World famous Tillman, the skateboarding dog, has passed away at his home in California. Tillman had developed a heart muscle disease during the summer, and it was this that had ultimately led to his death according to the Associated Press.
Tillman first found his way into our lives about seven years ago, when Ron Davis, his owner, posted a video of the big puppy pulling some spectacular moves on his board - on the sidewalk, up a flight of stairs, in the snow, and in the ocean. It was a dog in motion and he clearly knew how to have fun. That 2007 video of the skateboarding Tillman in Venice Beach, California, went viral and he rose to internet fame.
Having made a name for himself, Tillman made hundreds of celebrity appearances during his life, and in 2009 he also earned himself a Guinness World Records for the "fastest 100m on a skateboard by a dog." Tillman also "threw" the first ball in a baseball game. He even went on to star in an iPhone commercial.
"I'm sorry to announce the world lost a true legend... My best bud Tillman passed away," said Davis on the dog's Facebook page.
But despite all of his skateboarding tricks, Davis never managed to get Tillman to do the traditional tricks that dogs do, like rolling over. This could be because Tillman had his own views on how he should to be rolling.
Tillman will be missed, both by the people who knew him in real life, and the people that he connected to through his online exploits.