Why did Allah transform the Jews who transgressed on the Sabbath into apes and pigs, specifically, and not into other animals?

The majority of scholars hold that the transformation was physical, with their bodies literally turning into monkeys, a view favored by Ibn Ashour, contrary to the opinion of Mujahid who asserted that the transformation was of the minds, not the bodies.

As for their transformation into pigs, it has been said that some of them were transformed as well, or that the disbelievers from the table (Ma'idah) of Jesus (peace be upon him) were transformed, or that the young men among the People of the Sabbath were transformed into monkeys and their elders into pigs.

The wisdom behind their transformation into monkeys and pigs was a recompense for their transgression of Allah's limits on the Sabbath day. Thus, they exited the realm of human perfection and entered the ranks of animality: the monkey in its whims and the pig in its desires.