Shiro - A Sam's best friend.

As far as I know, I am the only ALT (assistant language teacher) in Fukui, and possibly all of Japan lucky enough to have a school dog. Shiro (which means white) was found wandering around the school a couple of years ago. At first the teachers were going to get her put down, but the students pleaded, and Shiro was saved. She now lives in a small wooden kennel in the school grounds and is constantly being lavished with attention by many of the students.

When I feel like a breath of fresh air, I switch shoes and head for the kennel. Shiro has only three good legs. Her left hind leg was badly damaged when she was run over by a car. However, this doesn't stop her from going ABSOLUTELY MENTAL when you pick up her lead, and taking her for a walk is like being towed by a speed boat. I suspect that her leg may infact have been amputated by one of the teachers who found themselves being dragged along the ground by Shiro on a regular basis.

Before coming to Japan I was told I would have to be flexible in the work place, but I never thought that walking the dog would be one of my duties as an English teacher. Now however, it is an established part of my daily routine, and I always look forward to spending a little time out and about with Shiro even though her English is a little hard to understand (although it's better than some of my students).