Do you have a favorite pet? For many people that favorite pet is probably a dog or cat, though there are probably a few people out there with a soft spot for the hamster of their youth. How many would say, though, that their most favorite pet — the one they’d have the hardest time being separated from — is a donkey? That’s what makes the story of Ismael and Baldomera all the more special. 

Introducing Ismael Fernandez And His Favorite Pet, Baldomera… The Donkey

Spain’s Ismael Fernandez’s favorite pet is the donkey Baldomera. Baldomera may be the favorite of the whole family, actually, but she seems especially important to Ismael. Baldomera lives in rural Spain with Ismael’s brother… separate from the rest of the family. Living apart from a favorite pet is hard enough, but Fernandez made it work by visiting Baldomera — and presumably his brother — every week. But then the coronavirus pandemic struck.

Spain imposed very rigorous social distancing and lockdown rules to combat the spread of coronavirus and the outbreak of COVID-19. For over a month-and-a-half, only one adult per household was allowed to leave provided they had very specific reasons for doing so. 

As you might expect, visiting a favorite pet in the countryside was not on that list of reasons and it meant that Fernandez was unable to visit Baldomera for weeks

Every country has imposed slightly different versions of lockdown guidelines or laws, from total sequestration to gentle suggestions. But many of us have an answer to the question, “What’s the first thing you’ll do when the world re-opens?” While for most people, reasons include things like getting a haircut or going on a trip, for Fernandez, the answer was obvious. He was going to see his pet. 

As Soon As He Could, Ismael Went To See Baldo In The Country

When Spain began loosening pandemic-related restrictions in mid-May 2020, Ismael’s first priority was to get out to the countryside to visit Baldomera.

One of the best parts of this story, though? Ismael recorded the moment of his reunion with “Baldo” on the donkey’s own Instagram feed for all of us to share. The feed, called the “Spanish Donkey from Málaga” has its own Instagram profile with nearly 7,000 followers.

Check out this video of the reunion between Ismael and Baldo. Over 30,000 other people have. But, before you do, grab some Kleenex. Your allergies are about to start acting up; your eyes might get a bit watery. That’s partly because of the emotion that’s so prevalent in Fernandez, and partially because of the donkey’s very audible sobbing once he realizes his old friend has returned. It’s a moment you won’t forget. 

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font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;”> View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style=”padding: 12.5% 0;”></div> <div style=”display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;”><div> <div style=”background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);”></div> <div style=”background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;”></div> <div style=”background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);”></div></div><div style=”margin-left: 8px;”> <div style=” background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;”></div> <div style=” width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; 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font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;”>A post shared by <a href=”https://www.instagram.com/baldomerayyo/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading” style=” color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px;” target=”_blank”> Baldomera</a> (@baldomerayyo) on <time style=” font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;” datetime=”2020-05-19T17:48:41+00:00″>May 19, 2020 at 10:48am PDT</time></p></div></blockquote> <script async src=”//www.instagram.com/embed.js”></script>

Tell the truth. Before that moment, had you ever heard a donkey cry? Neither had Ismael. You know, it’s been said that men are reluctant to show their emotions. Ismael is not one of those men. He’s admitted to being overwhelmed by the reunion with his friend Baldomera. Here’s how he described the moment in an interview with TheDodo:

I started crying. I was so happy to be seeing her. And when she saw me, she started crying. I never heard that sound from her before. She cried with me. We cried together.

There’s no word whether Baldo will be speaking to the press, But her actions speak much louder than any words could. Now that Baldo and Ismael can be together again, together they’re staying. Ismael says that, since their reunion, Baldo has remained almost constantly at his side.

Here’s hoping that no pandemic separates them again and that anyone separated from loved ones for a little while longer can have an equally joyous reunion.