Shiba Inu that was face of dogecoin dies at 18

The dog that skyrocketed to internet fame and became the face of the cryptocurrency dogecoin has died.

The Shiba Inu named Kabosu passed away in Japan at 18 years old, a number of outlets reported. The dog’s owner, Atsuko Sato, said in a post that Kabosu died in her sleep. The account for dogecoin on X also said she had died, calling her an inspiration.

Sato, a 62-year-old kindergarten teacher in Japan, adopted the dog from an animal shelter in 2008, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Sato posted pictures of Kabosu, and her cats, online regularly. It was a picture of Kabosu, her head tilted in a seemingly quizzical fashion, that captured the attention of early adapters of cryptocurrency and she became a meme almost overnight.

A developer named Billy Markus actually harnessed the image in an effort to mock many of the cryptocurrencies being traded at the time. Markus co-created dogecoin using the Kabosu meme. The dog’s image was transposed onto a gold coin as the emblem for dogecoin in 2013, according to the Journal.

Kabuso’s image was soon being shared by traders, celebrities and even members of Congress.