Alan Discovers Horticulture

Hi everyone well I was out for my walk this morning (with my humans) and look what I realised I had in my garden - this amazing plant. We've had these argaves for years and years but never has one grown a part like this before!! Mrs Cox says it looks like a triffid but I have no idea what she means so if you want to know you might want to look it up.  anyway, I think it might be going to be a flower! I hope so - I like flowers. I wonder what it will look like and what it will look like. You might like to draw a picture of what you think it will look like and send it to me or your teacher if that is easier. I will keep you informed as it progresses!

- Alan 🐾

Alan Plays Scrabble

Hi everyone - yesterday you'll remember I got out some of my board games to play. I was having a hard time deciding which one to play first but in the end it had to be scrabble! I'm pretty good at it as you can see and of course I won! I had to use one of the blank tiles - can you work out which letter it is acting as? As you can see there are lots of my favourite words on the board - you might like to create a word find at home about your favourite things - it's okay to get someone to help you with the spelling - I have to do that sometimes. I do find it's quite hard to put the tiles on the board when you have paws but if I nudge them with my nose it helps. Do you have any board games to play with your family?

- Alan 🐾

Alan Chooses a Game

Hi everyone, my online learning is over for the day so it's time to play! I got some board games out and I'm just choosing which to play. Guess Who is a lot of fun although it would be even better if there was a version with dog faces on it. That would be awesome. Then again, I really enjoy scrabble because I'm very good at spelling so I usually win. Very difficult decision. Also I love playing monopoly and doing charades......what to do what to do....I'll keep you posted on this important conundrum!

- Alan 🐾

Alan and Online Learning

Hi everyone I'm having a great day today. I thought after the holidays I'd do some online learning because that's what everyone else at Glen Taylor seems to be doing ! Jacqueline is back at online university now so I sat in on a session this morning and it was extremely interesting - all about setting up your own business. I started thinking about what sort of business I could set up.....selling dog treats? No, because I would just want to eat them all myself. I guess I'll have to give it a lot more thought before I decide! If you've got any good ideas let me know!

- Alan 🐾

Alan is Naughty

Hi friends I've had a great day and yes, Mrs Cox did find time to take me on a walk so that was really great. Didn't get around to playing any board games so O'll have a go at them tomorrow. Today I just played with sticks mostly. I love sticks as you might remember. Mrs Cox has been gardening so there are lots of new ones about and I can run around with them in my mouth or just sit and have a goog chew. Yum yum! The rule is apparently that I am only allowed to have sticks outside but I'm working on changing that rule because I think it's silly. I took one in this morning - Jacqueline told me to take it outside and I did but I did hear Mr Cox say I was cute so that's a win for me....

- Alan 🐾

Alan and Level Three

Hi everyone well today is 'level three' according to Mrs Cox which she seems very pleased about but I'm not sure what it means....she did say it wouldn't change much for me but she might be a lot busier. I'm not sure what could be more important than playing with me! I might try some more board games today (after I've had a chew on this leaf frond) and hopefully Mrs Cox won't be so busy she forgets to take me on my walk!

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Lazy Day

Hi friends, today it's lovely and sunny so as everyone else in the house is doing chores I thought I would keep out of their way by having a sleep....the challenge is where is the best place to lie? If I lie outside it gets too warm after a while and if I lie inside I don't feel warm enough. The trials of being a dog! Anyway I think I've got it sussed. I lie for a while in the sun and then go inside and repeat as necessary! Sorted. And I'm (mostly) keeping out of everyone's way. I'm such a good boy.

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Out and About

Hi everyone I went for a lovely walk yesterday and look what I found! A stick. I love sticks - fun to find, fun to carry and best of all, fun to chew. Mr Cox and Jacqueline seemed a bit perturbed when I sat down in the middle of the walk to have a chew - I don't know why, there's no hurry to get home is there? Unless it's nearly dinner time of course. Then I'll run home as fast as I can! I got up after they nagged at me and trotted home - Jacqueline kindly carried my stick as it was quite a walk...and guess what? When we got home it WAS dinner time. Fantastic -  it turns out I have a great sense of timing!

- Alan 🐾

Alan is Back!

Hi everyone, I'm back from my holiday and it's just in time for ANZAC Day which of course is a very special day here in New Zealand. I've been looking at all the pictures on the internet showing how people are marking the day and I'm so impressed. People getting up early to see in the dawn (because for the first time ever the dawn services are not happening), gorgeous art work, posters in windows - so great to see.
I'd love to hear how you marked the day. It's great to be back.

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Holiday

Hi everyone, just like everyone at Glen Taylor School I get holidays in between terms. I'm having a few days off now .... as you can see I've packed and am already to go! (note from Mrs Cox - Alan's holiday will be spent at our house but involve some treats he wouldn't normally get) Do you like my outfit? I think I look rather handsome. When I get back I'll tell you what I've been up to. If you are missing me while I'm away remember you can listen to my bedtime stories or reread my posts.
My next day back will be April 25th which of course is Anzac day. See you then!

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Friend Obi

Hi everyone I thought you might like to meet another one of my friends today. This is Obi who is a golden labrador and I think he is six or maybe seven - not quite sure and I don't know if he's quite sure either. I met him when his humans the Clerk Family were puppy raisers for Guide Dogs and they were raising one of my children. They did a really good job because he's now a fully-fledged working guide dog! Obi isn't a guide dog but he is a very good friend and we've been on so many outings together and had play dates lots of times. I love Obi. 

- Alan 🐾

My Bedtime Story

Benji is back with Jo tonight for another story. I hope you enjoy my friends' stories. Maybe some more of them will join us in the future...!

- Alan 🐾

Alan Catches Up With Hank

Hi everyone, thought I'd catch up with my friend Hank today (just online of course) and see what he's been up to since we last spoke. He's been helping his humans with their work and by the looks of it doing an excellent job. I bet his humans are pleased!

- Alan 🐾

Alan Plays Dominos

Hi everybody - everyone's working again but I managed to hang around looking forlorn until Mrs Cox gave in and stopped working and played with me. Ha! I've got special dominoes that are Hairy McLairy ones! They have mainly dogs on them of course (except for Scarface Claw) so I adore them. I would really like a set with my photo on them..... anyway I won the game of course! It's interesting how I usually win games I play with the family!

- Alan 🐾

My Bedtime Story

Today I asked my friend Benji if he wanted to share one of his stories. His mum is called Jo and she's going to be reading to us. Hope you enjoy!

- Alan 🐾

Alan Plays Snakes and Ladders

Hello everybody, look! I got to play Snakes and Ladders with Jacqueline - very lucky as she has lots of university work to do. She's quite good at Snakes and Ladders but I seem to be winning so far......Mrs Cox wouldn't video the whole game so tune in tomorrow to see the results. Do you like the way I had the blue counter to match my collar? I thought that was very cool of me....

- Alan 🐾

Alan Waits Patiently

Hi everyone, hope you are all having a lovely morning. I'm hanging around waiting for everyone to finish whatever they are doing that is more important than playing Snakes and Ladders with me! I'm really wanting to play - it's one of my favourite games and usually I win. Do you ever play Snakes and Ladders in your family?

- Alan  🐾

My Bedtime Story

Today Spot is going to show us how he bakes a cake. If you bake a cake you might not want to have a mouse around like Spot did, as they may eat everything!

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Jigsaw

Hi everyone. Guess what? You remember I was doing a jigsaw puzzle (well I was helping a lot)...well it's finished! It took ages partly because the humans kept going and doing other things and partly because it was incredibly difficult. Imagine doing a jigsaw when you don't know what the finished picture will look like! I (okay - we) did it though. Hurray for us!

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Friend Benji

Hi everyone, I bet you thought Benji was a dog! Surprise - I have friends who are cats! People often think dogs and cats don't get on but that's not always the case. I was born at the Guide Dog Breeding Centre in Manurewa and they have a couple of cats living there on purpose so that puppies get used to having cats about. This means that we aren't scared of them and we don't bother barking at them or trying to chase them either. This helps working dogs ignore cats when they are out with their humans which is exactly what they should do! 
So Benji is my friend - haven't seen him for a while but I usually see him when I visit his house. He can be a bit lazy - he never seems to want to play chasing games or tug of war with my toys but never mind. I love him anyway.

- Alan 🐾

My Bedtime Story

Pebbles is back and on a brand new adventure! She's very lucky to have a pet called Dino, who can look after her. Did you know that one of my favourite toys is called Dino? I look after him, except when I leave him outside in the rain. Oops!

- Alan 🐾

Alan Thinks About the Weather

Hi everyone well I went for my walk today and of course it was great as walks always are. I did get quite wet as it was raining. Luckily the rain didn't stop us - my thick fluffy coat stops the worst of it getting anywhere near me. I can't understand why humans don't just have fur coats like me - it would save them having to put on raincoats every time they go out in the rain. I quite liked it being a bit cooler today. When it's warm my black coat gets really hot and I have to keep moving from lying on the deck to lying on the floor inside just to keep cool.....it uses up a lot of energy!

- Alan 🐾

 

Alan Hangs Around

         

Hi everyone bit of a rainy morning so I'm just going to hang around the house and amuse myself as Mr Cox is working and Jacqueline has university stuff to do. Mrs Cox is probably going to take me for a walk at some point but in the meantime I'm going to play with my toys and to mix it up a bit by hanging round and gazing at people until they give in and pat me. Works every time!

- Alan 🐾

My Bedtime Story

This is a very well known book, it even got made into a film. The main character is very creative and has a huge imagination. In my imagination I see lots and lots of steak...yummy!

- Alan 🐾

Alan is a Messenger!

Hi friends - as well as giving Jacqueline a present yesterday, the Easter Bunny had a meeting with me too! He gave me a box of scorched almonds to give the whole Cox family for Easter. I was so proud to be a trusted messenger for the bunny and I think I did a good job. I didn't even think about chewing on the box - that's very hard when you're a labrador. Everyone was thrilled to get their chocolate!

- Alan 🐾
  

Alan Enjoys Easter

Hi friends I quite like playing dress-ups and yesterday (Easter Sunday) the Easter Bunny made it to my house and left Jacqueline some presents including a headband to wear when washing her face (to keep her hair out of the way). I thought I'd try it on - I think I look pretty fetching - what do you think?

Remember, don't worry if the Easter Bunny didn't make it to your house - he has so much to do as well as looking after his own bunny family.

- Alan 🐾

My Bedtime Story

Clifford is back, but this time he's going to show us some of the tricks he can do. I can do some cool tricks like sitting, and playing hide-and-seek, but I think he might be able to do a few things I can't...

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Adventure

Hi everyone - I've been out walking again this afternoon and it was so interesting. Look at how someone had displayed their soft toys in their letterbox! I thought that was so funny. Later on in the walk I spotted a pigeon eating something on the edge of someone's lawn. I had a quick peak before Mr Cox and Jacqueline noticed and it was a hot cross bun! There were lots of them - I can't think why someone would throw them out as the one I grabbed was so tasty! All my humans said I shouldn't have eaten it because they are not good for dogs but I couldn't let a chance like that go by and anyway it really was delicious! My humans were a bit worried I'd be sick but I wasn't so it all worked out perfectly in the end.

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Other Job

Hi everyone - did you know that I have another job as well as being a teacher at Glen Taylor School? Well I do! When I stopped being a Guide Dog I had the opportunity to become an SPCA Outreach Therapy Dog. These dogs get to visit places such as hospitals and rest homes (and some other places) -places where people can't have their own dogs with them. I visit St Andrews Village in Glendowie. The residents are elderly and love me to visit them as they often miss having pets of their own. They give me lots of pats and tell me I'm lovely so I like visiting them! 
Here's a photo of me wearing my special SPCA bandanna.

- Alan 🐾

My Bedtime Story

A late night story for those who can't get to sleep!

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Saturday Walk

Hi everyone - I've been on another walk today. It's a lovely sunny day and I enjoyed being out so much. We kept looking for Easter eggs in people's windows and saw quite a few. I'm getting extremely good at spotting them! I wonder how many eggs you can count if you go on a walk?

-Alan 🐾

Paws or Hands?

My hands and feet are very different from yours. They are padded so I can walk long distances on rough ground. They aren't that good at things like sewing or drawing, but I can still use them to hold my toys! Look how clever I am, holding my bone so I can chew it whilst my family watches TV.

- Alan 🐾

My Bedtime Story

The Flintstones are a family that lived in the Stone Age, which was a very long time ago. This book is about the Flintstones' baby, who is called Pebbles. Pebbles loves to run away, just like Mrs Cox's daughter, Jacqueline, did when she was little. Babies can move very quickly for something so small.

- Alan 🐾 

Alan's Friend Hank

Hi everyone - thought I'd see what my friends were doing to celebrate Easter. I thought Hank would be out and about but he tells me he is so exhausted by trying to look after his humans he decided to spend today catching up on sleep!

Not me - I'm off for a walk soon - I'll let you know how it went tomorrow.

- Alan 🐾

Alan's Easter Egg Display

Hi everyone, I've finished colouring in my Easter egg and Jacqueline has done hers so we have put them in the window where people walking past can see them. Can you tell which one is mine? 
Don't forget to display an Easter egg drawing in your window if you can. Happy Easter!

-Alan 🐾

My Bedtime Story

Today Mrs Cox read me a book about Clifford's family. His brothers and sisters have very interesting jobs. One of them is even a guide dog, like a lot of my friends and my son. Which one of Clifford's siblings is a guide dog? See if you can hear Mrs Cox say their name.

- Alan 🐾 

Alan's Friends Loma and Hettie

Hi everyone - I thought you might like to meet my friends Loma and Hettie. Loma is a retired guide dog and Hettie trained as a guide dog but decided she would prefer to do something else! Here they are at their house going for a swim before dinner. Doesn't that look like fun? I love to visit them and you can imagine how much fun we have with three of us running around. Thir human is very good at giving us treats too so it's even better!

- Alan 🐾

Alan's looking forward to Easter

Hi everyone, it's nearly Easter! Jacqueline and I having been colouring in easter eggs to put in our windows for easter. You can do it too if you like. Here is the link to print out a template to colour in. If you can't print out at your house, don't worry - you can draw your own easter egg. Be sure and ask a grown up before you print anything out.

 https://www.beehive.govt.nz/sites/default/files/2020-04/nzegghunt-A4b.pdf.

Do you like the eggs we have started to colour in? I would love to see your egg if you do one!

- Alan  🐾

My Bedtime Story

Look everyone, another book about a dog! Clifford the big red dog is known and loved by many children, and dogs too I am sure. Have you read any Clifford books before? There are so many. This book is about him and his owner Emily. They are best friends, just like me and my humans.

- Alan 🐾 

Alan sees more teddy bears

Hi everyone, just back from another walk around the neighbourhood - saw quite a few more teddy bears so I thought you might like to see them. Can you spot Paddington the bear from Peru? I wonder if you can remember what his favourite food is? My favourite food is....well most food really but especially cheese and the treats Mr Herlihy gives me!

- Alan 🐾

Alan and Hank Misbehave

Hi my friends. It seems quite a while since I saw my friend Hank but you might remember a couple of days when I didn't come to school last term. On one of those days I was hanging out with Hank. Hank's mummy was at home so we got to play inside and outside. We decided to play with sticks - one of our favourite things to do - and we got a bit excited and took our sticks inside! That's not allowed but we forgot....

- Alan 🐾

My Bedtime Story

Mrs Cox read me a book tonight that Jacqueline read all time time when she was little. Mrs Cox must know this story off by heart now. It is a very good little book though, so I see why Jacqueline liked it so much.

- Alan 🐾

One of Alan's Children

Hi everyone, Mrs Cox often gets asked about my puppies. Did you know that some of them have been on television when they were very little puppies. The "H" litter Hunter, Harris, Hamish and Hana appeared on 'The Project' to publicise the Red Puppy Appeal. I was so proud of them and I'm sure that meant people were even more generous than usual. I don't have photos of that but here some photos of Harris who was the "Pupstar' when he was little. This is a very important posistion as the Pupstar is used to be the public face of all guide dog puppies for a year. Well done Harris!

- Alan 🐾

Alan resists Cheese

Have I mentioned before that I love cheese? It smells amazing. I can always tell if my humans are getting it out of the fridge. I run into the kitchen every time they do so I can eat any crumbs they drop. I had to use all my will power today to not eat Jacqueline's cheese, that was on the table, but I made sure to sit very nicely in case she wanted to reward me with some. 

- Alan 🐾