By Hub City Times staff

MARSHFIELD – The Marshfield man found guilty of leaving a litter of newborn puppies in a dumpster last winter has been ordered to help pay for the care they received after their rescue.

The restitution for Robert Wild, 56, was set in Wood County Circuit Court on Nov. 7, and he was ordered to pay $5,018 to the Marshfield Area Pet Shelter (MAPS) to help cover expenses related to rescuing the nine puppies back in February.

The sentence comes after a deal was reached earlier this fall when Wild entered a no contest plea to one misdemeanor count of intentionally abandoning an animal. As part of that plea agreement with prosecutors, one count of intentionally mistreating animals was dismissed. Wild was sentenced to 90 days of local jail time with Huber work-release privileges. Additionally, Wild will be able to keep his current dogs but cannot obtain any new animals for five years.

The court order was part of a resolution hearing which closed the case. The restitution was ordered, despite MAPS raising nearly $20,000 in donations to care for and prepare the puppies for adoption.

The story made national headlines, after a door-to-door salesman heard what he thought was a litter of kittens in a garbage can outside Wild’s East Fourth Street home Feb. 28. Police and animal control officials later found them to be puppies that had been tied up in a garbage bag and thrown away. A receipt with Wild’s name on it was also found in the bag. He later admitted to the crime, saying he didn’t feel like he could care for the puppies. The animals were all adopted this spring.