LOS ANGELES: An adopted cat in the US who fought off a dog that attacked its six-year-old owner has become the first feline to win a 'Hero Dog' award.
Tara was awarded the Los Angeles animal shelter's Hero Dog award after it fought off a neighbour's chow-mix that attacked its young owner.
The incident happened in May 2014 as Jeremy Triantafilo was riding his bike in the driveway of the family's home in Bakersfield, California.
Tara body-slammed the neighbour's dog, Scrappy, when it ran out of the yard and grabbed Jeremy's leg and began shaking it from side to side, 'Sky News' reported. Tara then chased the dog away.
The footage of the incident captured on a home CCTV system quickly went viral on the internet. It attracted more than 650,000 hits on YouTube and made Tara quite a celebrity.
Tara was rewarded for its bravery by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles (spcaLA), which presented her with its 33rd annual award this weekend.
"We were so impressed by Tara's bravery and fast action that the selection committee decided that a cat this spectacular should be the National Hero Dog," spcaLA president Madeline Bernstein said.
In special recognition of the feline's actions the word 'Dog' was removed from the trophy and the word 'Cat' etched in.
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