Our Team

April Cox

April is originally from Pittsburgh, PA, and has loved animals her whole life. April believes that as the owner of Rocky’s Retreat, the best way that she can serve our clients- both furry and human, is to be hands on. April is our Senior Hydrotherapist and loves swimming with the dogs- whether it’s teaching them how to swim, working on recovery or general fitness, or just a good old-fashioned game of fetch.

Jay Canales

Jay moved to Florida from El Salvador in 2011, and moved to Orlando with his wife in 2015.  He has never wanted the cubicle life and is able to combine his love of both photography and dogs working at Rocky’s as a kennel tech and our Director of Media.  You can thank him for all of our wonderful dog videos! Jay really enjoys working with the dogs and we consider him our very own dog whisperer. Hablamos Espanol: Si tu perro habla Espanol, Jay le puede ayudar.

Eva Chacon 

Joining us all the way from Venezuela, Eva is one of our Certified Canine Hydrotherapists.  She saw firsthand the benefits of hydrotherapy with her beloved dog-daughter, Luna, and has dedicated her own life to dogs’ health and well-being.  She loves seeing dogs improve in the water and considers it a great personal blessing. Hablamos Espanol: Si tu perro necesita aquaterapia, pero te preocupa porque Ingles no es tu primer idioma, Eva habla Espanol y puede ayudarte.

Max DeMarco

Max is one of our kennel techs and helps us around the building with minor maintenance and repair.  He’s also training to be a hydrotherapist. Growing up in a small town in the snowy mountains of New Hampshire, he loved to hike, camp, and swim with all of his fur friends that he grew up with.  After falling in love with Central Florida, Max and his wife decided to move here in 2017 and make it their home. After over a decade in the service industry, he decided to change careers and pursue his passion with pups.  Max is thrilled that he decided to chase his dreams and couldn’t be happier with his decision.

Destiny Gomez

Destiny is a Florida native and works as a kennel tech and front desk receptionist.  She came to one of our free events at Rocky’s Retreat and decided to leave her job in big-box pet retail and join us!  Destiny has been passionate about animals since childhood and she enjoys having more one on one time with the dogs. Destiny loves being able to strengthen the relationship between pet parents and their dogs by educating others on K9 behavior.  

Henry Simanek

Henry is a Florida native and is one of our kennel techs.  He is pretty quiet by nature, so he finds it much easier to get along with and talk to animals.  Henry grew up with and cared for animals his entire life, so working with them seemed to be a natural choice for him.  Since joining Rocky’s Retreat, Henry has learned a lot about dog on dog play and interactions, and he loves the challenge of figuring out their unique personalities.

Syl’Quala Bright

Syl’Quala is one of our receptionists as well as a kennel technician. She is currently gaining more experience as a veterinary technician to apply for veterinary school. Growing up she has always had a passion for caring for animals and puts that passion into the work she does here at Rocky’s Retreat. Syl’Quala is so happy to be a part of the team here.