I lost my dear sweet baby, Travis McGee today. He was in my life for more than nine years. He enriched the lives of my family and me more than I can ever say or express. He was the most fun Black Lab-Golden Retriever-Irish Setter-Chow Chow mix you could ever meet! Kind of a Heinz 57 like me, I guess one could say. He liked to give hugs. It's my fault - I taught him that! He loved to take my hand in his paw as a person holds his best friend's hand. Today, while I was playing with him, he actually grabbed my leg & wrapped his around mine!

Nearly two months ago, Travis began having trouble with his daily activities - eating, going to the bathroom. We took him to the vet, who said he felt a mass near his bladder. We got a second opinion. The second vet took x-rays, and, subsequently, performed surgery to see the giant mass inside him. It was a horrible, scary day. I prayed with a dear friend that he be healed from head to toe as he indeed had Cancer. It had started long ago before I adopted him at nine months from the pound. I found out that the Cancer my dog had began with blood vessels, which typically starts at the spleen. During the surgery, the doctor discovered that Travis, in fact, had no spleen. We surmised he must have had a mass as a puppy, which had been removed along with his spleen. His owners then put him up for adoption. Having just had to put my Golden Retriever down, Travis was the new light in our lives.

He was a holy terror. Chewing everything in sight - our cupboards, my Boyd's Bears sculptures, our fern (Of course, he wasn't all to blame. He & our cat Indy were in cahoots together, and they made one helluva mess!), you name it! Once, he even chewed the knobs on the stove, turned several of them on, and the gas on the stove was tick-tick-ticking when we woke up one morning. It was pretty tough to train a nine month pup, who was practically grown, and not yet potty trained taboot!!

It was tough for a while, but he grew into the most beautiful dog. So loving and silly. His favorite toys were his stuffed Cat-in-the-Hat & his squeeky bone. He loved to play catch & fetch, and go for walks. He enjoyed cuddling as though he were a lap dog, and literally slept with his head on the pillow just like a big kid! When we wrestled he sounded like a Grizzly Bear. He was kind of clumsy at times leaping over whatever was in his way and knocking cups over with his tail, and my father affectionately called him, "The Gallumphing Galloot!"

While Travis was open on the table, I told the vet tech to go back in and have the team save my dog's life. Our prayers were answered. For nearly two months, my Travis was healed. He was happy, eating, peeing, pooping, playing. Never thought I'd be so happy to talk about the size of my dog's poop, but I was! Christmas was fantastic. I bought him a new collar and leash. His old collar was dirty and his leash was embarrassing, ripping and held together with a piece of masking tape. I presented him with his gift, and said, "This is for Travis' new leash on life." Ha-ha! I took a cute little video of him and his gal Duchess, and lots of great pictures.

The last couple of days, have been no picnic for him, though. He was naseous, and eating very little, his breathing labored. Today, New Year's Day, my family spent with him. He was happy and playful as the day began. He didn't want to eat much breakfast, but as I prepared pancakes, eggs and bacon for my family, he got hungry. He ate some pancake, eggs and bacon along with some pumpkin and other biscuits we'd gotten the pups for Christmas. My mother and I took the dogs for a walk. They were so excited when we pulled out their leashes from the kitchen drawer, as usual. My dog began to look tired at the halfway point. He slowed his gait to a meaning walk, but I didn't understand how tired he was. We got home, and his breathing rose and fell at an alarming rate compared to Duchess', which was slow and relaxed. His hind quarters began to shake. This went on for a couple hours. We tried to make him comfortable, but to no avail. We took him to an emergency veterinarian across town. She took x-rays of his lungs, and my worst fear was confirmed. The Cancer cells had spread throughout his lungs. Mom and my brother met Dad and Hubby and me at the veterianary hospital, where we said our goodbyes.

It was so painful for my family and me. We just didn't want our boy to suffer anymore. Having had no actual children of my own, he is one of my babies. I thought about his previous owners, and how they never told of Travis' secret health problem, but, in a way, it was a blessing. They gave up on him, but he gave us so many great years of joy, and now I can trully say that HE gave ME a New Leash on Life. RIP, my son. Mommy loves you so much!