My sister and I first met Rocky and his parents Dana and Todd very early in our start with Hawai’i Doggie Bakery in 2012.  Rocky was an older spaniel with the personality of a young vibrant puppy.  We quickly learned that Rocky was suffering from cancer and he was going through chemotherapy.  My family immediately bonded with Rocky because a couple months prior we discovered our oldest dog Xiao Gou also had cancer.  Together each week we shared stories, tips, laughter, and even tears.  Rocky met all of our dogs, and greeted them with tail wagging smiles. My favorite memory of him was seeing his face light up everytime we gave our yellow hdb bags.  Even if he was feeling sick, or shaky, as soon as he saw those bags he would perk up and stick his head in the bag with excitement!

Rocky waiting patiently for his treats…

What’s in the bag?

His favorite week was bento week, and his parents made sure never to miss it! I truely admire Dana and Todd’s commitment to making Rocky as happy and as comfortable as possible.  Even when one of them was sick, the other would make the weekly trip to our farmers market with Rocky.  One week we had to cancel a farmers market so Todd (who was training for the marathon) ran an insane amount of miles to our other location to pick up treats for Rocky! His parents went swimming at the Sand bar with him, socialized with other dogs, brought him to almost all of our dog events, even had photoshoots with him! They were exactly the kind of dog owners that my sister and I could look up to and there was no doubt in our minds that Rocky loved them as much as they loved him.

Our treats are Rocky approved!

At the beginning of January we received an email that Rocky had passed.  After crying and hugging each other and our dogs, we realized that although we will miss him, it comforts us that we were able to contribute to happiness up until the very end.  We will not forget how a dog could capture our hearts simply by being himself.

Rocky celebrating and loving life

Coincidently this week is bento week and Rocky’s birthday week.  In memory of Rocky, Dana, Todd, my sister, and I have decided to to something special to celebrate.  Since manapuas was his favorite treat we will be handing out free mini manapuas (while supplies last) in honor of Rocky for the next couple of days.   In return we ask that you give your dogs an extra kiss and hug this week.  In addition to giving our free manapuas, we have decided to officially rename our Tail Waggin’ Wontons to Rocky’s Tail Waggin’ Wontons!  It’s a little gift we would like to share with Rocky and their parents for reminding us that life is short, so love your dog as much as you can!

Rocky modeling in front of our tent!

Get your free Mini Manapuas by visiting us today, February 14 at Makiki Farmers’ Market from 4:30pm-7:30pm and Saturday, Feb 16 at Ala Moana Farmers’ Market 8am-12pm and also Saturday, Feb 16 at Hawaii Kai Farmers’ Market 9am-1pm.

For more information on Rocky and on canine cancer click on the links below