The runt of the litter grew to be great, strong, fearless, well-mannered, as well as a good-tempered dog that was loved by all who met him along with his and Percy’s adventures. He lived his life with great loyalty to Percy.

Some of their adventures included the hunting and tracking of animals, dangerous encounters that included leopards, lions, warthogs and porcupines. Percy recorded all of their tales and told the story in so much detail. No wonder the book, Jock of the Bushveld is still well-loved, even today after it has first been published in 1907. More than one hundred editions have been printed and it has been translated into Afrikaans, Dutch, French, Xhosa, and Zulu, amongst others. Illustrations for the book were done by Edmund Caldwell, a brother of Mary Tourtel, creator of Rupert Bear.

Finally, after living a long life next to his master, Jock lost his hearing when he was kicked in the head by a kudu antelope, but yet he continued living his life, even with his disability.

Jock and Fitzpatrick later moved to the little town of Barberton. Jock used to run free and Percy soon realized that life in the town made Jock very miserable. With much consideration and thoughts of Jock’s best interests, Fitzpatrick gave Jock to his friend Tom Barnett, who ran a supply store in what became Mozambique. One night when Tom Barnett called him, he mistakenly shot Jock, because he was thought to be the dog killing chickens on the farm (when Jock had meanwhile already killed the other intruding dog). See Gelert and “Faithful Hound” folk-tale motif, which lives on as an urban legend. It is classified as Aarne–Thompson type 178A.

The exact location of Jock´s grave is unfortunately not officially marked or known. However, in 1947 Fitzpatrick´s daughter Cecily Niven backtracked her father’s travels according to the description in “Jock of the Bushveld” and wrote about her findings in her book “Jock & Fitz”, published in 1968.

Mrs. Niven claimed to have located the area of the grave and stated the coordinates as 25°46’5.0″S 32°20’4.0″E

Any remnants of Tom Barnett´s store and the wild Fig tree, under which Jock was buried and “Jock” had been carved upon, was long gone.

Fragments of building materials and broken china were uncovered at the site.

The Jock of the Bushveld movie

The book was made into a movie in 1988, starring Jonathan Rands, Gordon Mulholland and Jocelyn Broderick with Mfubu as Jock. The movie did not prove popular with American audiences, however, primarily due to its sad ending.
Another fictional movie with an ending that was more palatable to this audience was therefore released in 1994.

At the end of 2007, Duncan MacNeillie together with a small team of animators moved from Nelspruit to Johannesburg to start production on Jock of the Bushveld. It took a team of 25 animators and 3 years to complete the film. Midway through 2009, the decision was made to complete the film in Stereoscopic. Scheduling the release of a 3D animated movie called Jock the Hero Dog on 24 July 2012, Canadian singer Bryan Adams voiced the title character.

Jock of the Bushveld Statue: Barberton

Located in front of the Town Hall in Barberton, the Jock of the Bushveld statue, by Ivan Mitford-Barberton, was moved to its present position during Barberton’s Centenary in 1984.

Jock of the Bushveld Plaque in Kruger National Park

First Jock of the Bushveld Plaque

You can find a Jock of the Bushveld Plaque on the Voortrekker Road, at the Junction of the H2-2 Voortrekker Road and S14 Fayi Loop. This was Jock’s birthplace, commemorating his life with a bronze statue plaque. Jock was born in 1885.

Second Jock of the Bushveld Plaque

You can find the second Jock of the Bushveld Plaque on the Voortrekker Road, near Afsaal picnic spot, as soon as you get back on the dirt road of H2-2 heading east, towards the S114 (this stretch of H2-2 is also called Little Jock). This was the party’s route along the way to Delagoa Bay.

Third Jock of the Bushveld Plaque

You can find the third Jock of the Bushveld Plaque on the Voortrekker Road (little Jock stretch) where the Junction of the S114 and H2-2 meet, just north of James Pan and just after the Glen Leary memorial site, south of Afsaal towards the S114. The second plaque on this road marks the original placed, near Fihlamanzi, by the then Transvaal Provincial Administration in 1951 to preserve the route of the Old Road.

Fourth Jock of the Bushveld Plaque

You can find the fourth Jock of the Bushveld Plaque on your way to Jock Safari Lodge (unfortunately this is a private concession and you are not allowed to enter the S116 without permission as it is a non-designated road). The plaque is just off of the H3, towards the west on the S116, heading towards Jock Safari Lodge. There is also another plaque at a parking spot overlooking the Crocodile drift on the Malelane-Crocodile Bridge road where Jock, Fitzpatrick and Jim Makokel had their famous fight with the old crocodile.

Read more here about other Famous Historical Figures that played a part in the history of Kruger National Park

History of Joao Albisini

About Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger – PAUL KRUGER

History of James Stevenson-Hamilton

History of Sir Percy Fitzpatrick

About Harry Wolhuter

The 3 founders of Kruger National Park

About J.H. Orpen and Eileen Orpen

YES! We offer affordable Kruger National Park safaris

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Please note:

Our area of operation covers Nelspruit and surrounding areas, White River | Malelane | Hazyview | Komatipoort | Marloth Park | Kruger National Park | KMI Airport | Skukuza Airport.

Please contact us if your accommodation falls outside of our area of operation.

We also conduct safari tours in the North of Kruger upon request and need. You also have the option to hire the safari vehicle privately, email us to find out more. Additionally, you have the option to add your Kruger entrance/conservation fees when you make your booking so you don’t have to go to the office on the morning of the safari to make payment for entrance fees.