An Alaskan town is temporarily left without a mayor, as their feline head honcho recovers from a vicious dog attack.

Stubbs the Mayor Cat sustained a punctured lung, bruised hips, a deep gash on his side, and a fractured sternum in an attack by a loose dog on Saturday. He is currently sedated and under veterinary care.

Stubbs is the honorary leader of Talkeetna, Alaska, a tiny town which serves as a stop-over for travelers to Mount McKinley, North America’s tallest peak. He was elected in a write-in campaign 15 years ago, and has served as the town’s only mayor ever since.

“We all love him,” town resident Geoff Pfeiffer told AP. Pfieffer is a waiter at the West Rib Pub and Cafe, which has developed a signature cocktail for their feline regular, a water-filled wine glass with a catnip garnish, AP reported.

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Members of the conversion crew take a break as the main scoreboard is lowered to the floor to be worked on as the arena gets ready for the next concert at State Farm Arena, Thursday, October 2, 2025, in Atlanta. The crew was working on creating a stage for the Friday, Oct. 3 Maxwell concert. (Jason Getz/AJC)

Credit: Jason Getz / Jason.Getz@ajc.com