Shelter animals have frequently been through so much fear and uncertainty that they often cling to the things that makes them feel comfortable. This might be a bed, a toy, or in the case of this next story, another animal. Anything to help them feel less scared about their current situation.

So when two doggie best friends were surrendered at a shelter by their old owner and had to be temporarily separated, they didn’t take the separation very well at all. Heartbreakingly, it seemed that one of the two was about to be adopted, meaning that the pair wouldn’t get to see each other again.

But thankfully, the adopter failed to show up, and the two best friends were able to stay together. They have now both been adopted into the same home – meaning that they will never be apart again.

Best friends Rocky and Schwabo were surrendered at Miami Dade animal services after their owner had some issues with the landlord. The 9 and 11 year-olds were as thick as thieves, and this instantly became clear when the pair were split up.

As Rocky was placed on the adoption floor, Schwabo was found to be limping due to arthritis, and he was sent to another area of the kennels for observation. Completely lost and scared without his pal, Schwabo cried for days, staring mournfully out of the glass window of his kennel. It truly was a heartbreaking sight, and it had a huge impact on the shelter volunteers.

“He grew up looking up to Rocky and now, even though he’s older, Rocky is like his big brother,” volunteer Jani Bradford told The Dodo. “He’s very, very attached to Rocky.”

Out on the adoption floor, Rocky quickly received an application, which thankfully fell through on the day of adoption. It seemed that the pair were destined to remain together.

The two dogs were reunited and they couldn’t be happier. Bradford began to share the pair’s story on Facebook in the hopes that somebody would be willing to adopt them both together. Despite being the best of friends, Bradford explained that the two dogs were actually pretty different.

“Rocky’s older but he acts like a puppy. He loves playing with the ball, he can play all day long,” Bradford said. “Schwabo acts a little older … He’s very calm, very low maintenance.”

She added, “Schwabo doesn’t do much — he lays in his bed and loves watching Rocky doing all his goofy stuff. Schwabo needs Rocky. He just loves being around him, watching him play all day. Rocky makes him happy.”