A little boy named Carter and 14-yr-old black lab named Rowdy formed an unbreakable bond despite being 2,000 miles apart. Their long distance friendship started with a chance Facebook encounter. This encounter then led to a cross country trek that would change little Carter’s life forever.
Carter and Rowdy have the same skin condition called vitiligo. Vitiligo, causes the body to attack the cells that give skin its color. Because of it, both Carter and Rowdy have large white patches near their eyes and on other spots on their bodies… a symptom that’s far more traumatic for young Carter than the cute dog.
“He was at a big school with a lot of kids and his face was transforming very quickly,” Carter’s mother told told ABC. “As he was trying to come to terms with it, he had his classmates trying to also because his face was changing in front of them.”
The young boy was unable to look past his own condition… but when he saw Rowdy online, it brought everything into perspective.
For over a year, Carter and Rowdy would ‘talk’ online with Rowdy’s owner sending pictures and updates on the dog. Finally, Carter’s mom decided enough was enough started a Go-Fund-Me to buy two plane tickets for Oregon so the duo could finally meet in person. Within days, the campaign was complete and Carter was on his way.
The moment they locked eyes for the first time was pure magic.
‘In all honesty, it was as if they had known each other forever. Carter walked right in, took off his jacket and just knelt down and started petting him.’
‘He was on the floor playing and Rowdy just kept walking around him and laying down by him and he even was barking and hopping around because of all the energy and excitement in the air.’
Meeting Rowdy changed Carter’s perspective on life forever. The pup helped Carter see his own value didn’t come from the way he looked, but from what’s on the inside. What a sweet lesson that we can all learn from!
The Go-Fund-Me account is still set up, but for the most beautiful reason. It’s now being used to pay for the travel of other kids with Vitiligo to meet Rowdy as well!
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