BOISE - Dee Fugit has been working at the Idaho Humane Society for 25 years. She recently decided to retire, a tough decision for the lifelong animal lover.
Fugit has dedicated her life to cats and dogs, and all the other critters that have come through the doors at the shelter.
"We get 13- to 14-thousand animals a year here at our shelter," she said. "Over the years, I've seen hundreds of thousands of animals in this place."
She's also seen a lot of changes over the years.
"Over the 25 years I have been here, our shelter has changed tremendously, the community support has grown tremendously," Fugit said. "The number of volunteers and foster parents and people who adopt from us has increased continually every year."
The change she's most proud of is the euthanization rate. She says the animals that end up here find homes.
"We've gone from a shelter that used to euthanize 75 percent of its animals to a shelter that rarely euthanizes an animal for anything but aggression or a medical issue that we truly can't resolve," she said. "We now have over a 95 percent adoption rate for dogs, and over 75 for cats. I'm just a cog in the wheel but I'd like to think I've been a part of that over the years."
Watching her interact with the shelter pets, it's easy to see that Fugit loves animals as well as her co-workers and those who come to the shelter to rescue pets.
"Animal lovers are the best people ever, you can't beat people that love animals and want to help them and take care of them," she said. "It's a great group of people to be around and I can't think of a better place to work."
She said her decision to retire was a bittersweet one. She and her husband are retiring on the same day.
"We've decided that we better do some of the things that we've been putting on the back burners and not had the time to do," she said. "Not easy, believe me. It was the biggest decision I ever made."
It's not going to be easy for her co-workers either.
"Dee has poured her heart and soul into the animals here for so many years," said IHS CEO Dr. Jeff Rosenthal. "Animal shelters are more than just walls. They really depend on the people who work here."
Fugit said she won't be gone for good.
"I'm sure the shelter has not seen the last of me," she said. "Because I've been involved for too many years not to continue to be involved."
"We're not going to completely lose her," Rosenthal added. "We're not letting her get away completely."
Fugit said she's going to miss all the dogs and cats that she's come to love like her own - even the ones she hasn't met yet.
"Dee Fugit is an institution here," Rosenthal said. "People throughout the community know her. She's leaving a real legacy that all of our staff want to live up to."
In honor of Fugit's years of service, Zamzows Superstore made a $14,000 donation to the Idaho Humane Society.
