Man Pleads Guilty In Dog Sledgehammer Beating

Rudolph Poppe of Savage also pleaded guilty Wednesday to resisting officers' attempts to arrest him after neighbors called 911.

The dog, Millie, had to be euthanized because of its injuries.

Defense attorney Richard Swanson told the court that the plea agreement contained no agreement on the sentence. But a pre-sentence report says the presumptive sentence is a stayed prison term of a year and a day.

Police were called to Poppe's home on July 12, where they found the golden retriever with a white plastic bag tied over its head. The dog had a crushed skull.

Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 3.