Updated on: 3/6/2019
In today’s world, there is a pretty even divide in the debate over whether cats or dogs truly make the best type of family pet. But this particular story about a family pet that saved a child from a vicious dog attack will make even the biggest cat haters admit that cats can be pretty cool, too.
According to various news reports, the video below was captured by home surveillance cameras and posted to YouTube by Roger Triantafilo on Wednesday morning. The video shows Triantafilo’s young son riding on his bicycle when a neighborhood dog notices the child, approaches him, and begins to attack. And just when things get scary, an unexpected hero comes to the rescue:
Despite the fact that the cat was clearly outmatched by the large dog, it comes out of nowhere and slams its body into the dog in hopes of scaring it off. Surprisingly, it works and the dog immediately runs down the street while the child’s mother rescues her son.
Boy Suffers Significant Injuries from Dog Attack
According to ABC23 News in Bakersfield, the dog belonged to a neighbor and had escaped a fenced yard when its owner was pulling a car out of the driveway. The boy’s mother, Erika Traintafilo, told reporters that the child suffered some lacerations and other injuries and received some stitches but was otherwise alright.
In the description of the video, Roger wrote, “My cat defends my son during a vicious dog attack and runs the dog off before he can do additional damage. Thankfully, my son is fine!”
ABC23 News added that the neighbor who owned the dog was the one who called 911 on behalf of the family and was cooperative with authorities investigating the incident. The dog is now reportedly under voluntary observation and supervision at the city’s animal control office.