Pet Hamsters Research Articles

Burrowing for answers: Investigating Syrian hamster welfare through owner surveys.

Syrian hamsters are a relatively common pet species in the UK. However, we know very little about how they are kept. The aim of this study was to identify areas of good and poor practices among Syrian hamster owners using owner surveys. A survey of pet hamster owners was conducted with questions on husbandry, behaviour and health. There were 548 survey responses. Over 95% of the owners provided a wheel, hideaway or chew toy, and over 90% housed their hamster alone. However, 18.4% of the owners used hamster balls, hamsters may have been fed a diet that was not entirely appropriate, and over 45% of respondents reported that their hamsters were housed in close proximity to predator species. Most (65.9%) hamsters had never been taken to a veterinarian. Hamster ball use, shallower substrate depth and more frequent handling were significantly associated with greater owner observations of bar biting. A key limitation is that the respondents may not be representative of the average pet hamster owner, so this research does not provide a complete picture of the current state of hamster welfare. There are some welfare concerns regarding the way Syrian hamsters are currently kept in the UK.Therefore, attempts to better distribute information about hamster care to owners should be made.

Apocrine gland adenoma in a 4-month old golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus)

Hamsters are popular as pets. Although there are many reports on tumours in laboratory hamsters, tumours in pet hamsters are infrequently reported. The present report describes successful diagnosis, treatment and treatment outcome of apocrine gland adenoma, an uncommon cutaneous neoplasm, identified in the ventral neck region of a 4-month old Golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus). The initial diagnosis was attempted by cytology. The cytology of benign apocrine glands in hamsters has not been previously described in the literature. Histopathology of the neoplasm was consistent with an apocrine adenoma and positive PAS staining confirmed the secretory nature of the neoplasm. The tumour was surgically excised under local anaesthesia. There was no tumour recurrence or metastasis detected after one year.

Transmission of HCoV-OC43 to pet hamsters

Coronaviruses (CoVs) are a significant group of pathogens that pose a serious threat to both human and animal health, with some being zoonotic and displaying frequent cross-species transmission. Human CoV-OC43 (HCoV-OC43) is one of the four common human CoVs that can cause seasonal mild to moderate respiratory diseases in humans. In this study, we identified HCoV-OC43 for the first time in two asymptomatic pet hamsters, which share a high similarity with the human-derived HCoV-OC43 strain, suggesting potential cross-species transmission of HCoV-OC43 to pet hamsters. The finding emphasizes the need to strengthen pathogen monitoring of livestock and pets in close contact with humans to provide early warning of public safety.

Preliminary investigation into the housing of dwarf hamsters.

Although pet hamsters are widely available, the literature on their husbandry and health is limited, and guidelines for the care of hamsters are variable. This study investigated housing in different dwarf hamster species, focusing on factors affecting co-housing failure. An online cross-sectional survey shared on social media investigated potential factors influencing co-housing failure of dwarf hamsters in captivity, such as sex, species and resources provided. The majority of hamsters had not received veterinary care and were provided with fewer food and water sources than animal numbers, while 12% were kept in enclosures less than 75cm in length. Co-housing failure was more likely in dwarf hamsters older than 6 months (odds ratio 4.75, p = 0.005, 95% confidence interval = 1.607-14.13). There was no association found between sex or species and co-housing failure. There was likely a degree of selection bias as the owners who completed the questionnaire may have had more knowledge of dwarf hamster husbandry than the general population of owners. Key welfare concerns regarding dwarf hamster care in captivity were identified as inadequate enclosure sizes, a high prevalence of co-housing failure arising from aggression, especially in hamsters more than 6 months old, and inadequate resource provision for many pair- or group-housed animals. Further investigation of the welfare impacts of resource provision deficits is required.

A Case Report of a 12-Year Old Boy Infested with Poultry Red Mites, Dermanyssus gallinae (Acari: Mesostigmata), Acquired from his Syrian Hamster

The poultry red mite Dermanyssus gallinae, known as the primarily ectoparasite of laying hens and synanthropic birds (e.g. pigeons), can also bite humans, causing Red-Mite Dermatitis (RMD) with untypical symptoms of erythematous maculo-papular rash and urticaria-like lesions. In this study, we present the first case of RMD diagnosed in a 12 year old boy, resulting from bites of poultry mites derived from his pet hamster. The results show that the potential risk of human exposure to D. gallinae mites in the urban environment, is associated not only with the nesting and roosting feral pigeons in direct vicinity of human apartments, but may also result from the holding of hamsters. Since this hamster had no contact with other animals, we assume that its bedding was contaminated with D. gallinae, and played a role of the major source of these mites for the host and then the child. In conclusion, even if pet animals are rather accidental hosts for D. gallinae, effective measures to monitor and avoid cases of mite-dermatitis in urban dwellers require: (i) correct morphological identification of mite species, (ii) finding the sources of mite infestations, (iii) the removal of abandoned nests of their hosts, (iv) thorough disinfestation. Further eco-epidemiological research is urgently needed to identify non-avian host species including pet animals and mechanisms facilitating spreading of D. gallinae in urban environments.

Compellingly high SARS-CoV-2 susceptibility of Golden Syrian hamsters suggests multiple zoonotic infections of pet hamsters during the COVID-19 pandemic

Golden Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) are used as a research model for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Millions of Golden Syrian hamsters are also kept as pets in close contact to humans. To determine the minimum infective dose (MID) for assessing the zoonotic transmission risk, and to define the optimal infection dose for experimental studies, we orotracheally inoculated hamsters with SARS-CoV-2 doses from 1 * 105 to 1 * 10−4 tissue culture infectious dose 50 (TCID50). Body weight and virus shedding were monitored daily. 1 * 10−3 TCID50 was defined as the MID, and this was still sufficient to induce virus shedding at levels up to 102.75 TCID50/ml, equaling the estimated MID for humans. Virological and histological data revealed 1 * 102 TCID50 as the optimal dose for experimental infections. This compelling high susceptibility leading to productive infections in Golden Syrian hamsters must be considered as a potential source of SARS-CoV-2 infection for humans that come into close contact with pet hamsters.

Demography, disorders and mortality of pet hamsters under primary veterinary care in the United Kingdom in 2016.

Hamsters are popular pets worldwide but there is limited evidence on the overall health issues of pet hamsters. This study aimed to characterise the demography, disorder prevalence and mortality of pet hamsters in the United Kingdom. The VetCompass study included anonymised clinical records of 16,605 hamsters. The most common hamster species were Syrian (golden) (Mesocricetus auratus) (n=12,197, 73.45%), Djungarian (winter white dwarf) (Phodopus sungorus) (2286, 13.77%) and Roborovski hamsters (Phodopus roborovskii) (1054, 6.35%). The most prevalent precise-level disorders recorded across all hamsters were a presentation categorised as 'wet tail' (n=293, 7.33%), disorder undiagnosed (292, 7.30%), bite injuries from other hamsters (235, 5.88%), overgrown nail(s) (165, 4.13%), overgrown incisor(s) (159, 3.98%) and traumatic injury (152, 3.80%). The most prevalent disorders groups across all species of hamster were traumatic injury (n=616, 15.41%), enteropathy (450, 11.26%), ophthalmological disorder (445, 11.13%), skin disorder (362, 9.05%) and mass (361, 9.03%). The median age at death across all hamsters was 1.75 years (interquartile range: 0.83 to 2.20, range: 0.01 to 3.65). The most common causes of death at a precise level were wet tail (7.88%, 95% confidence interval: 6.35 to 9.66), abdominal mass (6.40%, 95% confidence interval: 5.01 to 8.03), neoplasia (5.38%, 95% confidence interval: 4.11 to 6.90) and dyspnoea (3.99%, 95% confidence interval: 2.9 to 5.34). This study provides veterinary professionals, educators, welfare scientists and owners with an evidence base on pet hamster health. A greater understanding of the common disorders of pet hamsters can support veterinary professionals to communicate more effectively with owners on key issues and outcomes to expect from hamster ownership.

Spreading of SARS-CoV-2 from hamsters to humans

Spreading of SARS-CoV-2 from hamsters to humans

Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 delta variant (AY.127) from pet hamsters to humans, leading to onward human-to-human transmission: a case study

BackgroundTransmission of SARS-CoV-2 from humans to other mammals, including pet animals, has been reported. However, with the exception of farmed mink, there is no previous evidence that these infected animals can infect humans, resulting in sustained human-to-human transmission. Following a confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection of a pet shop worker, animals in the shop and the warehouse supplying it were tested for evidence of SARS-CoV-2 infection.MethodsIn this case study, viral swabs and blood samples were collected from animals in a pet shop and its corresponding warehouse in Hong Kong. Nasal swab or saliva samples from human COVID-19 patients epidemiologically linked to the pet shop and from subsequent local cases confirmed to be infected by SARS-CoV-2 delta variant were collected. Oral swabs were tested by quantitative RT-PCR (RT-qPCR) for SARS-CoV-2 and blood samples were serologically tested by a surrogate virus neutralisation test and plaque reduction neutralisation test. The SARS-CoV-2 RT-qPCR positive samples were sequenced by next generation viral full genome sequencing using the ISeq sequencing platform (Illumina), and the viral genomes were phylogenetically analysed.FindingsEight (50%) of 16 individually tested Syrian hamsters in the pet shop and seven (58%) of 12 Syrian hamsters in the corresponding warehouse were positive for SARS-CoV-2 infection in RT-qPCR or serological tests. None of the dwarf hamsters (n=75), rabbits (n=246), guinea pigs (n=66), chinchillas (n=116), and mice (n=2) were confirmed positive for SARS-CoV-2 in RT-qPCR tests. SARS-CoV-2 viral genomes deduced from human and hamster cases in this incident all belong to the delta variant of concern (AY.127) that had not been circulating locally before this outbreak. The viral genomes obtained from hamsters were phylogenetically related with some sequence heterogeneity. Phylogenetic dating suggests infection in these hamsters occurred around Oct 14, 2021 (95% CI Sept 15 to Nov 9, 2021). Multiple zoonotic transmission events to humans were detected, leading to onward human-to-human transmission.InterpretationPet hamsters can be naturally infected with SARS-CoV-2. The virus can circulate among hamsters and lead to human infections. Both genetic and epidemiological results strongly suggest that there was more than one hamster-to-human transmission event in this study. This incident also led to onward human transmission. Importation of SARS-CoV-2-infected hamsters was a likely source of this outbreak.FundingUS National Institutes of Health, Research Grants Council of Hong Kong, Food and Health Bureau, and InnoHK.

Co-circulation of two SARS-CoV-2 variant strains within imported pet hamsters in Hong Kong

ABSTRACT During the investigation of a pet shop outbreak of severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) with probable hamster-to-human transmission, the environmental and hamster samples in epidemiologically linked pet shops were found positive for SARS-CoV-2 Delta variant AY.127 strains which are phylogenetically closely related to patients and reported European strains. This interspecies’ spill-over has triggered transmission in 58 patients epidemiologically linked to three pet shops. Incidentally, three dwarf hamsters imported from the Netherlands and centralized in a warehouse distributing animals to pet shops were positive for SARS-CoV-2 spike variant phylogenetically related to European B.1.258 strains from March 2020. This B.1.258 strain almost disappeared in July 2021. While no hamster-to-human transmission of B.1.258-like strain was found in this outbreak, molecular docking showed that its spike receptor-binding domain (RBD) has a similar binding energy to human ACE2 compared to that of Delta variant AY.127. Therefore, the potential of this B.1.258-related spike variant for interspecies jumping cannot be ignored. The co-circulation of B.1.258-related spike variants with Delta AY.127, which originated in Europe and was not previously found in Hong Kong, suggested that hamsters in our wholesale warehouse and retail pet shops more likely have acquired these viruses in the Netherlands or stopovers during delivery by aviation than locally. The risk of human-to-hamster reverse zoonosis by multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants leading to further adaptive spike mutations with subsequent transmission back to humans cannot be underestimated as an outbreak source of COVID-19. Testing imported pet animals susceptible to SARS-CoV-2 is warranted to prevent future outbreaks.

First detection and genotyping of Enterocytozoon bieneusi in pet golden hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) and Siberian hamsters (Phodopus sungorus) in China.

Enterocytozoon bieneusi, a common opportunistic pathogen, has been detected in humans and a wide range of animals worldwide. However, no information on the prevalence and molecular characterization of E. bieneusi in hamsters is available worldwide. In this study, fecal specimens were collected from 175 golden hamsters and 175 Siberian hamsters purchased from pet shops in three provinces of China. The average infection rate of E. bieneusi was 12.0% (42/350), with 14.9% (26/175) in pet golden hamsters and 9.1% (16/175) in pet Siberian hamsters. Four genotypes were identified in pet golden hamsters, including three known genotypes (D, Henan-II, and SHW5) and one novel genotype (named Ebph1). Five genotypes were found in pet Siberian hamsters, including one known genotype (D) and four novel genotypes (named Ebph2 to Ebph5). Genotypes D and Ebph2 were the dominant genotype in pet golden hamsters (23/26, 88.5%) and Siberian hamsters (9/16, 56.3%), respectively. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the E. bieneusi isolates clustered into two groups: Group 1 (D, Henan-II, SHW5, and Ebph1) and Group 3 (Ebph2 to Ebph5). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of E. bieneusi infection in golden hamsters and Siberian hamsters worldwide. The identification of four genotypes belonging to Group 1 of high zoonotic potential suggests that pet hamsters especially golden hamsters can be potential sources of human microsporidiosis.

Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (Variant Delta) from Pet Hamsters to Humans and Onward Human Propagation of the Adapted Strain: A Case Study

Transmission of SARS-CoV-2 (Variant Delta) from Pet Hamsters to Humans and Onward Human Propagation of the Adapted Strain: A Case Study

CRYPTOSPORIDIUM SPP. IN PET DWARF WINTER WHITE RUSSIAN HAMSTERS (PHODOPUS SUNGORIS SUNGORIS) IN CHINA.

Cryptosporidium spp. have been identified in a wide range of hosts, such as humans and domestic and wild animals, while less information about the prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. in pet hamsters is documented. A total of 351 dwarf winter white Russian hamsters' fecal specimens were collected from 6 pet markets from the cities of Luzhou and Ziyang in Sichuan province in the southwestern part of China. The prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. determined with nested-PCR amplification of the partial small-subunit (SSU) rRNA gene was 39.32% (138/351). The highest prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. was in pet market 5 (79.49%, 62/78), followed by pet market 6 (38.64%, 17/44). The lowest prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. was observed in pet market 3 (14.89%, 7/47). Statistically significant differences in the prevalence of Cryptosporidium spp. were observed among different pet markets (χ2 = 76.386, df = 5, P < 0.05), and a further post hoc test revealed that only pet market 5 was significantly different from other pet markets. Molecular analysis showed that 4 different Cryptosporidium species or genotypes were identified: Cryptosporidium parvum (n = 127), Cryptosporidium chipmunk genotype III (n = 6), Cryptosporidium andersoni (n = 4), and Cryptosporidium wrairi (n = 1). The identification of Cryptosporidium spp. was further tested with the 60-kDa glycoprotein (GP60) gene, and the positive rate was 29.7% (41/138). This is the first molecular report on Cryptosporidium spp. infection in dwarf winter white Russian hamsters in China. With C. parvum and C. andersoni being identified in both humans and pet hamsters, these findings suggest that pet hamsters may be potential reservoirs of zoonotic Cryptosporidium species and subtypes.

Approaches to common conditions of the gastrointestinal tract in pet hamsters

Hamsters are popular pets in the UK. The Syrian or Golden hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) is the best known species in the pet trade, with a variety of dwarf species also encountered. Gastrointestinal disease occurs frequently, and diarrhoea is a common presenting complaint. This is most often associated with bacterial or parasitic infection, but can also be related to neoplasia or the use of certain antibiotics. Initial stabilisation of the hamster with diarrhoea should include provision of a warm stress-free environment, fluid therapy, nutritional support with an appropriate critical care diet and analgesia. Following a full history and clinical examination, further diagnostic steps include faecal parasitology and microbiology, routine biochemistry and haematology, radiography with or without positive contrast, and abdominal ultrasound. Indications for surgery include evidence of intestinal obstruction or prolapsed intussusception. This article gives an overview of the most common gastrointestinal diseases encountered in hamster species and provides a guide of how to logically approach the investigation and treatment of these cases, achievable in general practice.

Tumours in 177 pet hamsters.

Even though tumours are considered to occur frequently in pet hamsters, there is only a small number of scientific reports in current literature. Pathological reports from 177 hamsters were evaluated. Of these, 78 were male and 75 were female. Median age of affected hamsters was 12 months (range 2-34). Integumental tumours were the most common neoplasms (62%, 109/177). As far as species was known, the number of Syrian hamsters (52%, 30/58) affected by tumours seemed to be lower than the number of affected dwarf hamsters (85%, 47/55). Tumours of the hematopoietic system were the second most frequently neoplasms (17%, 30/177). Relative number of neoplasms of the endocrine system, tumours of the digestive system (1.7%, 3/177) and other tumours (4%, 7/177 each) was low. The majority of integumental tumours were epithelial (66%; 91/126). This study aimed to analyze data from veterinary surgeries and pathological institutes about the occurrence of spontaneous tumours in Syrian hamsters and dwarf hamsters to give information about the frequency of tumours, prognosis and survival time. This is the first study about tumours in pet hamsters in Germany so far.

Compositionality Meets Belief Revision: a Bayesian Model of Modification

The principle of compositionality claims that the content of a complex concept is determined by its constituent concepts and the way in which they are composed. However, for prototype concepts this principle is often too rigid. Blurring the division between conceptual composition and belief update has therefore been suggested (Hampton and Jönsson 2012). Inspired by this idea, we develop a normative account of how belief revision and meaning composition should interact in modifications such as “red apple” or “pet hamster”. We do this by combining the well-known selective modification model (Smith et al. Cognitive science 12(4):485–527 1988) with the rules of Bayesian belief update. Moreover, we relate this model to systems of defeasible reasoning as discussed in the field of artificial intelligence.

A Case Study of Two Rodent-Borne Viruses: Not Always the Same Old Suspects

Two Old World rodents, the house mouse (Mus musculus) and the Norway rat (Rattus norvegicus) have been introduced into and established populations on every Continent save Antarctica. With their travels they have carried various human pathogens. Two viruses- Lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV; genus Arenavirus with mice) and Seoul virus (SEOV; genus Hantavirus with rats) - can cause chronic infections within their respective rodent hosts resulting in persistent or life-long sporadic shedding of virus through secreta and excreta. Although the prevalence of infection within their wild rodent hosts can exceed 25% among mice infected with LCMV and 50% among rats infected with SEOV, acute human disease resulting from direct transmission from wild rodents are rarely reported even though both species live in close coexistence with humans. However, the usual ‘classic’ zoonotic cycle of transmission from wild rodent reservoirs to humans now includes multiple unusual/unexpected routes. The largest described outbreaks of human disease caused by these viruses are linked to pet rodents. SEOV outbreaks are linked to fancy rats kept as pets, and, a novel reservoir host, the Golden hamster, has supplanted the house mouse as major source of LCMV infection. Following LCMV, and to a lesser extent SEOV, outbreaks associated lab animals, have led to 100’s of cases of LCMV among owners of pet hamsters. LCMV infections in research settings have also been traced to mouse-derived cell cultures and nude mice. Additionally, LCMV is now a recognized source of severe congenital disease and is the unexpected source of severe and often fatal disease among solid organ recipients. Although the extensive usual and unusual routes of LCMV infection are exceptional there are many parallels with SEOV emergence.

Rebel tenrecs disregard hibernation rule book

![Figure][1] A torpid tenrec. Photo credit: Daylin Sigler. It's a rookie mistake; you take your pet hamster out of bed to play one late-autumn afternoon, but it looks as if the poor animal is dead. However, upon close inspection you realise that the beloved rodent is simply hibernating and

Heteronormativity and Toxic Masculinity in Stephen Dunn’s Closet Monster

Premiering at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival to great acclaim (it won the award for the Best Canadian Feature, and was eventually included in the IFF’s annual Canada’s Top Ten), Stephen Dunn’s Closet Monster employs monsters metaphorically, primarily in order to express the psychological damage of violent homophobia and to comment on toxic masculinity. Yet monstrosity is not merely a metaphor but also a strategy: the protagonist, a closeted teenager named Oscar, appropriates both monstrosity and heroic narratives in order to manage life as a homosexual person in a deeply homophobic environment of contemporary suburban Canada. The magic realist details which permeate Closet Monster – the talking pet hamster, the scenes seamlessly fusing body horror with realism – exemplify the film’s poignant, almost fairy-tale-like approach to “homophobia-related violence” and the effects of PTSD initiated by Oscar’s witnessing of violent enforcement of gender normativity in his childhood. This paper proposes to examine the politics of the film, in particular Dunn’s deployment of monstrosity in the representation and condemnation of violent homophobia and toxic/hegemonic masculinity. As these issues are inextricable from the wider cultural context of normative gender and sexuality, Dunn’s criticism of heteronormativity is discussed as well. It is in this context, also, that the film’s depiction of the production, policing and elimination of “monstrous” (i.e. homosexual) bodies is examined. Article received: March 11, 2018; Article accepted: April 10, 2018; Published online: September 15, 2018; Scholarly analysis or debateHow to cite this article: Petković, Danijela. "Heteronormativity and Toxic Masculinity in Stephen Dunn’s Closet Monster." AM Journal of Art and Media Studies 16 (2018): 43−54. doi: 10.25038/am.v0i16.253

Don't Come Back by Lina María Ferreira Cabeza-Vanegas

Reviewed by: Don't Come Back by Lina María Ferreira Cabeza-Vanegas Barrie Jean Borich (bio) Don't Come Back By Lina María Ferreira Cabeza-Vanegas. Mad River Books/Ohio State UP, 2017. 253 pp. ISBN: 9780814253953 Two pet hamsters die in the prelude of Don't Come Back, a collection of linked personal essays by Lina María Ferreira Cabeza-Vanegas. The book is about living in the spaces between the narrator's 1980s Colombian birthplace and her adult residence in the US, or more accurately, between the site of her heart and history, and her later landscapes of education and opportunity. "Don't come back," her mother begs, sending her daughters away from Bogotá to the United States, to keep them safe. The hamsters' deaths are the least of their losses: late twentieth-century Colombian cities are violent, Colombian lives squeezed between political unrest and the illegal cocaine industry. This book is composed between the twin pressures of her mother's admonition to stay in the North and the US government's insistence that she return. Out of this tension comes a linked collection made of lush and passionately forged fragments connecting memory, violence, language, and mythology. The subject of Don't Come Back is more fraught than the common storyline of a woman looking back. These tales are an epic melding of character, history, and magic, with echoes of that other Colombian storyteller Gabriel García Márquez, as well as Chilean-American Isabel Allende. But Cabeza-Vanegas, an alumna of the Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa (and Don't Come Back one of the first books in the 21st Century Essays series at OSU Press) is also on par with contemporary documentary and memory-based literary innovators. These affinities are evident in the book's braided and collage-like structures, as well as in the inclusion of visual elements, from anatomical sketches to diagrammatic translations. The violence-based trauma the author and her sisters will always carry are made of colonial and post-colonial legacies. Guns and bombs and sudden deaths of animals and humans, and the ongoing expectation of the same, is a constancy articulated through the use of fragmented forms that allow, for instance, the simultaneous experience of stories about the Soviet dog sent into outer space, a girl's desire go to where the astronauts go and her mother's response that she'd better study her math first, a revolutionary siege of the Bogotá Palace of Justice, political memorabilia from her mother's youth, a grandfather's downed plane, and the sound of a beloved neighborhood dog strung up on the school yard fence. Stories that are funny, or sweet, are always interrupted with political conflicts or drug lord kidnappings, or with rages against memory itself. The kids drove [the dog] up and down the streets of my childhood neighborhood as if they could erase the roads with his body. "Why?" I think, and "What for?" […] not a single head against which to press the cold muzzle of their rage—not really. The peasants? The manifesto-writers? The kidnapped sons of oligarchs and plutocrats? The drafted soldiers? The hired guards? The men in the jungle? The jungle? The drug? The men growing the drug? Taking the drug? […] The Spaniards who left us a mess? The Soviets who left us a mess? The conservatives, the liberals, the narcotraficantes, who left us all a mess? (87–88) The reinvented creation story is another of the author's methods. What kind of allegory explains her Colombia? Each section begins with a revised fable. At the beginning of everything, before there was anything, Chiminigagua dreamt he felt a hand being placed on his shoulder as he heard the whisperings of another being stirring in the dark beside him [.…] He cleared his throat, and as he crossed his arms to stretch his back, he inadvertently touched the spot [End Page 135] where the dream hand had been placed. Something like longing and urgency. Something that immortal beings hardly ever feel. (3–4) Cabeza-Vanegas is not the first essayist to use reinterpreted myth as a humanizing lens. Audre Lorde, Maxine Hong Kingston...