Unlikely Siblings - Luna & Venza A Rottweiler and a

By Carie Broecker

The video shows a beautiful black panther in the snow in the woods of Siberia. She crouches, her eyes narrow, her hind end shifts from side to side. Anyone who has ever had a house cat or watched a National Geographic special about big cats recognizes the body language. This cat is about to pounce on her prey.

Along comes a big, happy-go-lucky Rottweiler. He is running and playing and enjoying the snow. The cat leaps, landing on his back. Oh no! The poor Rottie! They tumble in the snow together, rolling over several times, and then the panther goes in for a bite. This turns out to just be a gentle play bite and a few tender nibbles on the Rottie’s ears. Soon they are preening together and engaging in obvious play.

How can this be? How did these two become such good friends, so playful and trusting of one another?

Flashback to early 2020. While the rest of the world was coping with the beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic, a panther gave birth to a litter of cubs in a Siberian zoo. At some point in the first week of caring for her kits, the mama flung one of the babies out of the den. Presumably, this was the runt of the litter and mama was just doing what nature does. She was conserving her milk for those most fit to survive.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF LUNA THE PANTERA Luna’s relationship with Venza became very important to her. Young felines need to learn to play safely, to learn bite inhibition with their playmates, to be enriched, to be social. Venza provided all those outlets for Luna. And as Luna grew into the graceful wild cat that she is, she needed and wanted more and more exercise.

It was a few days before the zoo staff realized the cub had been abandoned. She was cold, malnourished, ill, and near death. They contacted a woman known as Victoria for help. (Victoria prefers to stay anonymous for the safety of herself and Luna.)

Victoria had experience raising wild cats. She agreed to care for the sick cub and nurse her back to health. She named the little panther “Luna.” When the cub was only eight days old, Victoria started bottle feeding her and providing proper medical care and nutritional supplements to help save her life. It was several months before Luna was strong enough and stable enough to stop worrying about if she would survive.

When Luna was 10 weeks old, Victoria carefully introduced her to her female Rottweiler, Venza. Right away Venza was very interested in Luna. She was not aggressive with her. She was very maternal with her. She wanted to preen her and care for her. They visited with each other for short periods daily until Victoria was comfortable with them interacting for more extended periods.

They soon became the best of friends. Luna grew from a

tiny kitten that fit in the palm of Victoria’s hand to the healthy two-year-old panther she is today, climbing trees and leaping 10 or more feet with little effort.

Luna’s relationship with Venza became very important to her. Young felines need to learn to play safely, to learn bite inhibition with their playmates, to be enriched, to be social. Venza provided all those outlets for Luna. And as Luna grew into the graceful wild cat that she is, she needed and wanted more and more exercise.

Venza and Luna learned to run, play, pounce, and wrestle with each other safely. Luna is now fully grown, healthy, and thriving. She is still slightly smaller than Venza.

She is also very bonded to Victoria, her “human mom.” While Luna was teething and growing, Victoria spent a lot of time letting her “chew” on her hands and fingers, giving her cues to know when she was being too rough.

Luna is so happy living with Victoria and Venza, that Victoria could not stand the thought of her going back to live at the zoo. She arranged with the zoo to purchase Luna so she can continue to care for her and keep her safe. Although Luna was raised indoors with lots of playtime outdoors, Victoria built a large outdoor enclosure for her to give her more space.

At two years old, Luna is doing very well, but she would not survive on her own so she cannot be released back into the wild. Victoria vows to do what is best for Luna’s health and happiness as she grows older. If that one day means living in a sanctuary, she is open to that. But for now, Luna the “pantera” and Venza the Rottweiler are inseparable. Victoria can’t imagine splitting them up.

Whether they are riding in the back of the SUV together, curled up for a nap, dressed in costumes

Luna is so happy living with Victoria and Venza, that Victoria could not stand the thought of her going back to live at the zoo. She arranged with the zoo to purchase Luna so she can continue to care for her and keep her safe.

and posing for Halloween or Christmas photos, drinking out of the same water bowl, or romping through the woods, these two are besties through thick and thin.

To view many gorgeous photos and videos of Luna and Venza go to Luna_the_Pantera on Instagram. That page will also take you to her YouTube channel and TikTok page. 


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