Kabosu, the Shiba Inu dog which inspired Dogecoin and the “doge” meme, is critically ill, according to her owner.
On December 26, Kabosu’s owner, a Japanese kindergarten teacher named Atsuko Sat, declared in Japanese on his Twitter post that the rescue dog was in danger, but assured followers that he would be fine, adding that the dog is “getting power from all over the world.”
The Doge meme fans, who were moved by Sato’s tweet, were taken aback by the news. “I wish nothing but the best for Kabosu. I am hoping for nothing but the best for Kabosu. Wishing for a speedy recovery,” a Twitter user said.
Another Twitter user who wished her well offered to pay for all of her medical expenses to ensure she received the best possible care.
Read more: Shiba Inu May be Accepted by Netflix and Spotify: Is That a Good Idea?
According to Sato’s earlier post, Kabosu has been ill since Christmas Eve and has not eaten or drunk. However, he did not reveal what Kabosu’s health issues are.
Kabosu turned seventeen earlier this year. It is relevant to note that the average lifespan of a Shiba Inu is between 12 and 15 years.
Dogecoin’s Popularity Continues to Grow
Sato’s blog post in 2010 launched the Doge meme. The caption for the photo of the dog with an awkward expression was “Such fun…wow.”
Following the photo’s popularity, dozens of photoshopped versions began to circulate online as part of various jokes and memes. As the meme spread, it inspired the creation of the first “meme coin,” Dogecoin, which was created as a joke in 2013 by Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer. Dogecoin was soon used for charitable purposes and online tipping by members of Reddit and other web forums.
Despite the fact that it was created as a joke, Dogecoin is still extremely popular in the crypto industry nearly a decade after its inception.
Several Dogecoin users hoped that Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter would result in DOGE being added to the social media platform, causing the price to rise.
Musk has long been a supporter of Dogecoin, and before admitting it wasn’t possible, he planned to charge Twitter users 0.1 DOGE to post in an effort to reduce scam posts.
According to trackers, DOGE is the eighth largest coin by market capitalization, with nearly $10 billion, and has seen a volume of more than $250 million in the last 24 hours.