Punch the Monkey causes intense emotional reactions on social media
Baby Monkey causes big emotions, Monkey Punch hits a nerve on social media and makes everyone emotional.
An IKEA stuffed animal dragged around by a viral baby monkey at a Japanese zoo is being sold for hundreds of dollars on eBay after selling out online.
Punch, the adorable monkey abandoned at Japan’s Ichikawa City Zoo, has been shocked online by his obsession with a stuffed orangutan given to him by zoo keepers as a way to cope without his mother. His mother abandoned him “soon after he was born” on July 26, 2025, the zoo said.
The baby is currently being cared for by zoo staff.
Punch’s fame exploded last week when he was approached by a group of adult monkeys, who dragged him around in circles on the ground before the baby managed to escape and run to a stuffed orangutan sitting in the corner of the enclosure. A bystander captured a video of the incident, which has since gone viral online.
Immediately after the attack, Ikea posted a photo of a stuffed monkey with its arms wrapped around a cozy orangutan, listed as Jungelskog, which the company sells for $19.99, with the words, “We’re all a family of punches now.”
More stuffed animals like Punch and other zoo animals
Regarding the attack, the zoo said in a statement: “Punch has been scolded many times by other monkeys in the past and has learned how to get along with monkeys.”
The statement continued: “In the video, Punch runs up to the stuffed orangutan after being dragged. However, as usual, after a while, he leaves the stuffed animal and communicates with other monkeys.”
Before the incident, a Scandinavian furniture store donated IKEA stuffed animals for Punch and other animals at the zoo. On February 17, Mayor Koichi Tanaka posted a photo on X of IKEA Japan President Petra Ferre alongside IKEA’s baby monkey stuffed toys and other zoo animals.
Hundreds of items are being sold on eBay
Now that the toys are no longer available online, resellers are jacking up the prices. USA TODAY found several listings for the toy on eBay, currently selling for hundreds of dollars. Some listings started at $100 and reached $384. IKEA told the Washington Post that the product is sold out in the U.S., Japan and South Korea.
Apparently there is also a toy market. Several of the stuffed monkeys sold for about $100, according to completed listings.
Meanwhile, the zoo has been issuing frequent progress reports to keep fans updated on the baby monkey.
USA TODAY reached out to IKEA via email for comment.
