Sad Hamster Meme

Sad Hamster is the blurry close-up of a tiny hamster staring at the camera with huge, glossy eyes, usually paired with sad violin music. Add your own caption to this template and save it as a meme.

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What does the Sad Hamster meme mean?

Sad Hamster is for small, pitiful sadness — the kind that's a little funny because it's so minor. Captions describe things like nobody replying to your message, your favorite snack being sold out, or being left out of plans. The hamster's huge eyes make it look heartbroken in a soft, cute way. On video it's always accompanied by the sad violin; as an image, a short caption does the job.

Where is the Sad Hamster meme from?

Sad Hamster went viral in February 2024. Know Your Meme says the image is an edit of a hamster named Alto, owned by the Instagram user monyo_melo, with its eyes enlarged so they look round and teary. The picture was posted on X in early February and a TikTok version from February 8, 2024 set it to "Woe Is Me!" by Richard Myhill, a sad violin track familiar from SpongeBob SquarePants. That combination spread quickly on TikTok, followed by redraws, reaction edits and even hamster-shaped desserts later that month. Sources don't agree on who made the original edit.