Flaming Pigs-Did this nonesense really exist?

[caldrail]

Oxen were also famously used by Hannibal as a ruse to escape the roman force tracking him down, lighting torches to the beasts horns and setting them underway, the romans hot on their heels because they thought it was the main cartaginian army

 

As I understand it, the beats were not actually set alight themselves but carried something flammable to that end - though obviously I can't guarantee the poor animals weren't eventualy harmed. The point being of course that if the animals started to burn themselves, they would cease running in a single direction and begin contorting in pain.