A grieving woman is spending £3.5k and travelling more than 7,000 miles so her beloved hamster's ashes can be spread in Hawaii. Pet Spud passed away naturally in March 2022 at the impressive age of three years and seven months.
Owner Lisa Murray-Lang, 46, has been left devastated by the death - and wants to give the Syrian hamster a special send-off. So she and her husband are planning to fly to Honolulu in September - so Spud's ashes can be spread.
Lisa, a professional dog walker, says the trip will also go via Amsterdam - or "Hamsterdam", as she calls it. She said: "We're going to take him down to the beach, play Beyoncé's song I Was Here while we scatter his ashes and leave a message in the sand saying 'Spud visited'.
"It's the perfect send-off for him - he'll finally get to come along on a real holiday for once."
Lisa, from Birmingham, doted on Spud throughout his life - and often created lifelike 'locations' for him to visit. She recreated cardboard versions of London, Paris and Coronation Street during lockdown and let the hamster play in them.
Lisa says one of the reasons she chose Hawaii to pay her final respects to Spud was because of how much he enjoyed visiting the model version. She expects the cost of the trip to top £3,500, as it is a "final journey" - with other stops on the way to Kahanamoku Beach, Waikiki.
Lisa said Spud lived a happy life, adding: "The average age a hamster will live to is about two and a half years - so it's amazing really that he kept going for so long. He really gave us a reason to get out of bed in the morning, particularly during the lockdown when work stopped. He was a real part of the family.
"He might have only stayed at home during his life but he managed to visit lots of places. The Hawaii set was always Spud's favourite - he loved the sand, especially given at the time it was winter and we were all surrounded by snow at the time."
Like many people, Lisa started making sets for her pet as a lockdown hobby when the pandemic started just six months after she got him. She handcrafted every element using cardboard and dolls, with some sets even featuring hamster-themed artwork.
Other particularly impressive sets included the famous magical castle of Hogwarts - or "Hamwarts" - from the Harry Potter films, along with No.10 Downing Street.
