“I knew right away that it was definitely a burn,” stated Brian K. Garrett, DVM, of Animal Hospital of Fayetteville in Fayetteville, N.C., Dixie’s treating veterinarian. Trespassers maliciously burned the 2-year-old Spotted Saddle Horse filly’s tail and legs during the night of Aug. 19 near Erwin, N.C. Officials from the Harnett County Sheriff’s Office have been investigating allegations against a group of minors in the incident, said local news reports.

Vonda Hamilton, Dixie’s owner, told The Horse she discovered the catastrophic injury after returning from a weekend trip on Aug. 22. Her horses’ temporary caretaker had noticed that Dixie’s tail looked odd from a distance, but didn’t realize the severity of the injury. When Hamilton saw the extent of Dixie’s injuries, she immediately called her vet.

“Eighty to 90% of the tail was burned and still had a few live hairs at the time on the right side of the tail, and you could tell exactly how someone had set fire to it,” recalled Garrett. “They obviously used something flammable, because of the progression it took up one side of the tail and the tail bone.”

He gave the filly a 60% chance of survival that day because he was worried about Dixie developing septicemia (infection of the bloodstream) or foundering