The hamster that came back from the dead: Pet 'Jesus' digs her way out of grave 24 hours after being mistakenly buried alive... at Easter

  • Pet originally called 'Tink' buried in kitchen roll in garden
  • Hamster ate through shroud and dug through earth to escape on Good Friday
  • Experts believe 'dead' animal had actually been hibernating

By Conor Sheils


A miracle hamster shocked her owners when she rose from the dead during Easter.

Lisa Kilbourne-Smith and boyfriend James Davis from Painswick, Glousestershire, were looking after the tiny pet - then called Tink -for friends when they found her lying lifeless in her cage.

They thought she was dead and wrapped her body in kitchen roll, dug a grave in their flower bed and gently laid the rodent to rest.

The tearful pair then phoned Tink’s owners Nicki Gamble and Jamie Wynn to break the terrible news.

Scroll down for video of Tink...

'Tink' the born again hamster who came back to life on Good Friday

'Tink' shocked Lisa Kilbourne-Smith and boyfriend James Davis by coming back to life 24 hours after she was buried

The spot where Lisa Kilbourne-Smith and her father Les  buried hamster 'Tink' only for him to dig his way out

They Tink it's all over: The spot in Painswick, Gloucestershire where the couple buried the hamster in a kitchen roll only for him to dig his way out again

But the next day - Good Friday - the pair called back to announce that the Houdini hamster who the family have nicknamed 'Jesus' had been ‘resurrected’ after going into hibernation.


She then crawled into an empty cat food cardboard box which became her shelter through the sub-zero night.

Enlarge   Tink' the born again hamster with Lisa Kilbourne-Smith and her father Les

Lisa Kilbourne-Smith (pictured right) and her father Les (left) couldn't believe their eyes when Tink came back from the dead 24 hours later after escaping from a paper shroud

Tink was found by Ms Kilbourne-Smith's startled father Les the following afternoon as he went to flatten the boxes for recycling and her head suddenly popped out.

As well as surviving her burial, the freezing night and being accidentally crushed, the robust rodent also escaped becoming a snack for the family’s pet cat Milo.

Ms Kilbourne-Smith, 23, a care home worker, said: “James came home from work and found her lying in the middle of her cage cold and lifeless and he thought she was dead.


'We wrapped her up in a load of kitchen towel and buried her about a foot deep in the back garden so that the cat couldn’t dig her back up again.

'We were looking after her for Nicki and Jamie while they moved house.

'James then rang Jamie to tell him ‘Sorry mate, but your hamster’s passed away’, which wasn’t a very nice thing to have to do.

'The next day he rang him back to say ‘Mate - your hamster’s back alive’ and Jamie thought he was trying to be funny.”

Local vet John Auld said that he believes that Tink appeared dead because she was in hibernation.

he said: 'It has been known for owners to believe their pets have died when in fact they are only sleeping.'

VIDEO 'Jesus hamster'. Meet Tink the pet who came back to life... 

The make-shift hamster tomb created by Lisa-Kilbourne-Smith and her dad Les

Buried alive: 'Tink' managed to escape from the makeshift coffin created by by the couple before braving a night of sub zero temperature to turn up alive and well hours later

Lisa Kilbourne-Smith is overjoyed following the news that 'Tink' has come back to life
'Tink' the hamster is full of life once again

Lisa Kilbourne-Smith is overjoyed that 'Tink'  made a speedy recovery following the mix-up

Les, 60, said: 'It’s amazing that she survived.

'She’d been out in that freezing cold all night - it was a good 24 hours.


'I was taking the boxes to the shed to squash them all down for recycling when suddenly a little face popped out of one of them which gave me a big startle I can assure you.

'I brought the box into the house and said to Jim, ‘Have you lost one of your pets?’

'That was when we discovered that it was Tink and she most definitely wasn’t dead.

'We’ve nicknamed her Jesus because it was Easter when she came back from the dead.”

'Tink' the hamster is taking it easy following an Easter miracle

Happy at home: 'Tink' is relaxing after coming back from the dead. Experts believe that the hamster was hibernating

Ms Kilbourne-Smith - who is still caring for Tink - added: “She was in the cat biscuit box that we’d thrown out the night before.

'She’d managed to crawl into the little hole and survive the night in there.'

Mr Davis, 24, a binman, said: “I came home and thought she was dead because she’s two-and-a-half years old, which is quite old for a hamster.

“When Les found her safe and well in the recycling, I had the embarrassing job of ringing Jamie to tell him ‘She’s not dead, she crawled out of her grave last night.’”


Vet John Auld said: “This isn’t the first instance of a hamster coming back from the dead that I’ve come across.

'If its body temperature drops below a certain level the animal can go into hibernation.


