Rocky's journey began when his owner, Steven Cure, was forced to choose between saving his dog and saving his parents. He left Rocky behind in St. Bernard Parish, Louisiana. The dog swam through floodwaters to a neighbor's house but the rescue boat that came couldn't take animals and Rocky was left behind, again.

Rocky survived on MREs, or Meals Ready to Eat, which were regularly thrown to stray animals by National Guard troops patrolling the area.