6 Bubbly Baby Animals Whose Awwdorable Plushie Bonds Rival Punch the Monkey

Move over, Punch, you're not the only cutie with a stuffed animal who deserves a moment in the spotlight.

Punch may be the monkey on everyone's social media feeds, but he's hardly the first animal ever to become awwdorably attached to a stuffed animal. It's not uncommon for animal mothers to ostracize their children, the animal kingdom can be a cruel and unforgiving place. As Punch starts to make friends with the other monkeys in his clan, we want to highlight some other bubbly baby animals whose love for their plushie is just as cute, if not cuter! From chimpanzees to baby elephants, and mountain lions to penguins, these cutie critters love to snuggle up with their beloved toys.

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via Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters
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via washingtonpost
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via Sheldrick Wildlife Trust
Kaikai is kicking off our first adorable attachment, but you may be asking yourself, “Where is her toy?” Well, you're looking at it! She's developed a strange, yet oddly silly, affinity for her tire. She loves to roll around in it, use it as a pillow, and sit inside of it while she can still fit (which won't be for much longer). Kaikai lost her mom at a very young age, and while she may not think of the tire as her mother, she definitely prefers for the tire to go everywhere with her.
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via Sheldrick Wildlife Trust
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via washingtonpost
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via Oakland Zoo
When Briar first arrived at the zoo, he had be kept separately while he grew before he was integrated with the rest of the other mountain lions. This was for his safety… but it also made him incredibly lonely. Kittens, even mountain lion kittens, are usually born in litters and are constantly surrounded by other kittens their age. They nap on each other, feed together, and play together, but Briar didn't have any of that. So, the zoo staff gave him a stuffed dog, who he loved very much. The stuffed doggo kept him company until it was time for him to say goodbye and play with the big kids.
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via Oakland Zoo
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via Sea Life Weymouth
Henry's story is very similar to Briar's, both of the baby animals needed time before being introduced to their enclosures, and thus needed some companionship while they waited. You have no idea how much money we would pay to see a baby penguin snuggling up with a little stuffed penguin. Just thinking about it right now is making our eyes well up with cuteness overload.
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via Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest
It makes sense to us that three of the six animals are primates, seeing as how we're not so different from them if you think about it! Just like Punch loves and finds security in his stuffed orange monkey, Foxie found something special in her tiny troll doll. Isn't it interesting that she now plays with all kinds of dolls? To us, it's fascinating!
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via Project Chimps
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via Project Chimps