When you rescue an animal and they become part of your family, it’s as if that creature has rescued you, too. Although it sounds cliché, it’s true. The tale of a woman named Kesley and a pup named Kardi is one of those stories. Together, the two show the meaning of love, companionship, and resilience in the face of life's challenges and celebrations.
Kelsey saved Kardi, a French bulldog, when she was two years old. Kardi was living with a breeder and spent most of her life up until that point in a cage. Although she was fearful and shy after first meeting Kelsey, Kardi quickly “warmed up” to her new reality. Kelsey was a college student at the time, so the pup went everywhere with her and made a lot of friends along the way thanks to her charming personality and sweet smile.
Just a couple of years after her rescue, the dynamic duo began to face obstacles regarding Kardi’s health. In 2015, the smiley pup became paralyzed at age four due to intervertebral disc disease (IVDD), an affliction that affects the discs of the spine. Kardi has never regained use of her legs and is permanently urinary and bowel incontinent.
This massive health issue hasn’t gotten Kardi down, though. After learning how to pull herself around using only her front legs, she was gifted a pink Walkin’ Wheels wheelchair which helped her mobility. In it, she discovered how to maneuver down steps and around corners as well as backing up.
Unfortunately, this was not the end of Kardi’s health woes. Due to heredity issues because of poor breeding, Kardi was diagnosed with bladder cancer in March 2020. There weren’t any great treatment options for her, and she was given just three to six months to live.
This news was crushing to Kelsey; she had gotten engaged in September 2020 and had set a wedding date for 2/21/21. She badly wanted Kardi by her side for this special day. Luckily, she got her wish! Currently, Kardi is over a year post-prognosis. She was not only a guest in Kelsey's wedding, but she “stole the show” donning a tutu and floral bow. The two posed together for photos, and it's here that we get to see the depths of their bond. Kardi smiles big for her human on her special day.
“Having Kardi in my wedding meant the world to me,” Kelsey tells My Modern Met. “She has been in my life through the good and bad and has helped me get through so many things. I’m so happy she was able to be by my side on the happiest day of my life. She’s my everything.”
Kardi the French bulldog has had some big health challenges.
But even when she was diagnosed with bladder cancer and given just a few months to live…
…the smiley pup has held on and was able to be in her human, Kelsey's, wedding nearly a year later.
Kardi and her sister, Bonnie Rose, as flower girls in Kelsey's wedding
Kartin Kardi: Facebook
My Modern Met granted permission to feature photos by Kelsey / Kartin Kardi.
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