Kabosu, the dog who inspired one of the internet’s most beloved memes, has died at age 18.
The Shiba inu who became the face of cryptocurrency Dogecoin had been suffering from leukaemia and liver disease.
‘To all of you who loved Kabosu, on the morning of the 24 May, Kabosu crossed the rainbow bridge. Thank you all so much for your support over the years,’ Atsuko Sato, her owner, wrote on Instagram.
Kabosu had been saved from a puppy mill in Japan and was adopted by Atsuko, a teacher, in 2008.
Two years later a picture of the pup with a slight smirk and crossed paws was posted, becoming one of the first and most well known internet memes known as Doge.
Her owner continued: ‘She went very peacefully without suffering, as if falling asleep while feeling the warmth of my hands petting her.
‘Thank you all so much for loving Kabosu all these years.
‘I am certain Kabosu was the happiest dog in the world. That makes me the happiest owner in the world.
‘I would like to express my deepest appreciation to everyone who has sent us much love to us.’
The Doge meme erupted in 2013, with a Reddit user calling Kabosu the intentionally misspelled nickname in reference to a 2005 episode of Homestar Runner.
As internet culture grew, pictures of Kabosu’s smirking face were accompanied with comic sans messages written in broken English such as ‘Wow. So scare.’
While that formatting of memes died down, Doge remained a touch stone for internet users with over 500,000 fans following the daily life of the real dog on Instagram.
In 2021, a non-fungible token (NFT) of the Doge meme sold for $4m (£3.2m).
The pup then became the face of Dogecoin, a cryptocurrency intended as a joke which happens to be the sleeve sponsor of Watford Football Club.
Kabosu’s fame continued as Elon Musk used the meme instead of the logo last year for April Fools, on April 3.
Atsuko is hosting a memorial for Kabosu on Sunday, calling it a ‘Farewell party for my sister’.
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