For weeks, the story of Punch the monkey has tugged at heartstrings around the world. Videos of this lonely baby monkey at Japan’s Ichikawa Zoo have triggered global outpourings of empathy, grief and outrage.
Abandoned by his mother, the young macaque has been seemingly bullied by other monkeys. His only comfort is a stuffed toy he drags around his concrete enclosure. The response online is unequivocal: “STOP BULLYING LITTLE PUNCH”.
Punch is not the first captive animal to spark such strong emotional reactions. Moo Deng, a baby pygmy hippo, drew thousands of fans to her enclosure in Thailand, and Joey, a rescued sea otter pup in Canada, became famous during COVID lockdowns thanks to his YouTube livestream.
