Best Helping Hands (page 3 of 4)

• Best of America

Monkey College

During the two-year course at Monkey College, the student primates are trained to respond to laser pointers and to simple commands such as fetch. They learn how to switch lights on and off, open a bottle and put a straw in it, operate a microwave, and serve food, even feeding their owners with spoons. They don't actually cook and can't use a stove, but when lunch or dinner is over, like live-in maids, they stash the trash. They can switch a TV or computer on, select a CD or DVD and push it into the slot, turn the pages of a book, scratch an itch and brush hair. Opening and closing drawers and turning faucets on and off must all be mastered before they graduate.

When Cook applied to Helping Hands in 2001, it was illegal to have an exotic animal in a home in California. The only helper animals allowed were dogs for the visually impaired. Helping Hands went to work to have the laws changed for Cook, and in 2004, he became the first person in the state to receive a service monkey.

At first, Cook found it hard not to view Minnie as a pet. But that changed one day when he dropped his cell phone -- his lifeline -- and Minnie, who responds to about 30 spoken English words, picked it up for him. "In the past," says Cook, "all I could do when that happened was wait for the mailman to arrive and help me."

Of course, Cook still relies on his morning caretaker, friends and family to assist him with tasks Minnie can't handle, such as getting dressed, writing checks and shopping for groceries. But, he says, "the longer I'm around Minnie, the more I realize it's like having a little human coming to live here." Indeed, a framed photo of the monkey on Cook's mantelpiece reads "Daddy's Little Princess." Minnie even has many childlike facial expressions. She giggles, frowns and sticks her tongue out in concentration when opening a jar with a snug top.

And like a child, she can also be sneaky. Minnie has been known to shimmy up the shelves of an unguarded pantry, grab the peanut butter, run with it to her cage and slam the door behind her. "She'll hide the jar under her blanket so she can eat it later," laughs Cook. "Or I'll find her with peanut butter smeared around her mouth, licking her hands as fast as possible. She'll have a look on her face that says, I didn't do it."