I held his paw and slept by his side for 14 days in hospital. But it turned out, all the love in the world wasn’t enough to save him. Thus begins the final post on Life of Dozer.
My dearest Dozer,
You came into my life in my arms, holding you protectively. And after almost 14 years together, I held you in my arms protectively again as I said goodbye.
I was sobbing so hard, I forgot everything I wanted to say to you in our final moments together.
So I started writing this letter to you, to say all those things.
I wanted to reminisce about our wonderful times – the thousands of visits to the dog beach, all the wonderful food we sampled together, the cuddles, the neck-scratching-sessions, our road trips.
I wanted to thank you for spreading the joy that is you with readers all around the world, for happily coming along with me to meet readers at events, book signings, fund raisers, lunches, dinners, not to mention TV shows, photo shoots, and my gosh, we can’t forget our stint on Play School!
But as I sit here, typing away with tears streaming down my face, I realise that’s not what I want to say to you.
What I want to say is thank you.
Thank you for giving me your whole heart.
Thank you for giving me your unconditional loyalty.
Thank you for loving me just as I am, for all my flaws, for never caring what I weigh, what I wear, what I look like.
Thank you for always being there, my one constant through the good and bad times.
Thank you for making me smile, even on the hardest of days.
And thank you for trying so hard to stay with me as long as you could, fighting to heal until your very last day. I will never forget how deep you had to dig to find the strength for your rehab walk on our final morning together.
I know that one day, I will be able to look at photos of you again without sobbing. And I know all this pain I am feeling is because I loved you so fiercely and completely, and I wouldn’t trade it for a second I got to spend with you.
But right now, four days after saying goodbye, it feels like the heartbreak will never heal, like I will never smile again.
Rest in peace, my darling Dozer. I will never forget you, and I will never stop loving you.
Love,
Your mum xoxo
Thank you SASH
To the vets and nurses at the Small Animal Specialist Hospital (SASH),
Thank you for the extraordinary care, skill, and kindness you showed Dozer. Every moment, from the medical expertise to the gentle reassurance and cheering him on, meant more to me than I can say. Knowing he was in such capable, compassionate hands gave me comfort during the hardest days. I will always be deeply grateful for everything you did for my beautiful boy. – Nagi x
So sorry for Dozer … 😞
All my best condolences . Your letter is so touching, I understand so well your feelings . Good luck to you . Take care
Dear Nagi, I lost my boy many years ago, he was 15 plus yrs .. He also stole my heart as Your Dozer did yours, and I took a while to stop crying .. even now in quiet moments I look back and remember how precious true and unbiased his love was.. sending hugs and enjoyable memories of your boy 🌹🥰
So sorry for your loss. What an amazing life Dozer had with you. Hold on to those precious memories. Sending love & hugs.
Sending you a big hug! Your story broke my heart 💔 RIP beautiful Dozer xxxxx
Dearest Nagi, sending all my love during this difficult time 💗 Dozer was one of a kind and he would be remembered forever 🤍 🐾 🌈 💜 🕊️
I’m so very sad for you my most sincere condolences
I am SO SO sorry for your loss. I will miss Dozier too 😪
Dearest Nagi,
As I sit here having just finished making my 18th (surely that isn’t right) batch of your chocolate mousse since I first made it at the beginning of December in 2026 (Christmas testing – and yes I certainly have made it some weeks 3 or 4 times), know that we tens of thousands of us stand in solidarity in your grief at the loss of precious Dozer. The loss of a beloved pet is one of the most difficult experiences and I hope that you be sure to look after yourself at this very difficult time. Thank you for sharing Dozer with us all.
Dear Nagi, I am so very sorry for your loss. I know how much you loved Dozer and I understand how you must be feeling. My thoughts are with you
Sending our condolences we’ve just lost our labourer after 17 years and know what you are going through
Dear Nagi
Sorry to hear about your loss of beautiful Dozer.
He was beautiful and I realise how much you will miss him.
Thinking of you
Anna
Nagi my heart goes out to you. I know the pain and we are all here sending much love and prayers. Dozer ♥️🙏🏻
You know dogs are like children to us except they live there whole life in what is to us only junior years and perhaps that is what makes it so hard to loose them although if it was a loved family member passing in equivalent dog years (98) whilst sadness would engulf us, after a period of extreme mourning the greatest gift of our love would be resilience manifested through living our life to the fullest as our dog had done as an eternal example
On reading the sad news a few days ego on my phone whilst on holiday I was consumed by an unproportionate amount of grief since i don’t know either of you personally though the connection that you 2 had was palpable from the photos in my favorite book, Tonight, apart from blogs etc. (I have know idea how you have so much energy!!)
Positive finish – we caught a mud crab the next day and made your version (almost) of Singapore Chilli Mud
Crab.
Mourn Heal Resurrect in his honour
Chris
Nagi, I am so sorry for your grief. Dozer will always be with you. Many blessings xxx
Oh, the wonderful warm memories you will have of your loving Dozer with the gentle heart, and the joyous life you had together.
Thank you so much for sharing Dozer with us. I love his images featuring throughout your lovely recipe books. It’s so hard to let them go; those special dogs who are family. So many tears. Dozer will always be here with you. x x
Daar Nagi, you and Dozer have been in my thoughts. Your Dozer stories brought me much joy and many laughs over the years. We lost our gorgeous girl last year, the wonderful team at SASH took care of her too. They go above and beyond. Take care of yourself and know many people are sending you their love.
Nagi, I have been here in Los Angeles enjoying your posts for 5 years now. But today, I have been crying for you all day. I share your heartbreak and your grief. Your darling Dozer indeed. What a love.
My poor love. Dozer had the best life a dog could hope for, and he was loved by tens of thousands of people, all over the world. Thankyou so much for sharing your lovely doggie with all of us. I hope you can find some small comfort in knowing how much joy he brought to so many people. Thankyou Nagi, and thankyou Dozer xxx
I was sorry Nagi to hear that Dozer passed away. I uses to go straight to read about him before I looked at your recipes. My heart is with you love Karin xox