Chris Davies never wanted a hamster. His eight-year-old daughter Lily had prepared extensive folders with habitat drawings and wheel specifications, presenting a case for pet ownership that he couldn't refuse. As a boy, Chris had owned a hamster named Jerry and remembered him as fine but unremarkable. On a cold January morning in 2021, he went to a Cardiff pet shop with no intention of falling in love.
An Unexpected Bond
At the back of the enclosure was a scruffy hamster that nobody else wanted—skinny and unkempt. When the staff member lifted him out, the hamster yawned and looked at Lily as if he had been expecting her. She named him Popcorn Sushi and took him home in a pink carrier. Popcorn turned out to be unlike any animal Chris had encountered: nonchalantly and effortlessly relaxed. He would grind his teeth when happy and lick their fingers when petted. He never acted afraid of anything.
Lily called herself Popcorn's manager and created a laminated rota covering vegetables, fresh water, and bedding top-ups. Popcorn was a foodie, enjoying banana, broccoli, apple, and even chicken. He would stuff his cheeks with up to a third of his body weight and carry off treasures to consume later. He divided his sand bath into two strict zones: toilet at one end, shower at the other—a habit he decided on without any training. Lily designed him a haunted house for Halloween with a graveyard food station. Every evening at seven, Popcorn would settle at the same end of the sofa.
Finding Calm Amidst Chaos
When they first got Popcorn, Chris was acting as though he was fine for his daughter while silently struggling with undiagnosed inattentive attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), anxiety, and a 30-year battle with his stammer. One evening, he lifted Popcorn out of his enclosure, and the hamster settled into his armpit and fell asleep. This became a ritual: Popcorn on his chest, Chris forced into a stillness his racing brain had never achieved in 40 years of trying. He had tried cognitive behavioural therapy and mindfulness, but his mind would wander to dinner plans. Popcorn made stillness automatic. 'You cannot spiral when a sleeping hamster is breathing on your chest,' Chris said.
Chris filmed their evenings with Popcorn to send to family and posted them online, where the videos went viral. Lily and Chris co-wrote a children's book, Popcorn: The Unlikeliest of Friends, and Chris also wrote a memoir, What Popcorn Knew.
A Life-Changing Connection
One night, a woman named Carrie left a comment on one of Chris's TikTok posts about Popcorn. They started chatting and made plans to meet. On 29 December 2025, Chris married her. Popcorn died in the summer of 2023 after two and a half years. They buried him in the garden and were devastated. Chris will never forget the moments of calm he found with Popcorn lying on his chest, which eventually led him to seek an ADHD diagnosis. 'This scruffy hamster gave me my voice. Without Popcorn I never would have met the love of my life—I owe him so much,' he said.
