Strange

Hamster powers environmentally friendly paper shredder

by LotusFlower | December 31, 2008 at 07:47 am

171 views | 22 Recommendations | 8 comments

The ultimate New Year's gift - a hamster that will power a paper shredder.

It runs around its wheel and this powers the shredder that then deposits the paper in the hamster's cage to act as bedding.

The hamster has to run flat out for 45 minutes to shred one sheet of A4 paper.

The paper then falls on to the base of the hamster cage, providing fresh bedding for the furry pet.

Tom Ballhatchet, 29, developed the product using a friend's hamster for his masters degree in industrial design.

The London-based design consultant said: "I wanted to come up with a product that would capture people's imagination while addressing issues of topical concern such as climate change, recycling and identity fraud.

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Rachel Nixon

at 09:50 on December 31st, 2008

Awesome! Though 45 minutes sounds like an incredibly long time for a hamster to run in its wheel. Having said that, having had hamsters as a kid, they seemed to run in their wheels all through the night, endlessly....

LotusFlower

at 09:53 on December 31st, 2008

All the hamsters i've ever known will shred a piece of paper with their teeth double quick - the design is a neat reminder of a number of issues - identity theft, recycling, etc.. its fun!

Amy Judd

at 10:31 on December 31st, 2008

So cute! although I can't help but feel it's a little like slave labour... :)

LotusFlower

at 11:13 on December 31st, 2008

There are plans to bring together huge armies of wheel running hamsters to power small towns in rural areas. Yes unfortunately the workforce is dispensable.