Internet’s Best Reactions to Viral Abandoned Monkey Punch
If you've been online, you might have noticed an adorable baby monkey and his plushie gaining traction on the Internet.
If you missed it, his name is Punch (or Panchi-kun), and he's an abandoned baby macaque that has stolen the people's hearts.
Trending across X, Threads, Instagram, etc., he's as viral as they go. And so, here are the best memes dedicated to little Panchi-kun. He's got people literally pledging their lives for him.
Punch's Origin Story
For context, baby Punch was rejected by his mother and hand-reared by caretakers at the Ichikawa City Zoo before being released to join the rest of the zoo’s macaque troop.
Like many hand-reared animals, Punch struggled to fit in. A solution was found when caretakers gave him a stuffed orangutan from IKEA, which provided the baby macaque a sense of security and comfort as he navigated the socialization process, which included “scolding” and what appeared to be some bullying from the other monkeys.
After receiving "disciplinary" reactions from the older, bigger monkeys, or when Punch is relaxing, he turns to "Oran-Mama," his surrogate mother of sorts.
Se me partió el corazón. pic.twitter.com/fYh3ph0Gq7
— En Júpiter (@En_jupiter_) February 20, 2026
Punch's keeper Kosuke Shikano told The Guardian, “Baby Japanese macaques immediately cling on to their mother’s body after birth to build muscle strength. They also get a sense of security through holding on to something. However, because he had been abandoned, Punch had nothing to grip on to."
Shikano's hope is that one day there will be a day when Punch no longer needs his toy at all.
As of today, even though the little seven-month old still clings to his plushie, he has been spotted playing with friends, receiving grooming, and even a warm embrace from a member of the troop.
When one of the harsher-seeming actions of the older monkeys recently went viral, the Ichikawa Zoo wrote a letter on X reassuring the public that this is a normal process of the reintegration process. They said Punch shows "resilience" and "mental strength" after these interactions and that instead of feeling sorry for him, they urged his admirers to support "Punch's efforts" instead.
Here's What People Are Saying About Punch
For this person, Punch is his ''Shayla":
My shayla ????pic.twitter.com/ao2BKYDvWf
— no context animals (@twperritos) February 20, 2026
Loving Punch has become all-consuming:
— positive side of X ???? (@positivityofx) February 20, 2026
Punch hive, rise:
— 7/11 Truther (@DaveMcNamee3000) February 20, 2026
For Punch, and Punch only:
goodnight to punch and punch only pic.twitter.com/hpUG7WLKR6
— ???? (@twaniimals) February 20, 2026
Punch's "brothers," according to the Internet (his beloved caretakers):
This post by Ikea Switzerland:
Punch is everything:
the fact that i didn’t know this monkey two days ago and now id die for him pic.twitter.com/cSiZjTzsxQ
— brook ????️ (@99zjjk) February 20, 2026
And lastly, to those monkey bullies:
Punch in a few years… pic.twitter.com/NC98AP0wlt
— kira ???? (@kirawontmiss) February 20, 2026