As the Crash Crew monkeys were tethered closer to the Ordnance Shop than to the CC spaces, most of their care and feeding came to us... The first was a Philippine monkey, who had mysteriously arrived in Vietnam, apparently in someone's bomb bay. All it did was show its teeth to anyone who came around. Once a month or so, the Crash Crew gave it a bath with a fire hose. Monkey didn't seem to think a lot good things when that happened, making plenty of hissing noises and teeth gnashing throughout the event.

And there was Charley, the female rock ape that looked like a midget chimp. Charley was most appreciative to anyone bringing her food from the galley, especially if she could sit on his shoulder while eating. When the groceries were finished, Charley loved to pick & eat stuff from the Sailor's scalp. When USO girls came around (not very often), I'd take them to visit Charley so the AO's could do what needed done -- namely fix guns, test aircraft and load bombs & bullets. Charley really enjoyed the girls' long hair and shiny jewelry.

Shortly after I arrived in Cam Ranh Bay, Chief Doggett took me for my first visit to Charley, with me still wearing khaki's. Charley jumped onto my shoulder and happily started picking in my hair. Al backed away, to what appeared to be a spot he apparently knew well, and said, "Kill, Charles, kill!" Charley promptly threw my p-cutter hat to the ground and bit me on my head -- hard! Doggett laughed, while I silently planned revenge. Charley finally tired of eating my head, and hit the end of her chain trying to get to Doggett. Sure enough, Al had known exactly how close he could get, to stay out of harm's way.

When Crew 1 went to Sangley Point later that week, I went to the Crash Crew hootch and got the key to the Conex box door where Charley was tethered. I lubed & polished the hinges and door latch so they worked as well as a door knob back home. Then, I moved Charley's tie-down to that latch, left it unlocked, measured & marked how much farther Charley could get when the door opened -- and patiently waited for Al's return. A day or so after his crew returned to CRB, I returned his favor, with even greater relish than Al had shown when he had out-smarted this rookie. The open door gave Charley an extra three feet of maneuvering and eating room. Revenge was so sweet!

Then came the dogs... Someone found a black chow puppy and brought her to the shop, saying he'd named her Fido or some such. I promptly put a stop to that, saying the dog would be named either Gunner or Ordy, but nothing else. "Gunner" it was, and the galley cooks graciously added rations for her, to what they generously gave us for Charley and the PI monkey.

A few days later, Bill Laur brought the skinniest mongrel puppy I'd ever seen to the shop -- who quickly became "Ordy". Bill and Rick Barth had freed the pup as he was trying to escape from a big pile of dirt left by a bull dozer.

The AO's made a quick visit to the galley and brought back enough food for a squadron party. The starved Ordy started eating and didn't stop until his feet couldn't reach the ground! He looked like a beach ball with ears. And so it was, until Ordy was no more... Charley hugged and protected those puppies as if they were her very own. Gunner really enjoyed that. Ordy would rather eat.

Some weeks later word came down, saying the thousands of strays on base would be killed, and that all pets must receive rabies & distemper shots and tags... I asked AO3 Barth to take the dogs to the vet for the required shots. When he returned, Rick told me that there was only enough distemper vaccine for Gunner, so Ordyhad to return the next week for the shot. The following week I asked an AO to take the dog back for his innoculations. He mistakenly took Gunner again, so Gunner had double shots, Ordy had to go again for his. It wasn't enough, as both puppies came down with and died from distemper before we decomissioned...

I was told Charley was put down a year or so later, after giving a Sailor a serious bite to his hand. No words about the Philippine monkey. Maybe it started a new Vietnamese breed???