A cat with a well-earned reputation as a hero will be throwing the first pitch of an upcoming minor league baseball game in California.
Named Tara, the cat gained international attention last week for
saving her family's 4-year-old boy from a dog attack in Southwest Bakersfield, California. In a video, the heroic tabby charges at an 8-month-old Chow-Labrador mix as it is in the process of biting the boy's leg and dragging him off his bicycle and toward the street.
After the dog relinquishes its grip of the boy's leg, surveillance video captures the brave cat continuing her pursuit of the dog until the canine flees off camera.
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Earlier this month, a scarily lifelike T-Rex threw out the first pitch at at a MLB game between the San Diego Padres and Kansas City Royals, but the prehistoric raptor had to get creative to make up for its short, skinny arms.
"The only question would be how Baby T would make the throw, and the answer turned out to be obvious," The Washington Post reported. "Instead of even attempting to use one of its teeny, little arms — or any of its unfortunately costume-mandated four legs — the dino simply grabbed the ball by its huge mouth and hurled it."
We're not sure how Tara the cat will handle the mechanics of her pitch.
"Tara is my hero," 4-year-old
Jeremy Triantafilo told ABC affiliate KERO Bakersfield.
According to the cat's owner, Roger Triantafilo, Tara was offered the opportunity to pitch out the first pitch of Tuesday night's Bakersfield Blaze game because of her heroism,
The Los Angeles Times reported.
"I've never seen a cat do that," Roger Triantafilo added. "Especially ours. It just shows how much she really has a family-oriented mind set."
"Usually she's just very laid back, very mellow, very loving," Erica Triantafilo added in an
interview with Inside Edition.
"If she had not been there the situation could have been worse. There could have been much more damage to his leg or he could have gone for something else," Erica Triantafilo added.
According to Triantafilo, her son was subsequently taken to a local hospital where he received 10 stitches on his leg for the bite,
KernGoldenEmpire.com reported. The child is said to be recovering at home.
The dog has since been voluntarily surrendered to the Bakersfield Animal Care Center by its owner,
The Bakersfield Californian reported. The animal will reportedly be quarantined for 10 days and eventually euthanized because of the attack, Bakersfield police Sgt. Joe Grubbs told the newspaper.
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