Sugar, the surfing dog who made history as the first canine inducted into the Surfer’s Hall of Fame, has died at the age of 16 after a battle with cancer. She passed away on Monday.
The rescue dog from Huntington Beach, California, was a five-time dog surfing world champion. Outside the water, she served as a dedicated therapy dog, comforting military veterans. She died “in her daddy’s arms,” according to a post on her Instagram account.
“Sugar lived to put smiles on faces, to volunteer, to send it – to change dog surfing forever. Thank you for loving Sugar,” the post read.
“Goodbye my Sugar. I can’t believe I’m writing this. I’m going to miss you so much.”
Sugar was found as a stray and over the years her love of the waves and natural talent took dog surfing to new heights.
Dressed in a life jacket, spectators would watch the furry white canine in amazement as she balanced on her surfboard, riding wave after wave back to the shore, sometimes with her owner, Ryan Rustan, by her side and other times all on her own.
In 2024, her paw prints joined the hand and footprints of many other renowned surfers immortalised in concrete in Huntington Beach when she was inducted into the hall of fame.
“This is just incredible. Dreams do come true even for a surfing dog and guys like me,” Rustan said at the ceremony.
A post on Huntington Beach’s Facebook page described her as a local legend who the Surf City community is mourning.
“From inspiring the surfing world to advocating for rescue dogs and bringing comfort to veterans as a therapy dog, her impact reached far beyond the shoreline,” the post said.
