Police: Bell Township man charged with felony in fatal shooting of beagle that wouldn't listen

State police charged a man from Bell Township with a felony count of aggravated cruelty to animals after his estranged wife told them he fatally shot their beagle because it wasn’t listening.

Eric J. Rumbaugh, 51, of the 300 block of Nelson Road also faces charges of simple assault, reckless endangerment, making terroristic threats and harassment.

Rumbaugh was released from custody on a $20,000 unsecured bond, according to court records. He faces a preliminary hearing before District Judge James Buczak on Nov. 14.

Rumbaugh’s estranged wife told a state trooper at the Kittanning station that she moved out of their Nelson Road home after they separated more than a year ago, but she still had keys and occasionally stayed the night, according to a criminal complaint.

The woman said she went to the home Oct. 11 to visit Rumbaugh, police said. When she entered, their dog, Penny, ran out the door and into the yard, according to the complaint.

She said they both were unable to coax the dog inside, which agitated Rumbaugh, who said he would “get the .22 Mag” — a reference to his .22-caliber Magnum rifle, according to the complaint.

The woman told police she was able to get hold of the dog and was walking it back to the house when Rumbaugh appeared on the deck of the house with a rifle and pointed it at them, police said.

She initially refused Rumbaugh’s order for her to move aside, the complaint said, but complied because she was “scared what he might do to her.”

The woman said she walked back to the house and was standing underneath the deck when she heard a gunshot followed by the dog’s yelp, the complaint said.

She saw the dog dragging its hind legs while trying to get underneath nearby guardrails, the complaint said.

Investigators said security video from outside the home shows Rumbaugh with the rifle saying to the woman: “Get her by the scruff of the … neck. I’ll fix her, I’ll fix her right now. I’ll break her (expletive) skull,” according to the complaint.

The woman told police that after the shooting, she gathered her belongings and left the house, the complaint said.

She said she received a text message from Rumbaugh a short time later in which he asks whether he can “bury her in this camo blanket,” the complaint said.