It Took A Dog Named Maggy
by Joe Maringo

One of my first memories as a young boy was of our family dogs, Molly, a collie, and her son Whiskey.  We had a picture of Lassie on our basement wall, which I always thought  was really Molly.  She and Whiskey where allowed to have free run of the neighborhood. They came and went as they pleased, but mostly hung right around the house. Sometimes, if neighbors complained about the dogs running free, my parents would chain them up at the edge of our property to their doghouses.  They where not really houses, but more like small lean-to’s with canvas over them.  Looking back, they were probably not much protection from the weather, and no help from the cold of winter.

Other dogs in the neighborhood also lived their lives on chains, including Mike, a beagle.  Mike became so vicious from living with no human contact day in day out, that he actually attacked me and mauled me quite badly.  That attack left me with many stitches and a deep fear of all dogs that lasted into my 40’s.  Whiskey would go visit Mike on occasion when not tied up and often it would end in a dog fight. I can still remember the night we had to treat the cuts and bites on Whiskey’s face from getting into yet another fight.,

Molly was an amazing dog. We had a connection even at my young age.  We lived in a rural area and I did not have many human friends, so I would sit in Molly’s doghouse  and just talk to her.  I also remember several litters of puppies that would just suddenly be there one morning.  I would spend the day holding them and petting Molly.  But then the puppies would all be gone within 24 hours. I never knew where they went, nor did I ever ask. It just seemed “normal” for them to disappear.

The only time I can remember seeing my father cry was the day Molly passed away.  I don’t know how old she was, but she spent almost all of her life tied to a chain, right next to Whiskey.  That was the beginning of my life with dogs.  It was how things where and how everyone in our area cared for their pets.  They got a new dog, tied it to a chain with a box and went on with their life.  It was years before I learned there where better ways to care for mans best friend.

There was a long list of amazing dogs in my life.  Molly and Whiskey; Molly II, a border collie; Snoopy, an expensive AKC registered collie; Whiskey II, who was the first dog I could really call my own; and Max, a shepherd mix.  Sadly, they all lived out their lives outdoors 24/7/365.  It was never even a consideration that a dog could come in the house for a visit, much less to stay.  Now and then though, if it was cold enough in the winter, I could sneak one in at night just to warm up, but then back outside they’d go the next morning.

As I got older I started to question the chaining of our families pets.  I had started a family and wanted a dog that could be a part of that family.  Since I did a lot of duck hunting in the swamps of Pennsylvania, I decided the time had come for a Labrador to share my life.  I made some contacts and soon an eight week old black lab came to live with us.  I knew that Maggy was not going to spend her life chained and was to be my constant companion, so I fenced our yard and got her an insulated dog house.  The joy she brought was quite a surprise.  Never before had a dog been so much a part of the family. After just a few short days, Maggy moved from the yard to the house and then into our bed to sleep each night.  

It was if a light switch had been flipped and it seemed so natural.  I never had a bond with any dog like I did with Maggy.  She had come to be my hunting companion, but ended up being the most important teacher to ever touch my life.  She taught me that a dog can live indoors as a part of the family, and she would bring as much joy to us as we brought to her.  She taught me of compassion, and love and so many other things.  

We spent all our time together. I credit Maggy for making such a change in my life, as well as my heart.  I became a completely different person because of her.  Sadly, I was only able to spend eight short years with her before cancer stole her from me.  I like to think now, that she had taught me all that she could and that God called her back home to rest. God knows she needed the rest with all I learned from her.

Looking back at all the chained dogs we had, I wonder how many of those dogs could have been Maggy’s?  How many had been sent to teach me, only to waste away at the end of a chain?  I am ashamed of the way I treated these wonderful souls just because it was the way everyone else did it.  I decided almost ten years ago now that it was time for a change, and in the memory of all those lost souls I would do something to make a difference.

With Maggy’s help, my wife Barb and I started Southwest Pennsylvania Retriever Rescue Organization, or SPARRO, in order to help save the lives of abandoned and unwanted dogs, especially labs, in the Pittsburgh area.  Maggy helped teach the dogs that came through SPARRO that people are not all bad and there is a better life waiting for them.  Many of the dogs that come through SPARRO are former chained dogs.  Every one has a special soul and they all just want to be loved.  And in the memory of the dogs I had growing up, every one of them gets treated just like Maggy.  Weather young or old, friendly or aggressive, happy or frightened, they all get treated just like a part of the family.  No more chains, living the way they were meant to live.  My thanks to Maggy and to Dogs Deserve Better for helping me learn and for helping me change lives.

I know the two unchained dogs that live with me now have so much better lives for it.  Maggie, who lived on a chain for 13 years, and Zena who was chained for an amazing 17 years.  While Maggie enjoys sleeping in our bed at night, Zena’s tired bones and arthritis makes her content to spend her nights lying on her comfortable orthopedic bed next to us.  They both live for the comfort of human contact, and even though Zena is blind and deaf she knows when I walk into the room.  Her face lights up and she greats me with her now famous ROOROO! I know Maggy is still sending teachers to help me continue to learn, and she has done an amazing job in sending these two.

I want to help DDB with financial support.