Heartwarming / Pearls Before Swine

• The February 7, 2010 strip has Stephan mourning the death of his father-in-law. Since just describing it would do little to get the heartwarmingness of the moment across, here's the dialogue.
  Stephan: And now he's gone. And I sit here and wonder... where did he go? Where is all that love? Where is all that acceptance? ... Where is Rick?
  Pig hugs Stephan.
  Stephan: There he is.
  Pig: Hey, I've got more where that came from.
• Also, this strip, from Feb 17, 2009:
  Junior: Dad, you haven't wasted every moment of your life just because you haven't caught all the zebras you thought you'd catch. I can think of a million of those moments you didn't waste.
  Larry: Oh yeah? Like wheech ones?
  [Panel of both laughing, as Larry pushes his son on a swing.]
• A strip from around Memorial Day 2003 starts with Zebra and Rat discussing Pig, who Rat dropped off at the bus station for a trip. Rat speculates that Pig may have gone to the beach as that's "what everyone does on these long weekends." The wide shot shows Pig alone at the Vietnam War Memorial, reading the names.
• After Larry gets kicked out of the "Li'l Tykes Kid's Club", when he tries to form Club One Guy.
• For once, Pig is smarter than Rat.
• The creator's tribute to Bil Keane (creator of The Family Circus) in his blog. And his tribute strip.
• The May 6, 2012 Sunday strip about Neighbor Willy has such a heartwarming moment.
• Nicest ting indeed.
• Rat offering Pig a beer after he got dumped by Pigita (again). Lampshaded by Pastis in the treasury it's featured in, when he says he likes to give Rat the occasional Pet the Dog moment to prove he's not a complete asshole.
• Aw, Andy's father does care about him.
• The tribute to the victims in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
• And this strip as a tribute to the Stoneman Douglas High School shooting It should be noted that there is one thing off about it. Larry does not speak Croc-ese at all.
  Larry Please don't get shot. Please come back to me alive. Please let me hold you again. Please.
• Pastis has often said that Pig's sweetness is what keeps the strip from getting too dark:
  • Pig is sitting at a desk with a sign saying "Hold Me. Make my probblims go away." Rat calls Pig dumb for thinking that being held will make his problems go away. Pig then alters the sign to read "Hold me anyways."
  • Also, after Pig imagined that he was a butterfly and fell off the roof, Rat addresses him in the hospital and offers a rare Jerk with a Heart of Gold moment: "Dude... You ran smack into the... (pause) ...moon."
  • The December 1st, 2007 strip.
    Pig: Aw, Andy. It's... It's because you're —
    Andy: ... On a chain. A chain that gets a little weaker every time I pull against it... a chain that one day's gonna break.
    Pig, hugging Andy: Oh, Andy.
    Andy: Hey... Don't squish the hat.
• The conclusion of an arc that has Junior Croc dating a girl zebra (Zebra's niece). When Junior finds out she's leaving he proceeds to break down his door (he was grounded at the time) and give her a goodbye hug.
  • Another one happens when the two string popcorn while Zebra decorates the tree after Billy runs away to spend Christmas with them.
  • Also involving Junior is this June 15, 2011 strip. Making it even more heartwarming is it was released a few days before Father's Day in many countries.
• The March 16, 2015 strip. Starts off with cynical Rat holding tightly to his money because he doesn't want to lose it. Pig comes in and holds tightly to Rat.
• This tribute to Steve Jobs.
• Bill Waterson came out of retirement just to draw three strips for the comic. Doubles as an awesome moment.
• One strip had Rat standing under a Personal Raincloud which was only raining on him and nobody else. When Pig sees this, he also steps into the rain and asks Rat "What are friends for?"
• Maybe Rat does care about Pig after all.
• "You have a soft side." ("Don't tell anyone.")
• The 2018 Mother's Day strip.
  "A SWEET strip?! Can we do this?!?"
• Stephan's tribute to his dog.
• His tribute to Anthony Bourdain (don't read the comments section).
• This strip has Rat buying a homeless man dinner after thinking about what circumstances could lead him to becoming homeless.