PROFILE FEATURE
One man and his family of dogs The story of the Hoppe family’s lifelong relationship with Border collie dogs started one sweltering hot day in 1969, when Oldrich and his son, Lance drove to the local shops and saw a collie cross dog in the unventilated driver’s cab of a parked lorry. When the driver returned, and following a heated discussion, the cab door opened and the collie registered his displeasure leaping straight into the Hoppe family’s car. Blackie had chosen his new home. Son Simon was born a year later, by which time Blackie had become a much-loved family member, visiting Sheringham for caravan holidays and delighting in chasing seagulls along the cliff, skidding to a halt just as the cliff disappeared into the sea.
In autumn 1979, Blackie escaped to visit the farm dog across the road from his home in Glinton, and nine weeks later, Simon was introduced to a fluffy litter of pups. The farmer wasn’t too happy to find that Blackie had broken his pedigree line. Nine-year-old Simon, pleaded with his parents to keep one of Blackie’s puppies, the one who would not leave him alone in the barn where they were kept. Simon’s parents, Oldrich and Pat, agreed to give ‘Jasper’ a home. So began one of the most loving and enduring friendships between a boy who became a man and his dog. Simon enrolled Jasper in dog training classes, and learnt the principles of dog training that he would apply for the rest of his life. They earned a score of 16/20 in the final
assessment, which Simon was not happy with, as Jasper the pup had become distracted by the other dogs. For Simon, though, Jasper would always score top marks! Simon walked or ran Jasper together with the farm dogs at least twice a day, every day, for 16 years, later returning every weekend from university, to see his beloved dogs! When Simon took up running aged 12, becoming Peterborough schools’ champion, county representative and later, Team GB triathlete, Jasper was firmly at his master’s side, never needing a lead, even as the path ran out and as traffic whizzed by on the Peakirk Road as they completed their circuit from Glinton to Market Deeping and back again. As they took their daily walk in Glinton, a Great Dane used to watch from the window of a bungalow, leaping at the window to get to Jasper, with never a homeowner in sight. On one almost fatal day, the dog was seen outside his home for the first time, being taken for a walk by its owner, and upon seeing Jasper it broke free, running towards Jasper, sinking its teeth into his neck. Simon couldn’t break the life-threatening grip, was badly bitten himself. He then ran at the dangerous Dane and kicked him as if he were a football. This did the trick, when the dog yelped and released its grip. Simon scooped the bleeding and apparently lifeless Jasper into his arms and ran to the Glinton vets, laid him on the bench and pleaded with the vet to save him! No mean feat for a 13-year-old to run half a mile with a 20 kilo dog in his arms, but his efforts were not in vain. Jasper responded to treatment and the bond between the boy and his dog grew even stronger. The pair became inseparable, Jasper sleeping in Simon’s bedroom, and starting their day with a 6.30am walk every day. Occasionally when Simon’s Mum wasn’t paying attention and the house gate was left open, Jasper would seize the opportunity and follow his master’s scent all the way to the Arthur Mellows school, running up the High Street, sitting and waiting at the pelican crossing until the cars had stopped, before crossing as
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