NEWS FLASH: Beer, Sunflower Seeds Help Smoker Quit
I’m not alone. Another smoker out there is slogging along with his own smoking cessation effort.
Xiku, of Urumqi, China, is a chimpanzee with a serious smoking habit. With the help of cessation aids–beer and sunflower seeds–Xiku has nearly scratched away his itch for tobacco.
Xiku took up smoking during his long career as a circus star. After he retired and relocated to a zoo in Urumqi, visitors fueled his addiction by throwing him cigarettes for amusement. As a result, Xiku’s habit grew to a pack a day.
The zoo recently instituted a ban on the cigarette donations and set Xiku on the course toward cessation.
“At the beginning, he became irascible when he wanted to smoke, jolting windows and doors,” the Xinhua (China) news service quoted a zookeeper as saying.
The combination of beer and sunflower seeds, administered by his keepers, eased the withdrawal symptoms, enabling Xiku to kick the habit.
Source: USA Today, 6/23/2006
I wonder what brand of beer Xiku prefers.
