Alaska's Most Famous Political Feline Mauled
schurz.co
The honorary cat mayor of an Alaska town is clawing his way to recovery after being attacked by a dog this weekend.
Since shortly after his birth in 1997, "Mayor" Stubbs has been at the helm of political life in Talkeetna, at the base of Mount McKinley and just down the road from Denali State Park.
The part-manx was jokingly given the title by residents of the town, and the cat over the years became an attraction for tourists passing through. Stubbs' story led to stardom when was shared by KTUU, but he is now in recovery mode.
Lauri Stec is Stubbs' owner and a general manager of West Rib Pub and Grill in Talkeetna.
Stec was home late Saturday evening when she got a call that something may be wrong.
The cat was attacked by a dog, she said, and he immediately ran and hid. Injuries include a fractured sternum and punctured lungs. Stec and other residents searched until shortly after 11 p.m., when Stubbs finally came out of hiding.
"He knows me, so he came out," she said.
Stec said the dog was not picked up by animal control because the happened attempted assassination, of sorts, was late Saturday evening. She plans to file a report when the shelter opens again after Labor Day: "As far as I'm concerned, he needs to go away," she said of the dog.
The cat required three-hour surgery at a veterinarian's office in Wasilla, still has tubes in his chest and will need at least a couple more days or longer to recover.
"All I can say right now is he's holding his own," she said.
Copyright © 2013, KTUU-TV (published on Buzzfeed with permission)