We once had one dog and eight cats. The dog, Rusty, was a pure-bred American Pitt-Bull Terrier. Not the type of dog you'd think would get along with cats. But Rusty was raised with cats, & her best buddy was Celeste, a female orange and white tiger cat. Rusty & Celeste often slept together, curled in a ball.

Rusty was trained to heel without a leash. Her human was my brother Paul, who by practice would walk her down to an open field near us for her exercise. Now Rusty, though she never harmed a human, had been attacked on 2 occasions by other dogs - with tragic results for both the other dogs. So, we knew the potential for disaster was there.

One day, Paul and his wife Cathy decided to take Rusty for her walk. Celeste tagged along, as was often her habit. On entering the field, Paul could see two people with their dogs on the opposite side of the field. Paul called Rusty to heel and yelled out for the other people to heel their dogs as well. The only response was some laughing and then the other people urged their dogs forward. Both animals were rather large breeds, larger than Rusty, & Paul was worried about a fight happening. Rusty went into her alert stance, and Paul knew he would not be able to control her if something happened, for she would be protecting him and his wife.

Suddenly, an orange and white shape streaked by them. Celeste didn't hesitate, but met the first dog head on. One blow of her paw sent the dog flipping over on its back, then howling back to the men. Never pausing, Celeste gave the same to the second dog, with the same results. Then she pranced back, tail waving high, to rub Rusty around the muzzle & front legs - as if to say, "It's OK, I took care of them."

My brother swears this is a true story -- and knowing Celeste -- I have no doubt of it.

Copyright © Sandy Heglund
June 20, 1998