Bloomington man charged with felony in dog poisoning

A Bloomington man was charged Thursday with felony cruelty to animals in a case in which he allegedly poisoned a neighbor's dog.

By Tim Harlow, Star Tribune

Last update: December 7, 2007 - 12:29 PM

A Bloomington man was charged Thursday with felony cruelty to animals in a case in which he allegedly poisoned a neighbor's dog, causing it to die.

According to a criminal complaint filed in Hennepin County District Court, Aaron John Maenke admitted to police that he placed pesticides used to kill flies in a makeshift windshield washer container, which he set inside his neighbor's fenced-in back yard with the McClelland family's 2-year-old black lab.

A family member came home on July 14 to find the lab, named Jesse, foaming at the mouth and rushed the dog to the vet. The dog died on the way. The veterinarian said the dog died due to poisoning by pesticide, the complaint said.

"I'm just horrified over this," Patrick McClellan said today in response to the charges being filed. "He was a harmless, beautiful black lab."

McClellan said Jesse was a professional hunting dog that the family took on pheasant hunting trips. In the complaint, Maenke, 26, said he bought the pesticide for the purpose of poisoning the dog.

"If there is a problem with the dog barking, why not just knock on the door and ask them to keep the noise down," McClellan said. "Whatever happened to that?"

If convicted, Maenke faces up to two years in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. He currently is not in custody.