No, Donald Trump did not save cats from Hurricane Harvey flooding

Nicole Gallucci
Updated

Another day, another debunk.

The latest fake photograph to spread online like wildfire is an image of President Trump saving several cats from a flood. But just in case you somehow couldn't already tell from the horrible Photoshop job — the image is fake.

Turns out fake shark photos aren't the only fabrications coming out of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

SEE ALSO: FEMA's debunking Harvey rumors, but there's more to know

The image shows a man walking through thigh-high flood waters clutching two cats close to his chest. The head atop the man's body is in fact Donald Trump's (complete with a "Make America Great Again" hat), but according to the fact-checking site Snopes, the man in the original photograph is named Brandon Smith. 

After Hurricane Harvey struck Houston in August, Trump supporters — including a Facebook Page called "All about President Trump" began sharing the image online. The Trump fan page even captioned the image, "Things the media forgets!" so as to accuse the media of ignoring Trump's good deed.

You know, the one that didn't actually happen.

According to Snopes, the original image is completely unrelated to Hurricane Harvey. In fact, it was taken by Des Moines Register photographer Harry Baumert in June 2008 and shows Smith rescuing his own two cats from flooding in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Though the article that first featured the authentic image is no longer online, The Des Moines Register reprinted the photograph in a 2009 article to provide an update on how Smith and his cats were doing after the tragic event.

Brandon Smith and his cats, 2009.
Brandon Smith and his cats, 2009.

Image: de moines register

A photographer by the name of David Greedy also captured several photographs of Smith carrying his cats — Fry and Bender (!) — through the Iowa flooding. And in case you're still not convinced this isn't an image of Trump, here's one from Getty.

Brandon Smith carrying his two cats to dry land.
Brandon Smith carrying his two cats to dry land.

Image: David Greedy/Getty Images

Sadly, this isn't the first time a doctored Trump photo has caused controversy this year. 

Back in July after the G20 summit, a fake image of Trump and other world leaders glaring at Vladimir Putin made the rounds. Other fake Hurricane Harvey photos have also spread, including one of Trump pulling a man caught in the flood to the safety of a raft.

If 2017 has taught us anything, it's "question everything."

WATCH: The 'Hurricane Shark' is a Twitter sensation

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