Spurned by its mother, Punch was raised in an artificial environment after being born in July, and began training to rejoin his troop last month.
Punch’s predicament sparked huge interest online, spawning a devoted fanbase under the hashtag #HangInTherePunch, as large crowds thronged the zoo.
Meanwhile, Swedish interior furnishings giant IKEA, the maker of the orangutan soft toy, said it was seeing “unprecedented” interest and “significantly” higher sales than usual.
“As a result, the product is currently out of stock in some markets, including Japan and the United States,” Ingka Group, the holding company controlling most of IKEA’s stores, told AFP by email.
Over a long holiday weekend in Japan, fans queued for up to an hour to catch a glimpse of Punch, the Ichikawa zoo said in a post on X, with more than 5,000 visitors recorded on Monday.
The zoo said it had set up a “restricted zone” around part of the monkey enclosure to reduce stress for the animals.
A large number of people have asked how they can donate cash or goods, it added.
In an update on Punch’s plight on Sunday, the zoo said he “was meticulously groomed by two monkeys and is steadily fitting into the group”.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/east-asia/punch-viral-japanese-macaque-monkey-rights-group-treatment-5949541
