This heroic kitty in Bakersfield, Calif., is sure to get some extra catnip this week.
On Wednesday, a startling video of a cat defending a young boy from a vicious attack by a dog went viral. Now, the boy's family is speaking out about the brave rescue.
The footage, which was captured by a surveillance camera on Tuesday afternoon, shows 4-year-old Jeremy Triantafilo on his bike being ambushed by the neighbor's 8-month-old Labrador chow mix. Just in the nick of time, Tara, the family cat, rushes to Jeremy's rescue and chases the dog away.
"To have her, with no regard for her own life, fly the dog to protect him -- I've never seen anything like that," Erica Triantafilo, Jeremy's mom, told ABC News.
The child is lucky to have such a strong bond with the fearless feline: according to the outlet, when Jeremy was a newborn, Tara would crawl into his crib to curl up beside him.
Fortunately the boy walked away with only a few stitches thanks to his friend.
"She's a hero!" Jeremy cheers in the video above.
TMZ reported that the dog was picked up by animal control and is expected to be euthanized.
Watch the video above for the full segment from ABC News.
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