Marnie, the internet-famous Shih Tzu known for her lopsided, dangling tongue, has died.
Her owner made the sad announcement on social media Saturday (March 07, 2020).
“I'm grateful I was able to give this magical creature the fun and deeply loving life she wanted and deserved,” Marnie’s human, Shirley Braha wrote. “I'm thankful I was chosen to be the conduit for Marnie to bring joy into the world. And I'm thankful for all the human and dog friends Marnie and I made along the way, and the strangers on the streets and on the internet, who have shown us so much love.”
“Her comfort had been notably declining over the past few days with little hope for improvement and she let me know she had had enough. Thank you for joining me on an unexpected journey with the ultimate love of my life.”
Marnie quickly rose to fame after being adopted at age 11 and publishing a book with her owner in 2015. The dog amassed nearly 2 million followers on Instagram alone.
Braha said a number of people reached out to her through the years, saying Marnie had inspired them to adopt senior dogs.
“I was just doubtful anyone would care,” Braha told The New York Times about when she started posting Marnie online. “There is so much content online and it's almost like the aspiration of fame seems so trite that it just didn't appeal to me.”
Though plenty did care, as Marnie's Instagram was flooded with well wishes and tributes after the Saturday announcement.
