A heavily pregnant monkey treated herself to a boozy night out after bursting into a liquor shop in eastern India, sinking a bottle of vodka and collapsing in a drunken heap on top of the beer boxes.
Staff at the wine shop in Banke Bihari Market, Ormanjhi, on the outskirts of Ranchi, were left stunned on Friday evening when the female macaque sauntered in around 7 pm as if she owned the place.
When 50-year-old assistant Ramashankar Tiwari tried to shoo the unexpected customer out, she turned on him, biting his back and leg before helping herself to a quarter-bottle of Magic Moments vodka. Witnesses said she opened it with her teeth and polished it off.
The primate then clambered onto a towering pile of Kingfisher and other beer crates and promptly passed out, looking for all the world like a regular who had overdone it after a long week.
A crowd quickly gathered outside the shop to film the extraordinary scene as the monkey dozed among the boxes. Locals later told reporters she appeared “properly sloshed”.
A rescue team from Bhagwan Birsa Biological Park arrived after the animal had been inside for more than two hours. Forest officials, including biologist Vivek Kumar and forest guard Rakesh Awasthi, carefully netted the still-groggy monkey and took her to the zoo hospital.
Vets confirmed she is pregnant. She is now under observation and will be released into the forest once she and her unborn offspring have been given the all-clear.
Mr Tiwari was treated in hospital for his injuries. Shop staff had earlier tried offering biscuits to lure the monkey away, but she had already set her sights on something stronger.
The incident has amused and alarmed locals in equal measure, with many joking the expectant mother had decided prenatal yoga could wait. Officials say such wildlife incursions into shops and homes have become increasingly common as monkey populations expand around growing Indian cities.
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