The dog behind the famous “Doge” meme has been diagnosed with leukemia and liver disease, its owner announced.

In an Instagram post on Tuesday, Atsuko Sato, the Japan-based owner of Kabosu, revealed that the 17-year-old shiba inu has chronic lymphocytic leukemia, a type of blood and bone marrow cancer, and cholangiohepatitis, an inflammation of the bile ducts, gallbladder and liver tissue.

“Right now, the liver level is very bad and jaundice appears,” said Sato.

Nevertheless, Kabosu has an appetite and is able to drink water, she said.

In 2013, Kabosu became an internet sensation based on a 2010 photo that Sato posted to her blog. The picture shows Kabosu with her paws crossed, slightly side-eyeing the camera with a little smirk.

The meme is notably accompanied with captions of terse expressions and broken English such as “wow”, “so scare” and “much respect”.

Since then, Kabosu and her Doge meme have gone viral, with even the recently launched cryptocurrency Dogecoin being inspired by the meme. In 2021, the “Doge” meme was sold as a non-fungible token, or NFT, for a staggering $4m, making it the most expensive meme NFT to ever be sold.

In a post earlier this week, Sato said that Kabosu had been sick since Christmas Eve and was unable to eat or drink water.

Sato then said in another post that Kabosu had blood tests done and that her doctor informed her that Kabosu “was in very dangerous condition”.

“I didn’t expect it to be that bad,” Sato wrote.

Pictures and videos posted online by Sato show Kabosu lying underneath a blanket. In one post, Sato is seen attempting to give Kabosu water from a bottle.

There has been an outpouring of good wishes towards Kabosu, with many online wishing the shiba inu a speedy recovery.

“It’s gonna be alrite, you have the world praying for you, stray strong Kabosu,” one user wrote.

Other users addressed Kabosu by her internet nickname, saying, “It will be okay doge!” and “Doge we are here for you.”

On average, shiba inus have a lifespan of 12 to 15 years.