This young boy was injured while stopping a dog from attacking his younger sister

  • This article is more than one year old.
  • Published on April 22, 2021 at 13:20
  • 2 min read
  • By Amanuel NEGUEDE

Copyright © AFP 2017-2025. Any commercial use of this content requires a subscription. Click here to find out more.

An image of two children has been shared on Facebook alongside a claim that the young boy was severely injured after rescuing his sister from being raped. This is false; the little boy in the photograph did protect his sibling, pictured next to him, but the attack came from a German Shepherd.

“This boy saved his sister from rape,” reads the post’s caption.

Published on April 19, 2021, the post has been shared more than 200 times. It includes an image of two children, one with visible facial injuries.

Screenshot of the false Facebook post, taken on April 21, 2021

Many of the comments below the post praised the injured child for his actions.

Screenshot of comments below the false Facebook post, taken on April 21, 2021

The same claim was also shared on Facebook here.

While the two children pictured are brother and sister, the injuries to the little boy were inflicted by a dog and not someone trying to rape his sibling. However, his deeds during the ordeal were no less heroic.

Real-life hero

Using TinEye, AFP Fact Check ran a reverse image search and found various news reports concerning a young boy who made headlines after he was mauled while saving his little sister from a dog attack.

On July 9, 2020, six-year-old Bridger Walker, who lives in Wyoming, United States, put himself between his neighbour’s German Shepherd and his younger sister Brielle as the dog was poised to attack her. She was four at the time.

As a result, Bridger suffered serious injuries to his face and head, which required 90 stitches. His father Robert gave progress reports on Instagram as his son healed from his terrible scars.

Screenshot from the Instagram account of Bridger’s father showing the healing process, taken on April 21, 2021

In a video shared on the official Facebook page of the American Red Cross of Wyoming, Bridger’s parents gave more details about the incident and quoted their son’s words soon after the attack. 

“If somebody should die, I thought it should have been me,” Bridger had told his father when asked why he didn’t run away.

As word of Bridger’s actions spread, praise came in from all over, including several Hollywood stars who played superhero characters Captain America, Iron Man, Thor and Spiderman.

Is there content that you would like AFP to fact-check? Get in touch.

Contact us

Next article Previous article