A tiny Japanese macaque named Punch has become an unlikely global icon after heartbreaking footage showed him clinging to a stuffed orangutan “best friend” — a surrogate comfort object given to him after his mother abandoned him shortly after birth at Ichikawa City Zoo near Tokyo. The videos, widely shared online, triggered what visitors are calling “monkey-mania,” drawing crowds who come not for a show, but for a glimpse of a baby trying to survive loneliness in public.

Zoo staff say Punch’s story is not cute fiction — it’s emergency animal care. Infant macaques typically cling to their mothers for security and muscle development, so keepers experimented with substitutes before Punch bonded tightly with the orange plush toy, which he now drags everywhere despite it being nearly his size. Zookeepers said they selected the toy in part because its long hair and grasp points make it easy to hold — and because its monkey-like form might help Punch eventually reintegrate into the troop.

But the zoo’s latest updates have also injected anxiety into the viral fairytale: Punch is still learning how to be a monkey. Reuters reported he has struggled to interact smoothly with others, sometimes getting scolded by older macaques — a normal but risky part of social development for an infant raised by humans. The plushie may soothe him now, but it could become a crutch if he can’t build real bonds.

Visitors watching Punch’s gradual progress say the scenes are both uplifting and unsettling: a baby finding comfort — and the world realizing comfort doesn’t last forever. As the zoo tries to guide Punch toward healthier social ties, one question is rising with every viral clip: What happens when the plush “mother” isn’t enough anymore?