“[She’d] headbutt the door if we separated them …”

Meet Cinnamon and Felix — a goat and dog duo who do everything together. Their friendship was unlike anything the Wake County Animal Center (WCAC) had seen before, and the shelter team quickly realized just how much they hated being apart.

“Initially, we were going to separate them at night because there was no one in the shelter to monitor them, but they were not having that,” Dr. Jennifer Federico, DVM, Wake County government’s animal services director, told The Dodo.

When Cinnamon and Felix’s owner could no longer care for them, Wake County’s animal control stepped in. WCAC doesn’t typically work with farm animals, but when the animal control officers told them that the two were bonded, they didn’t hesitate to take them.

Felix and Cinnamon’s love for each other was apparent within the first few minutes of arrival. And as the days passed, they grew to depend on each other even more.

“We could walk the dog all over from where their kennels are to our little dog park area, and we wouldn’t leash the goat at all — Cinnamon would just follow,” Dr. Federico said.

The pair of best friends would spend their nights sleeping on the same cot and spend their days in each other’s company. But when they were separated, they would let shelter staff know they weren’t happy about it.

“Cinnamon would start screaming,” Dr. Federico said, “and, in the kennel, [she’d] headbutt the door if we separated them to eat.”

No matter where one of the best friends went, the other wasn’t too far behind.

They might be different species, but Cinnamon and Felix have one thing in common.

“Goats are social animals and so are dogs, so when they’re put together, it makes sense they would find friendship,” Dr. Federico said in a press release. “‘Whatever the reason for these two bonding, it’s clear what would be best for their well-being is to keep them together.’”

WCAC knew that they wanted to find a farm where Cinnamon could interact with other goats and still have Felix by her side, so they partnered with a rescue called The Mr. Mo Project. The New York-based rescue was able to find a perfect home for the two best friends in no time.

“All the pieces fell into place,” Dr. Federico said. “Their new mom has a herd of goats, and she has the space to take both Cinnamon and Felix. They’re even building a separate pasture for Cinnamon so that she’s separated from the other goats for now and can transition appropriately.”

Since a dog and goat friendship isn’t so common, Dr. Federico suspects that Cinnamon never had a chance to bond with other goats. She’s excited to see Cinnamon socialize with the other goats in her new home soon, but, for now, she knows that the goat is perfectly content just with having her best friend by her side.

“We don’t know if Cinnamon has ever been with other goats, but we know that her safety is Felix,” Dr. Federico said. “They’re such a unique pair, and they’re so sweet together. This is just what they needed.”