09/12/2024
Maggie Zehr
2010 - 2024
It is with a heavy heart, and much sorrow, that I share, our dear friend Maggie passed away.
We found each other when Maggie was just 10-weeks old. Another family was looking for a home for Maggie because their landlord would not allow “that kind of dog”. The first night she looked scared and alone. She whined when I put her in her crate. I put her on my bed, turned her crate so she could see me, and she curled up and went right to sleep. She was our closest friend for the next 14 years. She needed to be with us, and we needed her, to help brighten each day for our entire family.
Maggie was a Staffordshire Terrier which is a type of pit bull (“pit bull” is not a breed, it is slang). She was super-cute at less than 2 pounds when she arrived and had bright blue eyes. As she got older, her eyes turned a beautiful shade of green, and she was more than 100 pounds for most of her adult life (the average “staffie” is ~65 pounds). Her breed and her size made her look scary to some, but she was both gentle and extremely kind. At the dog park they called her “The Sheriff” because she always stepped in to help any smaller dog that was getting picked on.
Maggie became a close family friend. She learned to tolerate the cats – unless they got too close to her food. She went to school, so that I could be trained, and graduated with honors. She loved the dog park and coaching football with me. The players, coaches, and administrators all knew her by name.
Maggie was a fashion model. She took photos with all the models for Yana Surf, including Maya Gabeira, a Red Bull athlete and the top female big-wave surfer in the world. Maggie is a central character in the animated gifs that are still used to promote Zairmail and Speedy (www.zairmail.com). Maggie is included in the acknowledgements section of my doctoral dissertation.
In 2105, Maggie went off to college with us. I started teaching at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, Oregon. Mason was registered with George Fox University in Newberg, Oregon. He started school early so that he could work out with the football team. Before school year started, he had a change of heart, and decided to head to La Grande with us. We all went to college as a family. I taught some of Mason’s upper division business classes, and Maggie was sometimes a guest.
Maggie quickly got used to life in rural eastern Oregon. She went to tailgate parties and watched football with me at EOU on Saturday’s during the fall. We went walking on the campus and sometimes she attended classes, to the delight of the students. She liked to go to the dog park and to hike at Mount Emily. She loved laying in creeks, rivers, or even her small pool on warm summer days. On Saturdays, during the summer, we would go to the farmer’s market where all the kids would pet her and love on her. She loved kids, a LOT, and was always gentle with them.
Maggie used to look forward to deliveries from UPS, FedEx, and yes, even the postman. The UPS guy figured out quickly, that if he gave Maggie a treat when he came, she would look forward to his arrival, rather than try to stare him down. He must have tipped off the others, because they all brought treats to Maggie. She became friends will all of our delivery people over time.
Maggie would have a spa day every 6 weeks, to get a bath, and have her nails cut. Deb Martell, at Best of Breed, always took very good care of Maggie. They had good chemistry together. She gave her love, and treats, and a fresh bandana with a new seasonal pattern each time. You may have seen all the different scarves over the years. They still hang on Maggie’s coatrack at home – we saved every one. Maggie loved Deb and she became an essential piece of our extended family.
Maggie endured some pain over the course of her life. When she was a puppy, a full-grown dog broke through the fence and broke a bone in her shoulder. We had to have a pin inserted in her shoulder. When she got older, she needed two ACL surgeries, one each summer, two summers in a row. Over the last couple of months of her life she had a mass in her neck that was causing her pain. She never, ever, complained – not once. She was happy for life, and happy for each day with us, you could see it in her eyes.
Maggie passed away at home, in my arms, where she belonged. She was a loving friend, an important member of our family, and our constant companion. We will always miss her and she can never be replaced. I am so grateful to have known her, and shared life with her, for so very long – but not nearly long enough.
Thank you to everyone who was kind to her and became a part of her life too. I cannot begin to express how much this means to me, and I know it meant the world to Maggie too.
It would be impossible to share her entire life without going on for hours.
I know she is still watching, still protecting, and still caring.
We love you Maggie!
