Editing Hamster (section)

===Owner activism===
When the first reported case of animal-to-human transmission of [[Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2|SARS-CoV-2]] in [[Hong Kong]] took place via imported pet hamsters, researchers expressed difficulty in identifying some of the viral mutations within a global [[Genomic and medical data|genomic data]] bank, leading city authorities to announce a mass cull of all hamsters purchased after December 22, 2021, which would affect roughly 2,000 animals. After the government 'strongly encouraged' citizens to turn in their pets, approximately 3,000 people joined underground activities to promote the adoption of abandoned hamsters throughout the city and to maintain pet ownership via methods such as the forgery of pet store purchase receipts. Some activists attempted to intercept owners who were on their way to turn in pet hamsters and encourage them to choose adoption instead, which the government subsequently warned would be subject to police action.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Mahtani |first1=Shibani |last2=Yu |first2=Theodora |title=Hong Kong hamster massacre: Residents resist 'zero covid' city's pet project |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/01/20/hong-kong-hamsters-covid/ |access-date=22 January 2022 |newspaper=Washington Post |date=20 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122005223/https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/01/20/hong-kong-hamsters-covid/ |archive-date=22 January 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Ting |first1=Victor |last2=Choy |first2=Gigi |last3=Cheung |first3=Elizabeth |title=Coronavirus: 2,000 hamsters to be culled over fears of first animal-to-human transmission in Hong Kong, pet store customers ordered into quarantine |url=https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3163775/coronavirus-hong-kong-leader-worried-about-community-outbreak |access-date=22 January 2022 |publisher=South China Morning Post |date=18 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122005514/https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/article/3163775/coronavirus-hong-kong-leader-worried-about-community-outbreak |archive-date=22 January 2022}}</ref>

{{anchor|Research|As research animals|As laboratory animals|As lab animals}}