lots of different stuffed animals. Eventually Punch decided on the orange orangutan plushie. He cuddled it and groomed it as these monkeys normally do to show love and affection.

Punch and his Orange Orangutan

When he was put into the enclosure with the other monkeys he was dragged around and “scolded” by them. He would run away after and cuddle his stuffy behind rocks, hiding from the others. Since his mom abandoned him and he had been raised by zookeepers, he had trouble getting accepted into the group and having natural social skills. He relied on his orangutan for comfort. An older female monkey, Momiage started to take care of him and often groomed him. Although after weeks of taking this from the other adult monkeys he eventually stood up for himself and was slowly accepted into the troop. He began spending less time with his plushie and more time interacting with the others and playing with the monkeys.

Punch with the Other Monkeys

Today he is thriving. Takashi Yasunaga who is the head of the zoo even says “I think the number of monkeys that Punch is getting along with is increasing day by day.”  Punch is being accepted as family in the group and some say he may even be taking a liking to Momo-chan who is another young monkey in the troop, while others say she seems more like a supportive sister getting him more situated into the group.

Punch and Momo-Chan