Animal rehabilitation center adopts dogs, offers healing on Flathead reservation

By ZOË BUCHLI

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    MISSOULA, Montana (Missoulian) — Snuggled in his crate, puppy Loki slept peacefully on a Wednesday afternoon in his new Missoula home just off Mullan Road.

Loki is one of about 70 dogs who have been fostered and adopted in 2022 through the Arlee Rehabilitation Center, a nonprofit group that helps rescue abandoned and injured dogs on the Flathead Indian Reservation. The group got started in 2020 by Filip Panusz, a Missoula resident.

“We exclusively serve the Flathead Indian Reservation,” he said. “All of the dogs we work with and help are from the reservation.”

Winter can be a dangerous time for pets if their owners are not properly prepared.

Panusz and his team spend a fair amount of time on Flathead tribal land. They rescue abandoned dogs, especially ones found with ailments and in adverse conditions. Sometimes, people contact ARC directly if they have an animal they can no longer care for.

Panusz said resources for animal care on the Flathead are limited, and often people don’t know what to do.

“Dumped is fairly common,” he said of the dogs he and his team find. “Particularly because there aren’t enough services up there to go around.”

The center received a large food donation from the Flathead Valley Food Bank recently. The food bank received 47 pallets of dog food from Feeding America and PetSmart. It’s in Kalispell right now, but Panusz said a portion of the donated food will be parceled out among pet owners struggling to afford pet food and people currently fostering ARC dogs.

Loki’s mom, Greta, was rescued from the Flathead Reservation by Panusz in August. She gave birth to a litter of six puppies in September, and Loki’s family, Kyle and Amanda Harsch, adopted him in early November. He’s settled into his new home quite well, and spends most of his day sleeping and playing with his older sister, Daphne.

The Harsch family found Loki through the ARC Facebook page, which Panusz said is the most common way people find his group.

“It helps us help the community,” he said.

He explained ARC isn’t a traditional animal rescue or shelter. It’s instead a healing project that addresses how animal and human trauma are interconnected.

The center operates its Reservation Canine Healing Experiment, the healing component of ARC’s work. It sets up animal-assisted therapy to people who live on the Flathead Reservation with dogs and horses rescued from the area.

Right now, the healing program runs mostly through ARC’s summer, weeklong camps for kids. However, Panusz wants to expand the healing work year-round for adults and children by opening a healing site in the Jocko Valley.

Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribe (CSKT) spokesperson Shane Morigeau said the Pawsitive Healing Camps have been great for kids living on Flathead tribal land.

“The CSKT hopes to continue to work with ARC into the future on shared issues of animal and human safety and welfare on the Flathead Reservation,” Morigeau said.

Michael Wheeler, an attorney for the CSKT legal department, said the tribal council and Panusz have worked together on a proposed reservation-wide animal ordinance.

“The council is aware of the work (Panusz) does and are trying to find ways to work together on the animal and dog issues,” Wheeler said.

The center also has a spaying and neutering task force, and runs clinics throughout the year.

“(The task force) is so critical,” Panusz said. “If we don’t address that, all of our other work is just spinning in place.”

Panusz said he works constantly with the CSKT tribal council, adding that the tribe is supportive of the organization’s projects and dog rescues.

“We’re listening to what the needs are of their communities,” he said. “We’re just responding on a daily basis.”

Panusz stressed that ARC uses a model of cultural sensitivity toward the tribes, and that ARC’s board president, Myrna Adams Dumontier, used to serve on the tribal council.

“That’s part of who we are and part of how it has to be done in order to be effective,” he said.

The center has a gala event planned for February in Missoula, which Panusz said is the center’s largest fundraising event of the year. To read more about ARC, visit k9arc.org.

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