Alkie Ape told to Cleanup its Act

A vodka drinking, cigarette smoking chimpanzee from Rostov has been sent to a rehab to rid him of his dirty habits. The 26 year-old chimpanzee is named Zhora.

He was sent from the zoo in the southern Russian Federation city of Rostov to a rehabilitation facility for addicts and alcoholics in Kazan, 800 kilometers east of Moscow. Zhora was formerly a circus performer. However, he was dropped from the circus's retinue when he became aggressive and violent towards trainers.He had then been brought to the zoo from the Tatarstan republic five years ago. It was at the zoo, and not while performing with the circus that he picked up the two vices of smoking and drinking. Zoo workers attributed Zhora's addictions to indulgences by visitors. "People laugh when they see an animal drinking [alcohol] and smoking, but vicious habits damage [the animal's] health, and many do not understand this." "The beer and cigarettes were ruining him. He would pester passers-by for booze," the Komsomolskaya Pravda paper said. The unique but sordid story has gone global with publications in countries as diverse as India, Argentina and North America including Huffington Post picking up on it.