Congratulations to our September 2023 Pet of the Month, Rocco Bambace!
Meet Rocco!
Rocco is only 15 and half years old. Which I hear for a big dog is pretty old, but don’t tell him that. He’s a goofy sweet boy, and he is basically the perfect dog.
When Rocco was just a little pup, he found himself in “Mini Aussie Rescue” in Georgia. After some phone calls and finagling, he flew on a private jet via “Pilots for Paws” to meet his new family in sunny Florida. Once he settled in, he began growing, and growing, and growing some more… it became apparent that he’s not a miniature anything, but according to his DNA test he is in fact 100% Aussie, just not a miniature one.
When Rocco was younger, his favorite hobbies were swimming, fetching balls, or wrestling with one of his favorite doggie friends. Now that he is older, he still loves to play, but he doesn’t run as hard as he used to, and he spends a bit more time relaxing on the couch. He still gets spunky at least once a day and plays doggie games with his little sister. He also stays fit with a couple short walks every day.
Rocco went through some hard times a few years back when he lost his best friend and big sister, Lilly, to degenerative myelopathy. We were all heart broken, but he was particularly depressed after losing her. After taking time to grieve, we opened our hearts to a new family member, a sheltie puppy named Penny. This new little friend bonded with Rocco right away. She keeps him playful and young!
Rocco’s life used to be “dog party all day all night”, but now that his humans have babies, he has to share the attention some! The good news is that Rocco doesn’t seem to mind a bit, and takes his nanny-dog duties very seriously.
About a year ago we found out that Rocco had a tumor on his spleen which was life-threatening. We were scared we might lose him. Dr. McPherson at TOAH performed a splenectomy and fixed him right up! The recovery was hard, but he took it like a champ!
We might be biased, but we feel like Rocco really is one of the best dogs you’ll ever meet. We are grateful for every day we have with him and it’s been an honor to watch him grow from goofy puppy to distinguished older gentleman.
