Dog killed and set on fire Police in a Philadelphia-area town said they were searching for the person who asphyxiated a pet dog, wrapped it in plastic and set it on fire. COATESVILLE, Pa., June 12 (UPI) -- Police in a Philadelphia-area town said they were searching for the person who asphyxiated a pet dog, wrapped it in plastic and set it on fire. Firefighters found the dead animal Saturday when they responded to a call about a trash fire in Coatesville, The Mercury of Pottstown, Pa., reported. Investigators have determined the dog, a mix of Yorkshire terrier and poodle, was dead before it was set on fire, WCAU-TV, Philadelphia, reported Monday. The dog's owner said she hopes the person who killed it is caught because he or she is clearly mentally disturbed. Animal Protection Services officer Craig Baxter said he was called to the scene Saturday afternoon. "In the eight years that I've been here I've never seen something so horrific," Baxter said. How someone could do this to a small animal is beyond my belief.