Everyone's Rooting for Lonely Baby Monkey and His IKEA Toy

If there's a symbol of the world's love for a baby monkey abandoned by his mother in the Japanese zoo he calls home, it's IKEA's Djungelskog stuffie, suddenly flying off shelves. Punch, a 7-month-old macaque at Ichikawa City Zoo near Tokyo, has become an online fixation thanks to videos of him clutching the orangutan plush—a stand-in for the mother who abandoned him at birth in July. The zoo says the IKEA toy acts as his security blanket: When other monkeys rebuff him, he races back to the stuffed animal, then ventures out again once he feels safe, per the Washington Post. Scientists say the scenes echo classic primate research showing how crucial comfort is for infant development.

The public response has been swift. The $20 Djungelskog orangutan now being marketed as "Punch's comfort orangutan" has sold out in South Korea, the Post reports, and is hard to come by in the US. IKEA has asked customers in South Korea, the US, and Japan to have patience. There's no need to fret for Punch, however: IKEA has donated enough of the stuffies to Ichikawa City Zoo to keep him supplied, USA Today reports.

Still, onlookers do fear for Punch, owing to viral clips of him being dragged or ignored by his fellow macaques since his introduction last month. The clips have spawned the hashtag #HangInTherePunch and support from fans around the world, per the New York Times. The zoo frames the rough treatment as part of Punch's crash course in learning to be a monkey. "He's got to live a monkey life," one biologist said, per the Post. But there are signs that he's adjusting. He was recently seen being groomed, receiving a hug, and climbing on another monkey's back, the Times reports, suggesting he may soon have real friends to usurp his stuffed orangutan.