Cue Linda Ronstadt’s “Somewhere Out There” and have some tissues on hand, because you’ve never loved a pair of long-distance best buds quite like Nugget and Bonkers.
In early November, Miranda Wassinger—owner of 9-month-old Nugget, an adorable Pembroke Welsh Corgi—captured a video of her pup sprinting towards the door of his best pal Bonkers’ apartment.
Sadly, unbeknownst to Nugget (who lives in Georgia), Bonkers and his family had to move to New York for work.
The clip of an eager and crestfallen Nugget captured tens of thousands of retweets and an outcry from the Internet wondering how the sweet little guy was coping.
The Wassingers, who moved to Georgia in May of 2017, met and befriended Bonkers’ owners, who lived in the same apartment complex. In no time, the eager puppy Nugget took to Bonkers, who Wassinger says was “like a big brother” to their dog.
“Bonkers was the first friend Nugget had and they became friends instantly,” Wassinger says, “[Nugget] was always trying to copy him and constantly wanted his attention so they could play together.”
The inseparable duo loved to chase one another and play with each other’s toys. They went on walks together almost daily, and would often go to the park or visit each other’s homes.
“They knew exactly where the other lived and would both drag themselves to each others houses, in hopes they could see one another,” she says.
When the Wassingers got news that the 4-year-old Bonkers and his family would be moving, they were incredibly sad, as they had come to love the dog and his owners as much as Nugget.
“We never made a big deal about them leaving because Corgis are pretty perceptive dogs and I was worried he would get depressed,” Wassinger says. “But then again, how do you even let a dog know his best friend is moving away?”
The now-viral clip which Wassinger took of Nugget looking for Bonkers was taken about a week after the family had moved.
“When we started walking that direction, Nugget began to drag me like he always does when we head to Bonkers house, and I suddenly realized Nugget truly had no clue his friend was gone,” she says.
Wassinger tells PawCulture that Nugget’s moment of realization broke her heart and that, despite efforts to get him to keep walking, “it was hard to stop him” from trying to get to Bonkers.
Wassinger tells PawCulture that Nugget “definitely knows his friend isn’t here” since Bonkers’ departure.
“Every time we mention Bonkers name, his ears perk up and he starts looking around for his friend,” she says. “I don’t think he will ever forget him, no matter how long they’re apart.”
While Nugget and Bonkers haven’t been reunited yet, the families (who have stayed in touch and plan to have FaceTime chats) have every intention of meeting up to get these two back together to hang out like old times. The moment will, of course, be captured on film.
Even with his best pal gone, Wassinger says that it hasn’t stopped Nugget “from being his happy self.”
“I am constantly taking him to different dog parks and new places so he can meet lots of dogs and people,” she says. “He is a huge social butterfly and never has a difficult time finding a new pup to befriend.”
Images via @fluffpupnugget
Aly Semigran is a lifestyle writer for the world, and roommate of Ruby, the cutest dog in the world.
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