For those who haven’t heard of Tori, she is ‘s famous smoking orangutan. While many people may believe the primate’s habit stemmed from workers in this Indonesian animal park becoming bored or looking for publicity, the truth is it’s the tourists that are the enablers.
Fifteen-year-old Tori has been smoking for over 10 years. She learned the habit by watching visitors who would smoke, then toss lit cigarettes into her cage. It also doesn’t help that everyone cheers Tori on as she puffs away. To help Tori kick her smoking habit, workers are moving her to a different zoo, away from cigarettes and those who may give them to her.
This isn’t the first time Indonesian zoos have had trouble with misbehaving visitors. In March, for example, a giraffe died at Surabaya Zoo after ingesting 40 pounds worth of plastic that had been throw into its enclosure. Moreover, Indonesia is one of the only countries in the world where there are few limits on tobacco selling and marketing. It’s no surprise one-third of the country’s population are smokers. This still, however, doesn’t excuse the act of pushing bad habits onto animals.
To see the smoking primate in action, check out the video above. Hopefully, she will be able to quit completely.