CHAPPELL - Terry Duffield says her love of dogs is genetic.

Her grandparents raised dogs, her mother loved animals, and Duffield rescued her first pair of dogs in 1984 when they were wandering around Chappell.

In 1993, she moved her family to a farm outside of town in Deuel County where she, her dad Charles, brother Bob, and husband Tom converted an old hog building into a 20-dog kennel. She held and cared for dogs in the building until it caught fire and burned down in 2010. 

Later in the year, Duffield - and friends Melody Harms and Jonna Wheelock - broke ground on a dream in Chappell: start a new 501C3 non-profit animal shelter called Adopt-a-Dog. 

"I love what I'm doing and will always love the shelter," Duffield said. "I'm proud of what I've done and I'm so proud of this community. They've always supported me. I love everything about this place."

The new building, located at 6724 Highway 30, was built by volunteers and volunteers continue to keep the doors open every weekday from 9 a.m. to noon and Saturday's from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

After what she calls a "long, fun, sad, happy and (on some days) frustrating" 38-year animal rescue career, Duffield announced this week she'll be leaving Adopt-a-Dog at the end of the year. She says it's time to spend more time with her dad, husband, grand kids and family.

"I'm kind of excited about retirement," Duffield said. "I'm going to miss this place terribly, but I'm excited for my new chapter." 

Duffield says the animal shelter wasn't a one-man show. She had "many wonderful people" helping and caring about her and the animals. 

"I want to say thank you to the whole entire area," Duffield said. "It spreads out pretty far. We're blessed to be in our community. You guys appreciate it, because it's a very good community."

Duffield will stay on to help train her replacement, who takes over on Jan. 1, 2023.

Adopt-a-Dog is funded by grants and donations. They rescue cats and dogs, and prepare them for adoption. The animal shelter currently has three dogs and 16 cats available for adoption. They're looking for volunteers at Adopt-a-Dog. If anyone is interested, they can call (308) 890-0045.