A Connecticut dog who defended a child against a charging bear earlier this month has been officially recognized for her bravery.
Officials presented Jeffrey Tazzara’s husky mix Bella with a legislative honor on Friday.
“Today I had the honor to join State Sen. Stephen Harding in presenting a legislative honor to Bella the Husky, for protecting the family from a bear attack earlier this month,” Rep. Joe Canino wrote on Facebook Friday. “Bella was rewarded for her bravery with a legislative citation, and some treats!”
It happened July 4 as Tazzara was packing up and getting ready to depart for a Fourth of July party and heard Bella barking.
“A vicious bark, not like she barks and yips and howls and stuff … this was a different kind of bark,” he said.
Video from Tazzara’s home security system, licensed by Storyful, shows Tazzara’s young son standing in the driveway outside the family home when a black bear suddenly appears, running toward the child at a high speed.
As the child backs away, Bella can be seen running over from across the yard and chasing the bear away, circling behind the animal and placing herself between the bear and Tazzara’s son.
The bear, seemingly frightened, quickly turns away from the boy and continues running, sliding under a boat parked in the driveway.
Tazzara said previously that he planned to reward Bella for her bravery with a steak at the next family steak night.
He added that she had a pretty good setup already and “gets tons of treats.”
“She lives the life probably that most dogs wish they had,” he said at the time. “She just, she does what she wants.”