He was her best spud, err, bud.
After spending about $4,500 scattering his ashes in Hawaii last 12 months, a heartbroken pet owner is taking the last of her late hamster on a priceless holiday vacay.
Lisa Murray-Lang, 47, said her Syrian hamster, Spud, loved “visiting” London, Paris and Amsterdam by the use of dollhouse-like cardboard cutouts.
That way, she explained, Spud could experience European cities without leaving his residence in Birmingham, England.
But now Murray-Lang is set to point out Spud the world — or at the very least continental Europe — for real this time.
“The thought is that we’re tracing his ‘paw-steps’ and really going to the places that he ‘visited’ during his lifetime,” Murray-Lang, a graphic designer, told South West News Service.
She traveled 7,000 miles to Kahanamoku Beach, Waikiki, in March 2022 to scatter a few of Spud’s stays.
Murray-Lang and Spud’s remaining ashes might be hitting Paris in September, followed by London in November.
“Then, crucial one is we’re going to Amsterdam — or Hamsterdam — in December, which might be lovely as that set I made for him was at all times a favourite,” she added.
The monthslong trip isn’t simply to honor Spud, it also coincides with Murray-Lang’s tenth wedding anniversary, which she says is a “really special strategy to have a good time that, and Spud.”
“It’s a stunning strategy to keep celebrating his life, and plenty of it is definitely being funded by the sales of my book about him,” she said. “So in a way it’s like an anniversary gift from Spud.”
Her journey was inspired by her picture book “A 12 months in Lockdown #BeLikeSpud,” which has motivated young readers to take photos with the publication around the globe and even read it to their very own hamsters.
“I do know one young boy is taking his copy to Portugal on a vacation, too, this 12 months, so it’s like Spud continues to be traveling,” she added.
Despite her loss, Murray-Lang has enjoyed commemorating Spud’s life.
“It’s been amazing to have a good time his life this last 12 months with all of those trips,” she said. “I’m undecided what I’ll do next — but there are still places he ‘visited’ that I’d like to see.”
