An adorable friendship has blossomed at The Rhino Orphanage in the Limpopo province of South Africa. Jamila the rhino was brought to the sanctuary with stab wounds in her back when she was one month old. Due to her feisty personality, her rescuers suspect that she was injured while trying to protect her mom from poachers, who target rhinos for their horns.

Jamila is too young to be housed with other rhinos at the orphanage, who are all at least one year old and much bigger than her. Luckily, one of the sanctuary’s smaller residents has taken a liking to her: a cat named Mewie. Mewie, who’s affectionately referred to as the “king of the orphanage,” has lots of friends. But when he met Jamila, he knew there was something special about her.

Baby rhinos need a lot of attention, and Jamila struggled with missing her mom when she first arrived at the orphanage. Staff members provided her with constant companionship while Mewie patiently waited for her to warm up to him. The playful pair are now inseparable. They love to take walks and play silly games together!

Jamila will be released back into the wild when she’s old enough to take care of herself. In the meantime, she’ll spend her days in the company of her favorite feline sidekick.