Original Article:

A few years ago, a story went viral alongside a touching photo showing a horse rescuing a dog from drowning.

The story and photo were widespread and many news outlets picked it up. According to the viral story, a horse named Agripin was swimming near the Danube River in Europe when he spotted a dog in need of help and saved its life.

The blind dog, Abby, had slipped into the water and was trapped, but thankfully, Agripin seemed to sense her need for help and swam to her aid. The little dog then hopped on the horse’s back and they traveled to safety. Or so the story goes.

The story and photo (pictured in the Facebook post above) went viral back in 2008-2009 and circulated for years afterward, but it all turned out to be fake.

The real story is not quite as intense but is equally worth telling. In reality, the horse, Brenda Lee, and the dog, Lucy, are best friends. They were simply enjoying a swim together in the United States while being photographed by an equine photographer, Jodie Sinclair, who uploaded some pictures to Facebook.

Their owner, Brian Sean Reid with Horses Know the Way Home was surprised to see the photo going viral with a story so far from reality.

Brian joked about the viral photo on Facebook, adding a new photo with the caption: “A deaf Shire horse rescues a blind Yorki trying to save a drowning Belgian woman who was swimming in the Ourthe River southern Belgium. Aren’t animals great!!!”

It’s not just in the water that Lucy and Brenda Lee hang out together, either. Lucy can regularly be found getting rides from her BFF, as Jodie shows off in other photos of the adorable duo:

Brian isn’t quite sure how the viral post spread or who made up the details, but it’s nice that the truth is finally coming out! It just goes to show that you can’t always trust what you see on the internet.

You can see more of Brian and his animals on Facebook here, and check out more of Jodie’s photography here!

Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog