A Montgomery County man has been found guilty of felony animal cruelty in the injury of a donkey dragged behind his SUV.

Marc Saunders, 31, of Splendora, was convicted Jan. 14 in the 410th State District Court after a two-day trial.

The punishment phase of his trial is taking place this week before Judge Susan Stovall.

Saunders was accused of injuring the donkey Oct. 25, 2012, when he was visiting her owners at their New Caney home.

Someone told Saunders the 2-year-old donkey named Susie Q had wandered from home and was secured on Acorn Hill Drive, northwest of New Caney, so the owners could retrieve her, investigators said at the time.

Another friend offered to walk the donkey home, but Saunders insisted on driving, saying he would tie the animal to his Chevy Blazer's trailer hitch and slowly lead her.

Saunders and another man found Susie Q and tied her to the vehicle with a rope, according to a news release from the Montgomery County Precinct 4 Constable's Office. The other man sat on the SUV's open tailgate and they started the quarter-mile trip home.

The man on the tailgate yelled for Saunders to slow down but watched helplessly as the donkey was injured.

"The blood trail left by the donkey supported the witness's story and showed that Saunders drove at least 10 to 15 feet farther after Susie Q fell on her side when the pavement had ground off her hooves between 1.5 and 2 inches, exposing raw flesh and bone," the news release said.

Once Saunders stopped, he walked behind the vehicle and, seeing the injured animal, untied the rope and drove away, the witness told investigators.

After the ordeal, Susie Q recuperated at home in a new pen the owners built, under the treatment of a veterinarian.

My Feed Store & More on FM 3083 in Conroe collected close to $2,500 in donations for the donkey's care, said manager Kayla Barricks.

"She's doing fine," Barricks said of the donkey whose owners still come in to buy her feed.