A Butte man pleaded guilty Thursday in District Judge Kurt Krueger’s court to two counts of felony aggravated animal cruelty.
On March 29 of this year, police and animal control were dispatched to the residence of Kurtis Frank Podgorski, 31, of Butte on the 300 block of Granite Mountain Road.
Authorities were called after a family member reportedly opened a back bedroom door and found two dead dogs and another near death, laying atop one of the dead canines.
Kurtis Frank Podgorski, 31, of Butte pleaded guilty Thursday to two counts of aggravated animal cruelty in District Judge Kurt Krueger’s court.
The male relative quickly left the home to seek help from a neighbor, who, after seeing the dogs, called animal control.
The man told police he had been staying with Podgorksi for about 10 days and was told not to enter the back bedroom because it was messy and Podgorski “didn’t want anyone in there.”
He only opened the door March 29 because he heard a sound coming from the room.
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In an initial interview, Podgorski told a police officer he had locked the dogs in a back bedroom three weeks previously because he was “having a hard time with life lately and just couldn’t handle the dogs anymore.”
He also told the officer that he bought dog food every couple of weeks, but admitted that it had been over a month since he had any interaction with the animals. During that time period, he thought other people were feeding the trio and providing water.
On June 15, prosecutors alleged that Podgorski had “purposefully or knowingly killed or inflicted injury” on the dogs “with the purpose to torture or mutilate” them. At that time, the dog owner pled not guilty to the charges and was released on his own recognizance with conditions attached.
One of the dogs, according to the charging documents, was a young German shepherd, the two others were adult dogs, one brown and the other black-and-white.
The documents did not state which of the dogs survived, just that his name was Noggin and he was “severely emaciated” when brought to a local veterinarian.
At the time, the veterinarian stated that “Noggin would have passed away within two days to a week if he had not received medical intervention.”
A sentencing date has not yet been set.
Podgorski could face a prison term of up to two years and a fine not to exceed $2,500 on each count.
This story will be updated.