Baby Macaque Abandoned by Mother Captivates Social Media Attention

A video featuring a six-month-old macaque named Panji from the Ichikawa Zoo in Japan has garnered significant attention on social media after it was revealed that a soft toy had replaced its mother. This was reported by the Hindustan Times.

Panji was born in July 2025, but shortly after birth, the mother refused to take care of the infant. The staff at the zoo took over the responsibility of caring for the baby monkey. Later, Panji was moved to a communal enclosure, but it struggled to bond with other macaques.

As a result, the zoo staff gave him a soft toy. Panji carries the toy everywhere, sleeps with it, and hugs it tightly. In one of the widely circulated videos online, the baby macaque interacts lovingly with the toy, sparking a wave of emotional reactions from viewers.

Many comments on social media highlight the importance of social connections for animals and note that the video has touched the hearts of numerous individuals.