Tara rescued 4-year-old Jeremy Triantafilo from a dog. You might remember Tara from the YouTube video of her springing into action — it has more than 24 million page views.

In the video, seen here and below, a medium-sized brown dog approaches the boy, who is trying to ride a small bicycle, and ferociously bites the boy's leg and begins dragging him through the yard. In a blur of motion, the cat fearlessly launches its body at the predatory dog and chases it off the property. The frightened boy manages to escape, but received eight stitches from the dog bite.

It is the first time the award, issued by the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Los Angeles, has been awarded to a non-dog in its 33-year history.

For her efforts, Tara was awarded a year’s supply of cat food from the SPCA and lots of extra attention from the adoring Triantafilo family.

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Lt. Gov. Burt Jones — pictured at an August rally in Peachtree City that also featured Vice President JD Vance — appears to have scored another legal victory over gubernatorial rival Attorney General Chris Carr in their battle over campaign finance issues. (Arvin Temkar/AJC 2025)

Credit: Arvin Temkar / AJC