Kabosu, the beloved Shiba Inu behind the famous Doge meme, is facing a serious health condition, according to a tweet posted by her owner, Atsuko Sato.
Saoõ, a kindergarten teacher from Tokyo, revealed in a recent tweet that her beloved pet was in no insignificant amount of pain: “Unfortunately, Kabosu doesn’t look so well... I’m sure she’s going to be okay. Definitely okay. She’s receiving power from all over the world! Thank you so much everyone!" she added.
The news comes as quite a shock to fans of the Doge meme who were incredibly touched after seeing Sato’s tweet. "I am hoping for nothing but the best for Kabosu. Wishing for a speedy recovery," a Twitter user said.
Earlier this year, Kabosu celebrated her 17th birthday. It is worth noting that the average lifespan of a Shiba Inu is between 12 and 15 years
The Doge meme originated in a 2010 Facebook post by Sato. The picture of the dog, which featured an awkward expression, was accompanied by the caption: "Such fun...wow."
The image ended up going viral and dozens of photoshopped versions began appearing online as part of various jokes and memes.
In 2013, software developers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer created Dogecoin as a joke cryptocurrency. They chose the Doge meme since it was popular at that time and wanted the currency to be fun and accessible to everyone. Soon after, members of Reddit and other online communities started using Dogecoin for charitable causes and tipping one another online.