Alaska State Troopers arrested a Willow woman on April 21 after 25 sled dogs were found dead on her property in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough.

Misty Rehder, 35, faces 26 counts of Class C felony animal cruelty. Troopers said the dogs, husky mixes kept at a kennel north of Willow, starved to death after being abandoned without food, shelter, or care.

Authorities discovered the dead dogs on April 15. Two dogs survived. Local resident Mike Dolinar rescued one dog earlier and documented the scene. Animal control officers found the second dog alive when they responded to the property.

Rehder was remanded to Mat-Su Pretrial with bail set at $25,000. Court dates are scheduled for May 4 for a custody hearing and May 5 for an eviction proceeding.

The case followed months of complaints from neighbors and mushers to Mat-Su Animal Control. Community members said they reported the deteriorating conditions at the kennel repeatedly before authorities acted.

Mat-Su Borough Manager Mike Brown issued a public apology on April 21. The borough launched an internal investigation into how animal control handled the complaints.

Alaska State Troopers thanked community members for tips that led to the arrest. The criminal investigation remains active.

Dolinar's early rescue of one dog, which he named Woody, came before the official discovery. His video documentation showed the conditions at the property.

The Mat-Su Animal Shelter confirmed in an online post that one dog remained alive when animal control officers arrived at the scene. The shelter did not provide details on the condition of the surviving animals or their current status.

Community anger over the deaths and the response from animal control spread on social media in late April. Residents questioned why complaints went unaddressed for months while the dogs suffered.

Class C felonies in Alaska carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $50,000 fine. Each count represents a separate charge.

The Matanuska-Susitna Borough sits north of Anchorage and includes rural communities where sled dog kennels operate. Willow, located along the Parks Highway, serves as a checkpoint for the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race.

The borough's internal investigation will examine animal control procedures and response times to complaints. Brown did not provide a timeline for completing the review or releasing findings.

Troopers did not say how long the dogs had been without care before the April 15 discovery. The investigation continues to gather evidence about the timeline and conditions at the property.