The Ichikawa City Zoo in Japan has recently responded to online rumors that their monkey named Punch is being bullied. In a news statement shared on Wednesday March 11th, zoo officials addressed concerns from fans of Punch the monkey.
The zoo starts by showing a video that was recorded last month showing Punch being dragged by an adult monkey. Even though Punch has been scolded by other monkeys before, the zoo said he has not been seriously injured by any of the other monkeys.
Punch was abandoned by his mother shortly after he was born in July 2025, so he was raised by zoo staff during his early months. Because he was often alone he was given a stuffed orangutan for comfort, which he became very attracted to.
Zoo officials explained that Punch usually spends his days calmly and doesn’t have problems unless it involves the “disciplinary” moments that were caught on video and went viral. The Zoo also said more monkeys have started to play with and look after Punch, which has helped him spend less time with his stuffed toy. (https://www.eonline.com/news/1429614/punch-the-monkey-being-bullied-japans-ichikawa-city-zoo-denies)
Some monkeys that were acting more aggressively toward Punch were temporarily removed from the habitat. On March 8th the zoo also said that a team of veterinarians check on all of the animals including Punch every day to make sure they are healthy.
Right now there is no evidence that punch has been attacked in a way that could seriously harm him. The zoo also said that they are not ignoring the situation or trying to change things just to get more attention from visitors.
(https://earth.org/the-viral-story-of-punch-the-monkey-exposes-the-dark-side-of-social-media-stardom/)
They understand why people online want Punch to be separated, but they believe it’s more important for him to adjust to living with the group. Since punch is already used to being with his troop, separating him now could make things worse and prevent him from ever returning to the group.
The zoo staff said they will keep working together to make sure Punch stays healthy and can continue living with other monkeys.
