Punch the Monkey went viral overnight because of his adorable face and his companion stuffed animal that he cuddled with after arriving at the Ichikawa City Zoo.
As adorable as viewers across the globe thought he was, however, some were concerned about the orphaned monkey's ability to adjust to the new space and become a part of the troop. Because of videos that appeared online showing older monkeys correcting and disciplining him, some viewers were worried that he was being bullied.
The staff at Ichikawa City Zoo attempted to reassure audiences, pointing out:
"Although Punch has been scolded many times by other monkeys, no single monkey has shown serious aggression toward him."
"When you observe these disciplinary behaviors from other troop members toward Punch when he tries to communicate with them, we would like you to support Punch's effort rather than feel sorry for him."
Despite other reassurances that Punch was being cared for and was doing fine with his troop, the internet remained concerned.
They pondered if the Zoo was properly equipped to deal with issues with bullying within the troop or if his stuffed animal would remain Punch's sole companion. Some even went so far as to argue that Punch should be removed from the troop and either reintroduced in the future or transferred to a sanctuary instead.
Seeing the comments, the staff at the Ichikawa City Zoo released a statement, reassuring the public that not only was Punch acclimating well, but it would be detrimental to his health if his time with the troop was interrupted. Though his progress has been slow, it's also been steady, and he's clearly bonding with some of the fellow monkeys in the troop who are around his age.
The staff at the Ichikawa City Zoo wrote:
"We have received many voices of concern from people both in Japan and overseas. This post is to once again clarify our position on these concerns, according to the following points."
"First, Japanese macaques follow a strict hierarchical society, and dominant individuals show 'disciplining actions' toward their subordinates. These behaviors differ from human 'abuses.'"
"Japanese primatologists have been studying the behavior, society, and ecology of Japan's native monkeys since 1948. Based on the existing literature, this 'discipline' occurs naturally in Japanese macaque groups and is not limited to Punch's group."
The zoo urged audiences to remember that a video is not reflective of Punch's life 24/7.
"These 'disciplining actions' do not occur incessantly, and Punch spends most of the day peacefully. The number of monkeys who look after or play with Punch is also increasing. Because of this, the time Punch spends away from his stuffed toy has increased."
"Having said that, a few high-ranking macaques have demonstrated aggression more frequently, and we removed these macaques from the troop on March 8 as a temporary measure. We plan to monitor them carefully in this condition for a while."
The zoo was positive that Punch was in good health and in no danger.
"Our zoo has a team of three veterinarians who check on the health condition of all animals, including Punch, on a daily basis."
"At this time, there has been no evidence that Punch has been attacked in a way that would threaten his survival."
"Furthermore, we have no intention of ignoring the 'discipline' or altering our care in order to attract sympathy from people and thereby increase the number of visitors to our zoo or increase profits."
The zoo was confident about Punch's future and did not want to get in the way of his success.
"Many people have expressed the opinion that 'Punch should be separated from the troop.' This sentiment is completely understandable."
"However, Punch has become accustomed to living in this troop, so separating him now would create the risk that he would never be able to return to the group and would have to continue living that way for the rest of his life."
"We share your concerns about Punch, and all the zookeepers and staff will continue to work together to ensure that Punch can continue to live a healthy life as part of this troop of monkeys."
You can see the statement here:
Audiences were more reassured after the latest statement.
It's hard to watch someone as cute as Punch struggling. But just because we love his adorable face does not mean that his needs are different from other monkeys.
Fortunately, he seems to be fitting in with his troop, and as adorable as all of the photographs of him snuggling with his stuffed animal were, we're sure to see him bonding with fellow monkeys much more in the future.
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