Daigle Family Happenings: Frasier Peabody Travis

I don't even know where to start with this post. I can't make myself ok with the idea of this post. Frasier is gone...how?! Why?! I don't want to believe it...I remember picking him out when he was just weeks old. He was so tiny. He was so spunky. His fur was soft and silky. We named him Frasier because the show was a much loved one growing up. He earned his middle name of Peabody because every time he got excited about something he would pee everywhere! It was a big inconvenience when he was jumping because he was excited in addition to the peeing because he was excited!

Top: Frasier 2008
Bottom: Frasier 2006
Right: Frasier 2007

Mom and Dad called last week and let me know that he wasn't doing well. Dad has made me say goodbye to this dog so many times because he's old, but this time I knew it was for real. I knew Frasier was getting exponentially older by the day {he actually turned 16 this June} and that he had to be hurting. He had lumps and bumps all over him, he had arthritic paws, and it was getting harder and harder for him to get around. Going up and down the stairs was near impossible, pads had to be on the floor for him to pee on because no matter how many times he went outside it wasn't enough, he had to be carried outside to go to the bathroom, and then he stopped eating.

Next, Mom and Dad called to say that they had made an appointment at the vet, and Wednesday would be the day that we all had to say our final goodbyes. I know he lived a great life, I know he was loved, I know this is what's best for him - he sleeps 20 hours a day and is now whimpering in his sleep, he's hurting all the time. None of this changes the fact that I don't want it to happen.

Mom and Dad made sure to give him a life of extreme luxury once we knew the time had come. Dad was cooking Frasier's meals for him {and they were going un touched} and Mom made sure to brush him often {he loved sitting on the back deck with her while she brushed him} and Frasier got more phone calls than anyone I know! My sister called to check on him, I called more than once a day {in hopes that he was turning a corner and doing better - but I knew deep down that wasn't the case}, Parker called. People went to visit him one last time. The dog was loved!

Dad picked up medicine for him on Monday so that he would be calm going to the vet today. Frasier hated the vet. If you just drove in the directon of the vet's office, he would tremble and shed. Man, did he hate that place. An hour before heading to the vet, Frasier got his medicine and he was calm. Mom and Dad took him to the vet in his very favorite leopard print towel that went with him everywhere. He wasn't alone, and he was loved on until the very end. Dad sent a text once they got home and said, "Yes we were there. It was very emotional. He just went to sleep. Very peaceful. I haven't cried this much since Dad {Grampie} died. I have a hole dug in the back yard next to the deck. We will bury him when I finish digging. When we got home from the vet I put Frasier's box on top of his crate and Mom wrote his name on it and said 'best pet ever.'"

Random pictures from Frasier's last week of life - August 2013

The hardest part for me, other than not being there, is that I can't say goodbye to him. He can't hear me and he can't see me. The only way he knows you're there is if he can smell or feel your touch, neither of which I can offer him from afar. I hate it.

I know my kids will miss him. Hunter may not notice his absence, but I know Eden will.

July 2013

I talked to her a little bit about it, but just let her take the lead on where the conversation went. I started by telling her that Frasier won't be there when we go to Georgia for Parker's wedding. She of course asked why and I reminded her that Frasier was getting very old and that he was sick. I told her that he was going to be living with Jesus. This is when she got the most sad face I've ever seen and said to me, "but I will miss him..." and I cried. I didn't want to cry and I tried not to. But I did, and it was honest, and real that she saw that. I pulled myself together and I told her that we'll all miss him, but it was better for him. He won't be grumpy or hurting anymore. I told her that he's going to be able to run, jump, and play with Jesus, and that he was going to be very happy living in Heaven.

One of Frasier's favorite places was Fripp. He loved golf cart rides, he loved the beach, and I think he just liked that it was one of the places he could just relax. There was no agenda, and he could lounge without hustle and bustle. He'd sit on the beach, smell the air, and let the wind blow in his ears! I'd like to think that Frasier's Heaven is much like Fripp...