FOSTER PARENT HIGHLIGHT: REXY’S STORY

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exy was only fivemonths-old when he came to Calgary Humane Society as a stray. He spent time in a foster home, where his foster parents and our Animal Health team soon noticed that he was licking and chewing around his hips and was limping. Our veterinarians ran some medical tests and diagnosed Rexy with hip dysplasia – a painful condition that can cause arthritis and hip dislocation. Rexy needed to have two surgeries to repair this issue - with each surgery booked six weeks apart so that Rexy had time to recover. Part of his healing plan included strict kennel rest and physiotherapy that could not be done in the shelter, so a CHS foster family offered to take Rexy in and care for him.

“Rexy is a sweet and loving, if a somewhat ambitious boy” says Nancy, one of Rexy’s foster parents. “He is bright and intelligent but had paws so big we doubted he would ever grow into them. We had never had a dog so large and I was not sure about it at all!” Rexy required many check-ups at the shelter and early-morning appointments at a local animal hospital throughout his recovery. Our Animal Health and Behaviour teams worked with Rexy and his foster family to keep him happy and healthy while he was on strict kennel rest. Even though Rexy was experiencing big and scary changes, his foster parents shared that he always had a lot of love to give. “The best parts are the early mornings when he is not really awake yet. For the first month or so, he would just want to cuddle into someone’s lap and stay there for a half hour.”

Nancy and her family started fostering Rexy in September 2020, and it was a long road to recovery. “After his second surgery, he was in so much pain and just wanted his people. His intelligence and independence really started to come through the more he trusted us.” Nancy and her family got to watch Rexy discover everything for the first time – from his first snowfall to finally being able to run and play fetch. As further weeks passed, it was finally time for Rexy to move on from the care of CHS and his foster family to find his forever home! While Rexy recovered from his last operation, his foster family realized that he had already found his home. When asked what made her realize this, Nancy says, “we just knew it would break our hearts to let him go.”

Nancy and her family made the adoption official in February of 2021. Rexy now spends his days sunbathing in the backyard and enjoying long walks with his forever family.

Reflecting on their experience fostering Rexy, Nancy says, “every dog comes with challenges, but the foster opportunity is its own reward. Once that connection was there with Rexy - there was nothing else quite like it.”

We thank our incredible foster families for all of the love and care they give to the animals of CHS. We couldn’t do what we do without them!