'Hamstering' is a spicy TikTok trend people may actually be trying

It's probably not done because it's pleasurable, but so people can say they've done it.
By Anna Iovine  on 
screenshots of tiktoks. left: woman sticking her head out of sunroof with caption "making sure the coast is clear for the thirsty hamster. iykyk."; middle: woman in car; right: woman on top of car
Credit: TikTok, from left to right: @sydneevice_; @jenn_nniffer; @lindseyjames24

TikTok has hyped up car dates, so much so that Mashable recently broke down how to have sex in a car. According to a new trend called "hamstering," though, people are taking that a step further.

"Hamstering" or the "thirsty hamster" on TikTok describes the sexual act of one partner with a penis going atop a car with a sun roof and a partner inside the car fellating them through the open roof. The name evokes a hamster drinking water through a spout that's typical in hamster enclosures.

Some TikTokkers are curious about the move, while others joke that they're assuring the "coast is clear" and that they're going to show their partners how to do it. But is hamstering really a "thing"?

Author of Boyslut: A Memoir and Manifesto and Fun Factory dildo collaborator Zachary Zane doubts people were doing this before it became a TikTok trend. "I had never heard of this position before last week," he told Mashable, "but I bet you a few very sexually adventurous people are now trying it out and seeing if it's feasible."

Hamstering is theoretically achievable, Zane continued. It depends on a few factors, including height, weight, and strength of the person receiving oral sex. If you want to try it, you need to figure out your weight distribution and if you can remain in the position on top of the car for a sustained period of time.

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"These people aren’t likely trying it because it’s pleasurable," Zane said, "it's more to say that they’ve done it."

Sex experts and co-hosts of the Shameless Sex podcast Amy Baldwin and April Lampert also theorized whether hamstering would actually be pleasurable. "The giver will likely have to contort their body and their neck in a way that may be really uncomfortable and unsustainable for a long period of time," they told Mashable, and the giver may have to stop and take breaks before their partner orgasms.

"With that said, sex is intended to be fun," they continued, "so even if someone cannot achieve orgasm in this position, engaging in it for a short period of time might offer a sense of newness, adventurousness, and playful exploration."

Hamstering is likely just a trend, Baldwin and Lampert said, but if you can get creative and find ways to make it comfortable, it could actually be something people incorporate into their sex life.

And if you do actually try hamstering, "for the love of God," said Zane, "make sure the car is in park."

Topics Sex TikTok

anna iovine, a white woman with curly chin-length brown hair, smiles at the camera
Anna Iovine
Associate Editor, Features

Anna Iovine is associate editor of features at Mashable. Previously, as the sex and relationships reporter, she covered topics ranging from dating apps to pelvic pain. Before Mashable, Anna was a social editor at VICE and freelanced for publications such as Slate and the Columbia Journalism Review. Follow her on X @annaroseiovine.


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