$16K reward offered for dog set on fire in Tennessee

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WHBX) – Officials in Tennessee are working to find out who carried out a vicious attack on a dog – intentionally setting the animal on fire.

A video showing people dousing the dog with water went viral on social media, garnering 2.4 million views so far.

Now, there’s a $16,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.

“Somebody did this intentionally, and you can’t just have somebody out there like that,” said Bluff City Veterinary Tech Manager Mallory McLemore.

The dog, affectionately known as Riona, was set on fire June 20. Several neighbors witnessed the dog running for its life, wailing in pain and agony.

Several people came together to douse the pup with water in an effort to save her life.

“It’s super important to us, I feel like for her and for us, to have somebody held accountable for what happened,” McLemore said.

Riona is getting closer and closer to making a full recovery. She’s being showered with cards and gifts from people touched by her story from all over the world.

“She’s definitely starting to blossom, she wants to roll around in the grass and play and do things like that . And somebody sent her a teddy bear so she was squeaking on that earlier,” McLemore said.

Tails of Hope Dog Rescue set up a fundraiser for Riona on Venmo at TailsofHopeDogRescue, and on PayPal.