- Its hard to know where to start writing about this fabulous dog – I had thrown an idea out to Jukka Kuusisto – Lecibsin that maybe he could loan me a stud dog – as it would be easier to mate a few bitches taking the dog to UK than taking the bitches – with all the stress entailed to Finland for mating, and he was happy to help with the project! I visited and looked at a number of boys – and the wolf sable Hapmi was the one who stole my heart, he was a very typical lapphund with a lovely of nature. So plans were made for him to join us in UK for a holiday of approximately 6 months, I would show train him and campaign him in Europe for his Int title.As Hapmi was a kennel dog in Finland we built a sturdy kennel and run to keep him outside – I had no expectations of him settling as a house dog let alone being house trained. That’s where I was wrong – from the moment he arrived I realised he was a dog in a million, easy going, soft and gentle with everything and everyone he met – no dog on dog aggression, and the perfect house guest – so the kennel and run was never used.
When he arrived – Pigga was in season – so his 18-30s style holiday started quickly – after 6 months there was talk about him returning home- but because for an Int Ch title the awards have to be 1 year and 1 day apart, I “persuaded” Jukka to extend Hapmi’s stay, and in fact had Jukka named any price I think I and Hapmi’s very large fan club would have actually raised what ever it took to keep him here forever. But sadly for me – Hapmi was needed in Finland – his genes were in demand, and so after a two year stay in UK he headed home.
As he got older he moved into a pet home in Finland where he was spoilt – so much so he gained rather a lot of weight and developed Diabetes. Sadly he died at 11 years and 9 months.
Matkamies is Hapmi’s Grandson and I see a lot of Hapmi in Matka especially in respect of his temperament.
