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by Elise Wilde
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On the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation in northern Montana, the Indian Health Service is working to improve the health of one particular group in the community: the reservation’s dogs.
The initiative, a collaboration between IHS and the Humane Society of Western Montana, trains and certifies local residents to vaccinate local dogs. The program has many goals, including reducing disease transmission and treatment costs, promoting responsible pet ownership and reducing the risk of dog attacks.
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Providing veterinary care for dogs on the reservation is not just an animal welfare issue, but a public health issue, according to Bobby J. Fabel, an enrolled member of the Chippewa Cree Tribe and the tribe’s director of natural resources.
“The population growth is remarkable. [of dogs]”It’s a health issue,” Fabel said. Native News Online“We’re careful to avoid any outbreaks of rabies or other diseases that can be transmitted to young people. We also want to avoid any traumatic incidents that could harm children. There have been a few incidents with animals but thankfully nothing that has ended badly.”
We don’t want that to happen.”
Dogs of all shapes and sizes are a common sight on many Indian reservations, lounging in parking lots and outside stores, dashing across roads into the bush and trotting through housing developments.
Although often referred to as “reservation dogs,” not all dogs that appear to be strays are actually so. Some are feral, but many have homes or are cared for by the community. Reservation dogs roam during the day but sleep in residences at night. They are often fed by one or more members of the community.
“Even in professional areas where offices are located, you’ll see four or five dogs hanging out,” Fabel says.
The Rock Boys Indian Reservation has a population of 3,640 and is home to the Chippewa Cree tribe. Although the reservation is home to many dogs, veterinary care is scarce. The nearest veterinarian is 25 miles north of Havre, Montana, making it inaccessible to tribal members without transportation. Even for those with cars, northern Montana’s weather can make roads impassable.
Even if transportation isn’t an obstacle, the cost of veterinary care often is, Fabel said.
The annual cost of preventive care for a dog ranges from $700 to $1,500, cost-prohibitive for people living on the reservation, where the average income is $42,000.
“On reservations, taking your dog to the vet for an examination isn’t something a lot of people think about,” Fabel said.
The Humane Society of Western Montana (HSWM) has partnered with Rocky Boy Refuge for four years to deliver pet food and provide free medical care several times a year when teams are able to travel across Rogers Pass, where roads are sometimes impassable.
“We have a lot of people who are really grateful to have access to the free clinic,” Fabel said. “The dogs are very curious, and some of them even walk in on their own.”
HSWM Executive Director Marta Pierpoint said the program is a way to maintain access to care for the time being and support pet care on the reservation in a way that suits the community.
“We’re not just trying to do a one-off clinic and be done with it,” Pierpoint says. “Our goal is to support pet care in whatever way we can, in a way that’s rewarding for people and their pets.”
So-called “universal vaccination programs” are in place in several states with remote tribal populations, including New Mexico and Alaska. The IHS initially developed the programs to reduce the number of post-exposure treatments for rabies, which can cost thousands of dollars.
“They don’t have access to care to get the rabies vaccine,” Pierpoint said. “It’s a very expensive and difficult problem.”
The Humane Society of Western Montana hosts free veterinary clinics two to three times a year on the Rocky Boys Indian Reservation. (Photo/Humane Society of Western Montana)
A study of universal vaccination programs around the world conducted in 2021 showed that most programs reported high vaccination coverage and reduced disease transmission and incidence.
The Chippewa Cree Nation is the state’s first tribal nation to participate in the program, which is available to all federally recognized tribes in the state.
The program, which will begin in mid-June, will provide core vaccines recommended for all dogs, as well as microchipping, a process in which a rice-sized electronic chip containing information about the animal and its owner is placed under an animal’s skin, donated by pet microchip company 24-Pet Watch. Cloud-based clinic management company Clinic HQ is also donating record-keeping software to help tribes track which animals have been vaccinated or treated. IHS will provide online training, and any required in-person training will be conducted by HSWM. The first in-person training will be held on June 13 to qualify 10 community members for vaccination.
In the future, Fabel said he would like to complement universal vaccination programs with spay/neuter efforts, which have long been shown to be an important tool in reducing dog and cat overpopulation.
Fabel said he hopes the public vaccination effort, coupled with the tribe’s newly established animal control department, will improve the quality of life for everyone on the reservation, including both humans and dogs.
“I think if we continue to work hard and continue to educate the public, it will be very worthwhile,” Fabel said. “I hope it will lead to more responsible pet owners. We want people to understand that there are ways to take care of their pets and we want to erase the stigma of just letting them run free.”
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