Galaxy: The Healing Powers of a Rescue Dog

by Jen Wilson, Judy Katz (Other)

From the time he was four, Aaron Wilson had begged his parents for a dog. Finally, on his sixth birthday, they agreed to visit their local shelter. They had their minds set on a cute pup. Then, just as they reached the end of a long row of cages, they came upon the only calm dog in the building. The dog sat there, unmoving, and looked at them, unlike the other frantic dogs eager to find their forever homes. When Aaron’s mother, Jen, held out a treat, the silent dog came over, took it delicately, and licked Jen’s hand. As Jen looked into the animal’s eyes, she felt an immediate connection. She somehow knew, despite learning of the animal’s horrific past, that this was their dog.

The Healing Powers of a Rescue Dog is the heartfelt, true story of a a once-crippled dog with the rare gift for healing humans in terrible physical and emotional pain . . . and the Wilson family’s willingness to share that gift.

The stories are wrenching and sometimes Galaxy’s connection with a twenty-five-year-old soldier, silent and uncommunicative in a darkened rehabilitation center room after returning from Afghanistan missing both legs and a hand; a badly scarred teenager, mauled as a little girl and terrified of dogs; an elderly man facing a lonely death.
Galaxy was able to use her past trauma to connect with broken humans and "restore" them. These are the stories of the many lost and bewildered men, women, and children whom Galaxy transformed with her extraordinary abilities.

192 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 3, 2026

Reviews

[Donna Schwartz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an absolutely enticing book. You will fall in love with Galaxy and her owner.
My only warning is have tissues nearby. Some of the parts of the story will bring tears to your eyes.
It especially made a connection with me as my daughter and her wife adopted a tramatized dog and had to work through some of the same things the family went through with Galaxy.