Does a video show real footage of a horse protecting its owner from a 7.4 magnitude earthquake in Japan? No, that’s not true: The video shows signs of being AI-generated. Additionally, Lead Stories could not find any reports related to such an event outside of social media posts.
The claim appeared in a post made on Bluesky by the account @contemprainn.bsky.social on April 23, 2026 (archived here). It included the video, and a caption that read:
Footage of a horse protecting its owner after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake in Japan 🇯🇵
This is what a still from the video included in the post looked like:
A search on Google News of the phrase “Horse protecting its owner after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake in Japan” (archived here) did not show any relevant results.
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Visual clues point to the video being AI-generated. There is a lack of structural damage to the stable, which appears to experience something closer to an explosion rather than an earthquake. The bucket shown to the left of the video spills water when the “earthquake” strikes, but has no bottom, making it impossible for it to have held water in the first place.
Image source: Post by @contemprainn.bsky.social on Bluesky. Red arrows and red circle added by Lead Stories.
