Rocky Conklin

Update 4/2026 Someone inquired about Rocky the other day and I had to explain that his personality would not enable us to send him to a Petsmart for show and tell. We have made the decision to add Rocky to the Joyful sanctuary pets as he would struggle in a normal home if the humans weren't as fast as us because when he wants something (toy, bunch of kale....) he will be taking that something. He is also showing signs of physical aging typical of such large dogs and well....he farts SO much!!!! We love Rocky and will love him until it is time to let him go peacefully. Rocky was born June 23, 2015 and weighs about 100 lbs. Rocky is with us because his humans moved to a condo in Florida that does not allow his breed. Rocky is your typical Rottie and bonds intensely with his humans and would like for his new humans to be around more often than not. When Rocky was dropped off we were greeted with big (docked) tail wags and kisses. He needed vaccines and a bath upon arrival and he was wonderful with us for both, the nail trim was somewhat of a challenge and now that he is actively running around and swimming they are in good condition. Rocky has been good with other dogs here and if he goes to a home with another dog Rocky will likely be the alpha and a dog medium to his size would be preferred - he's just a lug. He is house trained and travels well in the car. He is also good on leash, but is strong if he decides to go in a different direction than you. He is the kind of guy that will hang with you when you are doing your outside chores. He has been fine meeting children but we wish to place him in an adult/teen home since he would most likely be protective of his home/family to strangers. When Rocky arrived he was out of shape and showed his age and after a few months here he looks amazing, is a wonderful weight, and if we didn't know better we might guess him to be about 7-8 years old! A couple years ago he weighed almost 150 lbs. - life style makes such a difference! Vet notes indicate there are two masses ventral thorax - 1 cm in size each that are cyst like and lipoma like. They were not tested and we do not have the funds at this time to get them tested. There is a scar on one eye lid and there are scars up and down (mostly the front) of all of his legs from chewing. The owners noted boredom, we are leaning in the boredom/stress direction. He was chewing on them some upon arrival, but we haven't noticed it lately now that we are getting him out for fun activities and socialization. He does have some nuclear sclerosis (old age cloudiness) in his eyes that is not bothering him at this time. Upon arrival he had an ugly skin tag like thing under one eye that magically fell off during his antics here. There was no blood so it was not attached very well. Whew! There are notes that he didn't care for the vet and his young, adult, "sister" was not able/willing to handle him and we saw normal protective instincts when he went to our vet and someone walked up and stuck their head in the truck when he was loose....probably not the best thing to do but everyone was fine. So, he is a normal Rottie....as he should be. The Rocky we have with us now, after a few months, is happy, loving, well adjusted, and is in great physical condition and no longer has the shattered heart he came to us with. Although he does need a forever home and, hopefully, that will be the last adjustment for him. Oh, he has amazing balance and loves to Kayak and he is a good swimmer and will do about anything for a squeaky toy! As you can tell we have grown to love him and have enjoyed his stay, but he would like more human attention than he gets here with so many others. We've found he has too much interest in cats to live with any. Thank you for reading all this, if he is for you we would love to hear from you! The Adoption Fee for this dog is $__N/A__. Adoptions fees vary based on adoptability. In general our fees include spay/neuter, all age appropriate vaccines, Home Again micro-chipping & registration, worming & flea control - a "complete" pet. We accept CASH or Visa/Mastercard ONLY. Joyful Rescues has no funding except for our adoption fees and miscellaneous donations. Pet care and vet bills are expensive - you must be ready to take on this financial (as well as emotional) responsibility. YOU MUST BE AT LEAST 25 YEARS OF AGE TO ADOPT A DOG FROM JOYFUL RESCUES We keep our pet list as up-to-date as possible. As soon as a pet is adopted, it is removed from the list. If a pet is still showing, it is still available for adoption. Can't Adopt Me? SPONSOR ME Look for the Link "Special Instructions to Seller" if you want to note a particular pet