How to properly honor a heroic (but not dead) dwarf

Solution 1:

You can give him a fancy tomb, even if he isn't dead. Create a room, put a fancy coffin in it, and select the coffin to make it a tomb (similar to how you make a bedroom out of a bed). It will give him happy thoughts to know that he will be remembered well. (Certain nobles insist on having tombs made for them while they are still alive)

Also, as @StarPilot and @Studoku said, give him well-decorated fancy rooms, and have them engraved (you will likely end up with at least one picture of a cringing were-panther being struck down by the laughing owner of the room). And a noble title just for good measure (and to prevent other nobles from getting jealous of his nice things). Most of the titles are honorary anyway (Do NOT make him hammer-dwarf or captain of the gaurd!! You NEVER want a strong fighter in either of those positions, unless you are fond of tantrum-spirals)

But a word of warning:

you should probably keep him locked into those fancy new digs for a while. There is a very high possibility he has been bitten & become a were-panther, and if so, then if he is loose in your fort during the next full moon, that will probably be the end of your fort. You can let him out if enough time passes without him transforming.

Solution 2:

Give him a noble title. What titles you have available will depend on the size of your fort but the title of Baron (and its upgraded versons) are perfect for a hero like this.

You could also honour him with material rewards. Carve out an underground mansion for him, filled with high-quality furniture (of his favourite materials or valuable metals if you can get them). You can have a lot of fun designing homes like this and you guarantee that dwarf is going to always be happy.

Solution 3:

Engrave the wall and floors. Eventually, one of the engravers will engrave the fight scene with the were-panther.