Kabosu, the Japanese shiba inu who inspired the iconic “doge” meme, has died, her owner announced.
The pup’s owner, Atsuko Sato, shared the news Friday in the form of a sweet poem on her blog.
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“At 7:50 a.m. I fell into a deep sleep,” she wrote in the poem, which was translated by the AFP news agency, according to NBC News.
“She quietly passed away as if asleep while I caressed her,” Sato also wrote. “I think Kabo-chan was the happiest dog in the world. And I was the happiest owner.”
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In late 2022, Sato shared that Kabosu had been diagnosed with chronic lymphoma, leukemia and other illnesses.
Sato adopted Kabosu after seeing her on the website of an animal welfare organization, she told the Japanese publication The Asahi Shimbun in February. She does not know Kabosu’s exact birthday, but guessed the dog was about 18 when she died.
An image of Kabosu with her head playfully tilted went viral in 2010 after Sato uploaded it to her blog.
The dog’s quizzical expression began popping up in countless memes, including pictures of Kabosu’s face superimposed on a cookie or loaf of bread, or surrounded by rainbows and phrases like “wow” and “much amaze.”
In a 2020 interview with Know Your Meme, Sato said she was “very surprised” to see her dog become a viral sensation.
“I was terrified at the thought that just one photo I had casually posted on my blog could spread all over the world to places I didn’t know,” she said.
Kabosu, who was known as “doge” online, even became the face of a cryptocurrency, Dogecoin.
Dogecoin was created as a joke by two software engineers in 2013, but it has become one of the biggest cryptocurrencies in the world, according to Forbes.
Dogecoin shared a sweet tribute to its namesake on X on May 24.
“Today Kabosu, our community’s shared friend and inspiration, peacefully passed in the arms of her person. The impact this one dog has made across the world is immeasurable,” the company’s message read.
Dogecoin also said Kabosu was “a being who knew only happiness and limitless love.”
There will be a farewell party for Kabosu on May 26 at the city hall in Narita, Japan, Sato said on her blog and in an Instagram post.
In a 2020 interview with Know Your Meme, Sato described Kabosu as a “very gentle, quiet dog.”
“When she first came to my house, she didn’t know anything about being spoiled, and she was afraid of humans moving,” she said.
“She was like a stuffed dog that was so quiet you forgot it was there, even when she was in the same room. As we lived together, she gradually began to open her heart to us, and little by little, she even learned how to get spoiled.”
This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:
