Vets say a horse whose injuries shocked a community was likely not attacked with a sledgehammer.
Hamish, the 35-year-old Shetland pony, was found injured in a field on Links Road, Blyth, on Sunday morning.
It's understood the people who reported the incident to police did have reason to believe the horse had been injured by a sledgehammer and that the fundraising page, which was set up by a friend to help Hamish's owners with vet bills, was established in good faith.
However a spokesperson for Northumbria Police said: "Initial enquiries carried out suggest that the injuries the horse sustained were not inflicted by a sledgehammer.
"Enquires remain ongoing to establish how the horse came to be injured."
The injuries were reported to police at 8.40pm on June 2, after the pony had been found injured in his field. On Monday morning, police confirmed they were investigating reports of a sledgehammer attack, but around midday they confirmed vets' findings.
It's understood that it remains possible that the injuries were inflicted by a third party or parties, but they may not have been.
Appeals for information about what was then thought to be an attack were shared hundreds of times on Facebook, with animal lovers expressing their horror .
More than £2,000 was donated to a GoFundMe page to contribute to Hamish's vet costs following his injury.
