Cheems is an ironic Doge character popularized on /r/dogelore. The dog's real name is Balltze, also nicknamed Ball Ball. In memes, he is known for liking cheeseburgers, which the Shiba Inu pronounces, "Cheemsburbger." Memes featuring Cheems are usually based upon the character humorously misspelling various words, particularly by including extra "M" letters and first appeared on /r/dogelore in June 2019. In late August 2023, Balltze passed away due to complications from thoracentesis surgery.

On September 4th, 2017, Instagram [3] user @balltze posted an image of a Shiba Inu. The image of the dog's head was later used in "Cheems" memes. Within three years, the post received more than 9,000 likes (shown below).

The earliest known usage of "Cheemsburbger" was published on the /r/dogelore subreddit on June 8th, 2019 by Redditor [2] Spicy_Meme_Boi. The four-panel meme, which features the smiling Doge with the caption "Cheemsburbger," received more than 1,600 points (99% upvoted) in less than one year (shown below).