MONKEYS AS ANTI-STRESS THERAPISTS

Great story, but is it real?

Regardless, this is something that should be done more often. If cats and dogs can act as great stress relievers, than you can only imagine that the antics of cute monkeys would be equally, if not more, beneficial.

From Mos.news : A family of cynomolgus (long-tailed) monkeys, has been helping people fight stress at a special “psychological relief room” in a Belarus zoo for several years. Citizens of Vitebsk come and share their troubles and triumphs with the primates.

People come to the monkeys for support, zoo director Zhanetta Kochenovskaya told Interfax. “Anyone can come into the room where the monkey family lives and tell them of their troubles and problems. You can whine, tell your secrets and even cry out loud.”

According to the director, the monkeys’ most frequent “patients” are 40-45 year old men going through the so-called middle-age crisis, as well as young girls.

Even stressed office workers seek consolation in the monkeys’ cage.

“We’ve had troubled civil servants come to see their distant ancestors for psychological support and stress relief. And communicating with the monkeys helped them,” Kochenovskaya added.

SCENARIO :

Man enters cage, sits down, monkey comes close, scratches bum, smells it, offers it to latest psych patient, who ignores offer of intimacy and begins -

"I suppose my troubles really began when my mother...."

"Ooooh! Oooh! Arrhhh! Arrhh! Oooh! Arrrh!"

"I know you're right, I know. Thank you. Do you take credit cards or is it just bananas?"

"OOOHH! ARRRKKK!!"

"Okay, cash it is then."