Kabosu, the beloved Shiba Inu behind the face of the famous Doge meme and the meme cryptocurrency, Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE), turned 18 on Thursday.  

What Happened: To celebrate this occasion, Doge lovers from around the world collaborated to erect a physical statue in honor of Kabosu. The statue was unveiled on Thursday in Sakura City, at Furusato Square, a popular spot frequented by Kabosu and her owner.

The event, organized by an online community called Own The Doge, brought together Doge lovers from around the world who collectively own the Doge meme NFT. 

Last year, fans of Kabosu successfully raised funds to bring this statue to life, and they even have ambitious dreams of eventually positioning it on the moon. 

As part of the festivities, supporters gathered to sing “Happy Birthday” to Kabosu, expressing their love and admiration for the Shiba Inu.

The Dogecoin Foundation, an organization closely associated with the meme cryptocurrency, took to X, stating, “Raising funds to commemorate Kabosu when she had a health scare last year was an incredible time. The Doge & Dogecoin communities from around the internet came together. Amazing to see the statue become a reality on Kabosu’s 18th birthday!”

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Why It Matters: Atsuko Sato, the proud owner of Kabosu, first encountered her beloved Shiba Inu at an animal shelter in November 2008. Reflecting on Kabosu’s past, Sato revealed that she was originally from a puppy mill and had been abandoned along with 19 other Shiba dogs when the mill closed down. 

Today, Kabosu has amassed an impressive following on Instagram, with over 486,000 devoted fans. She has undoubtedly become one of the most renowned dogs in the world.

The journey to internet stardom began when Sato decided to embark on a spontaneous photoshoot with her eight-year-old Shiba Inu. Little did she know that these pictures would soon take the internet by storm. Sato’s intention was simple – to share cute pictures of her beloved pet online.

However, when Sato stumbled upon the Doge meme featuring Kabosu’s face, she was taken aback. In her own words, “It felt very strange to see her face there. It was a Kabosu that I didn’t know.”

Sato had been sharing photos of Kabosu on a blog she started in June 2009, and eventually, these images found their way to the popular online platform Reddit. From there, the meme’s widespread popularity and cultural impact unfolded, forever transforming Kabosu’s life.

Price Action: At the time of writing, DOGE was trading at $0.069,  up 3.76% in the last 24 hours, according to Benzinga Pro.

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