Remembering DOGE: What Did We Learn from the Internet’s Favorite Dog?
In the heart of the early 2010s, a simple photo of a Shiba Inu named Kabosu lounging on a couch sparked a phenomenon that would capture the hearts of millions worldwide. Dubbed “DOGE,” this meme transcended borders and generations, embedding itself into the fabric of internet culture. But what is it about DOGE that made it so irresistibly charming? Join us as we delve into the whimsical world of DOGE, exploring the origins, impact, and enduring legacy of the internet’s most beloved dog meme. You won’t believe how one photo changed everything…
Why do some memes become legendary while others fade into obscurity? The death of Kabosu, the Shiba Inu behind one of the silliest memes of the early 2010s, offers a glimpse into how much digital culture has evolved. Let’s dive into the fascinating story of DOGE and the unexpected lessons it taught us about the Internet, memes, and the crypto community.
In the early 2010s, a quirky trend emerged in digital journalism: journalists would trace the origins of popular Internet memes, much like etymologists uncover the roots of words. It was a simple yet captivating endeavor. In December of 2013, curiosity led a freelance writer to investigate a meme known as DOGE. This meme featured a Shiba Inu dog lying on a couch with its paws crossed, giving a side-eye that seemed to say, “Are you serious?” Social media users adorned the image with multicolored text phrases like “so amaze” and “much wow” in Comic Sans. The writer’s quest wasn’t exactly groundbreaking; a reverse Google Image search revealed the photo’s origin on a popular pet blog run by a Japanese woman named Atsuko Sato. She shared photos of her cats and her fluffy yellow dog, Kabosu, named after a Japanese citrus fruit.
Fast forward to today, and the passing of Kabosu at the age of eighteen reminds us of the profound changes in digital culture over the past decade. Kabosu was not the first meme animal to leave us; Grumpy Cat, the famously frowning feline, passed away in 2019 at the age of seven. But Kabosu’s death signifies more than just the end of an era for a beloved meme; it highlights how much the Internet itself has transformed. Memes used to be niche references that indicated one’s membership in a particular online tribe. Imagine using DOGE vocabulary aloud, saying “much wow” in casual conversation, during the same era when skinny jeans and side-swept bangs were all the rage. This language reflected the twee, almost childlike essence of those years — a time when many were trying to delay adulthood in a world still reeling from the financial crisis.
One of the most memorable iterations of the DOGE meme showed Kabosu cozily tucked into bed between fuzzy blankets with the captions “such tired” and “so beauty rest.” It was a simpler time when memes were innocent fun. Back then, Boomers were just beginning to discover Facebook, Instagram was still on the fringe of mainstream consciousness, and the Internet felt more like a separate realm from everyday reality. This illusion was shattered with the election of Donald Trump in 2016, driven by targeted social-media advertising and fragmented news consumption on personalized feeds.
DOGE had no hidden agenda or corporate backing. There was no official social-media account, just Sato herself sharing glimpses of her dog’s life. The meme’s origins could be traced back to a 2010’s Reddit post titled “L.M.B.O LOOK @ THIS FUKKIN DOGE.” The creative misspelling was already a hallmark of Internet humor, exemplified by LOLcats and phrases like “I can has cheezburger?” The meme’s charm lay in its organic, decentralized spread across the web. Unlike today, when virality is often manufactured and monetized, DOGE’s rise to fame felt genuine and untainted. It projected a hopeful naïveté about the Internet that has since been overshadowed by the darker consequences of social media on a global scale.
Consider the contrast with the story of West Elm Caleb, a New York City designer who became infamous on TikTok in 2022 for ghosting his dates. His meme status led to an online manhunt and harassment campaign, with TikTok creators exploiting the controversy for algorithmic promotion. Today, virality is either a quick ticket to exploitation or something to avoid at all costs. Unveiling DOGE, by contrast, only added to its appeal. Sato viewed the meme with warm bemusement, finding the strange pictures amusing despite her analog lifestyle.
DOGE’s lack of pre-optimization for fame set it apart from today’s Internet successes. Popularity on the Internet was once more decentralized, sprouting in various online spaces and making it harder to commercialize. However, the 2010s established a clear path from online exposure to financial gain. For instance, when a Chinese glycine factory’s marketing videos went viral last spring, influencers quickly capitalized with a flood of related merchandise. Social-media accounts have become strategic tools for directing attention to monetizable platforms like Instagram, Patreon, and YouTube.
This doesn’t mean DOGE was entirely immune to commercialization. As the Internet evolved, so did the meme. Shortly before DOGE’s source was discovered, DOGEcoin, a cryptocurrency, was created as a friendlier alternative to Bitcoin. The meme’s popularity made it easier to market DOGEcoin, transforming it into a financial entity traded in the marketplace of attention. By 2021, DOGEcoin’s value had risen significantly, giving it a market capitalization of around twenty-three billion dollars. This value is largely theoretical, as only a small percentage of the currency could be liquidated without causing the price to crash. Yet, the joke had morphed into a serious financial venture. That year, Sato sold a non-fungible token (NFT) version of the original DOGE photo, earning four million dollars, the highest price ever paid for an NFT at the time. It’s challenging to maintain a lighthearted perspective when the stakes are so high.
Reflecting on our lost online innocence might seem insincere because the Internet is shaped by its users. We can still find and create the silly, random acts of creativity that made DOGE fun. The key to that fun was the collective sense of ownership and participation in the meme. DOGE taught us that, on the Internet, pointlessness can indeed be the point. Kabosu, the real dog, lived a long and happy life with a loving family and comfortable furniture — a simple yet fulfilling aspiration for any dog. In two-thousand thirteen, Sato expressed hope that the meme’s popularity could raise awareness for dog adoption, helping abandoned animals find homes. Last year, a bronze statue of Kabosu was unveiled in her hometown of Sakura, funded with the help of DOGEcoin holders.
The phenomenon of DOGE can also be explained through finance and brand marketing theories. One such finance theory is the greater fool theory. First discussed by professor Burton Malkiel, it suggests that people buy overvalued assets, believing they can sell them to someone else at a higher price. DOGE-coin’s rise in value can be attributed to this, as buyers hoped to profit from its growing popularity. In terms of brand marketing, nostalgia plays a significant role. DOGE tapped into a collective yearning for the simpler, more innocent days of the Internet. Marketers often use nostalgia to evoke positive emotions and create a sense of connection with consumers, as seen with retro branding and the resurgence of vintage products.
So, what does this story tell us about the Internet and its future? It reminds us that while the digital landscape has changed dramatically, the essence of what makes the Internet fun and engaging remains within our control. We can choose to seek out and cherish the quirky, creative moments that bring us together. As we navigate this ever-evolving digital world, one question lingers: Can we balance the commercial pressures of the Internet with the genuine, playful spirit that once made it a place of endless possibilities?
References
Chayka, K. (2024, June 5). What Doge Taught Me About the Internet. The New Yorker.
Lansiaux, E., Tchagaspanian, N., & Forget, J. (2022). Community impact on a cryptocurrency: Twitter comparison example between Dogecoin and Litecoin. Frontiers in Blockchain, 5, 829865.
Malkiel, B. G. (2021). A Random Walk Down Wall Street The Time-Tested Strategy for Successful Investing.
