MANNY Pacquaio might not splash the cash or have the celebrity entourage Floyd Mayweather enjoys, but that doesn’t make the other man in Sunday’s super fight any less interesting.

Take some of these fun facts:

Manny will only drink hot or room temperature water, never cold water because he feels it’s not healthy.

I had a little dog, it got killed by a friend of my dad and then he ate it. I was 12 years of age, it was a tough childhood

Manny Pacquiao

He’s a big photography buff. This week he purchased two new cameras — complete with lenses and accessories.

He regularly has 500 fans follow him on his morning runs in Los Angeles.

He has five children — Emmanuel Jr, Michael Stephen, Mary Divine Grace, Queen Elizabeth and Israel.

He has served as a congressman in the Philippines and is seen by some as a future president.

He’s also a Lieutenant Colonel in the Reserve Force of the Philippine Army.

He’s appeared in several films in his home nation, including roles as a rebel commander, as “Pacman”, a superhero, in a red costume, fighting crime.

He’s the shortest man to play professional basketball in the Philippines. Former NBA player Daniel Orton was sacked from a rival team after chiding his basketball ability after a game.

media_camera Manny Pacquiao fought his way out of poverty.

HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

BUT perhaps the most shocking Pacquiao story comes from his childhood: he ran away from home as a boy because his father ate his dog.

Yes, you read that correctly.

“I had a little dog, it got killed by a friend of my dad and then he ate it. I was 12 years of age, it was a tough childhood,” Pacquiao said.

Pacquiao stowed away on a boat to Santos City. He bought boxes of doughnuts and sold them individually to make a small profit and slept in cardboard boxes until joining a junior boxing program which provided accommodation.

EARLY CAREER

PACQUIAO was so light before his first fight he put weights in his pocket to make the 105-pound minimum limit.

He gradually moved up from light flyweight to flyweight to super bantamweight, winning 33 of his first 35 fights, included victories against three Australians — Todd Makelim, Arnel Barotillo and Nedal “Skinny” Hussein — all of whom he stopped.

But his real break didn’t come until June 2001, when he fought in the US for the first time and began training under Freddie Roach.

His second fight in the US, a scrappy bout against Agapito Sanchez that was called a draw because of a bad cut above his eye was opened by headbutts, saw Pacquiao fight on the same card as Mayweather.

The duo headlined an event in San Francisco — almost 14 years before they’d eventually meet as opponents in the ring.

media_camera His nicknames include: Pacman, The Mexicutioner, The Nation’s Fist, The Fighting Congressman and the Filipino Slugger.

STARDOM

PACQUIAO’S career really started gaining steam in 2003 when he became the only fighter to knockout Marco Antonio Barrera — a man listed as one of the best 50 fighters of all-time by ESPN.

It gave Pacquiao a huge profile in Barrera’s home country of Mexico and his promoters took advantage, booking 11 of his 12 fights between 2003 and 2008 against Mexicans.

Claiming scalps like Erik Morales, and Juan Manuel Marquez earned Pacquiao the nickname the “Mexicutioner” and his fame grew so large in the Philippines police reported a significant drop in crime whenever he fought because the whole nation stopped to watch.

Pacquiao finally achieved superstardom by defeating Oscar De La Hoya in 2008. The upset victory kicked off an unbelievable run which included wins against Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, Antonio Margarito and Shane Mosley.

It saw Pacquiao become the first and only eight-division world champion and with Mayweather in a short-lived retirement, established him as the best fighter in the world at that time.

A controversial split decision loss to Tim Bradley and a decisive knockout defeat against long-time foe Juan Manuel Marquez suggested Pacquiao’s career was on the decline but he enters Sunday’s bout with Mayweather riding a three-fight winning streak.

Originally published as Manny Pacquiao: My dad ate my dog