Some TikTok Users Are Using Hamster Memes to Respond to the Coronavirus

TikTok isn’t just fun and games anymore. As fears about the novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, continue to spread, some TikTok users have taken to the platform to offer informative ways for users to keep the disease from spreading further. One TikTok in particular has gained steam, thanks in part to an adorable hamster. 

In one of the best viral TikToks about the coronavirus, Hamstarz posted a video offering users a nifty tutorial with tips from a hamster on how to fight the spread of the virus. In the clip, the hamster washes his hands for 20 seconds, reminds viewers to cough or sneeze into a tissue, save face masks for the ill and stay at home if possible. 

The hamster has gone viral in the aftermath of the coronavirus, in part because it’s a great way to learn what steps are necessary while looking at something absolutely adorable. On Sunday night, the hamster also got a boost from John Oliver, who played the TikTok on Last Week Tonight. 

In his segment on Sunday, John focused on the coronavirus, and the way he felt that President Trump had failed to model ideal behavior during the crisis. John pointed out that, while Trump held a news conference on Friday and made it a point to touch the microphone 31 times as he shook hands with CEOs from several large companies, the hamster was modeling ideal behavior for someone looking to prevent the spread of the virus. It doesn’t hurt that he looked good doing it, either. 

Like many late night hosts, John’s most recent show went without a studio audience. The host also shot the show in a smaller studio to limit the spread of the virus and because his original studio may have been contaminated by the virus. It was a surreal segment, but he also promised that the show would be back, although like many late night hosts, he wasn’t specific about exactly when that would be. 

While the hamster washing its hands may be the cutest video to emerge from this crisis, there are plenty of other videos and memes that capture what it’s like to live through this pandemic. Other videos make fun of what it’s like to ask to go to the bathroom in the middle of an online lecture, or point out ways to make yourself look cooler as you video chat for work or school. 

These jokes come against a fairly serious backdrop, as people across the country and around the world practice social distancing in order to limit the spread of the virus. It’s a trying time, but one that is made a little easier to bear thanks to a few people on the internet who will do anything in service of a good joke.