What they say:
“Developed by LeapFrog's in-house team of learning experts, AlphaPup helps children become familiar with words and letters while walking. The pull-along toy features interactive letter buttons, enabling children to hear specific sounds and words, helping them to learn the alphabet and phonics and developing their motor skills. Children can pull AlphaPup's lead to hear three fun learning songs which stop when they stop, encouraging them to walk and pull AlphaPup along.
“AlphaPup is available in pink or green and features floppy fabric ears and a cute wagging tail. ”
Tested by mum Melissa Allison for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
I would definitely recommend LeapFrog AlphaPup to fellow mums. My daughter’s face lit up the moment she saw it and has not stopped playing with it. It came with batteries included which meant my daughter didn't have to wait around she could begin playing with it straight away. It's easy to play with and has lots of buttons for her to press with different phrases with each button.
How did this product make your life easier?
LeapFrog AlphaPup has made my life easier as it has kept my daughter entertained for hours. She has already picked up parts of the alphabet song (after one day) and is singing along to it, which Is great to see her learning new things. The fact the pup has a lead also means she is moving around with her toy rather than just sitting in one spot.
Would you choose this product to win?
It is so interactive and educational as well as making my daughter mobile. It has also took a few drops to my tiled floor and the toy has been unaffected to its definitely durable which is needed in a children's toy. The pup has so many phrases so my daughter is constantly learning new words. I really do love it, it's lovely to hear her singing the songs even when she's not playing with it, so it's obviously catchy.
What changes would you make to this product?
If I could change one thing about the pup it would be to spell out the words my daughter makes with the letters. For example if she write's her name "EMILIA" it would then say the word. One other thing not entirely about the product but the packaging, it was so difficult to get out of the box, I couldn't get the scissors under the plastic tags as it was on so tight.
Tested by mum Tonia Wood for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
I would recommend LeapFrog AlphaPup as I think it has been good at keeping my child and also my older children entertained. This has been very handy with having a new baby as well as it means they aren't bored whilst I've been feeding their baby sister. It is also fairly small so easy for the children to carry around with them, during their play. My daughters also loved the girlie features of the dog (bow on her ear).
How did this product make your life easier?
This product has made my life as a mum easier because it has kept my children entertained for a good amount of time. It has also helped my toddler with learning her 123s and her ABCs in a fun way by walking the dog around the house, which she's loved doing and also I've noticed that even in such a short time testing this product her learning has come on well.
Would you choose this product to win?
I like the way that it does part of the learning sequence and then you have to pull it along more to hear the next part. I also like that it has a quieter setting too so that if my baby is asleep they can play with it still but on the quieter setting. My daughters have loved playing with this and have even fought over who gets to play with it next.
What changes would you make to this product?
I have only noticed two little flaws with this product. One is that the pull-along string could do with being a bit longer, my daughter is fairly tall for her age and we noticed that she struggles to pull it along easily as the front wheels lifted off the ground. Two, I think the letter keys could be potentially difficult to clean of the child using it gets it dirty as they are quite close together and I think it could get messy quickly.
Tested by mum Alice Prentice for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
The LeapFrog AlphaPup was fun and funky. My children loved it and it has already had many trips around the house. It is compact, has an easy to use lead (string) and is easy for my children to pull without it tipping or getting stuck. I love the slightly wonky wheel that gives the pup its extra bounce. The keys on it were very easy to use.
How did this product make your life easier?
The LeapFrog AlphaPup kept my children entertained for a while which meant I could get on with other jobs, a must with three children and a dog in the house! It was also a great interactive learning toy, with the songs and letters and learning through play is always something I am keen to promote. It is great for helping to teach the alphabet too.
Would you choose this product to win?
The AlphaPup had a very cute and quirky design, was easy to use both by me and my children, who grasped the concept quickly. I liked the various choices that you could make with the keys, but also loved how it wasn't just a learning toy but fun - my kids loved taking it for walkies. I liked the misshapen back wheels that gave the pup its bounce too. I liked the sound level too as it wasn't too loud and distracting.
What changes would you make to this product?
I don't really think I would change anything about this product as I really liked it and my kids loved it. If I could say something then it would be to perhaps have it in different body colours to give more choice, but it really was a great design. I also thought the sound was at a perfect level, as some noise toys are really loud, but this one wasn't, it was at a perfect pitch and didn't get irritating like some do.
Tested by mum Nicole Woodward for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
I had two testers for this product one at the top of the age range and one at the bottom and both absolutely loved it!! The younger one enjoyed the noises, pushing all the buttons and hearing the songs and taking it for walks and the older one really enjoyed the phonics side. A definite perfect product for multiple ages.
How did this product make your life easier?
As mentioned above, it suited a variety of ages. The elder one is keen on learning his alphabet and he enjoyed the letter keys and hearing the different words/ phrases associated with them, he's also repeated a few back to me so is definitely learning from it. It was a good toy to have whilst I was occupied as I could ask him to push random letters and then clearly hear if he'd got it right or not.
Would you choose this product to win?
We've experienced quite a few 'alphabet' toys over the years and this has definitely been one of my favourite! The phrases are catchy and the voice is clear for learning. We also liked the random phrases it came out with which helped to make the dog seem more real. Our younger tester liked pulling the dog along and seeing it waddle.
What changes would you make to this product?
I presume this is done for safety but I wasn't keen on the short lead. It made it difficult to pull along and the plastic part just seemed far too big. The elder child was unable to pull the dog along comfortably. I would have preferred a removable lead so children could play with just the dog or pull it along when under close adult supervision.
Tested by mum Sarah Bashford (nee Douglas) for the M&B Awards 2017:
Would you recommend this to other mums?
Yes! We really liked the LeapFrog AlphaPup as soon as we opened it - my boys had the Alphapup straight out of the box and started playing with him! The loved the songs (my three year old picks up songs quickly so was soon singing along). He is also just starting his letter recognition so enjoyed being able to identify the letter then press them and see what the pup said! This was a bit old for our baby but she enjoyed the songs and the wiggly tail of the pup! I like that when she can walk she will be able take pup along with her.
How did this product make your life easier?
This is a lovely product (despite not being a fan of plastic/sound toys), colourful, gender neutral (though I did notice they do a pup with a pink bone too). My boys (3 & 5) enjoyed playing with the product and it certainly kept them occupied but I think it is still a little old for baby - certainly something she will play with more as she gets a little older.
What changes would you make to this product?
The only downside to this product is how easily it can be damaged as a pull along - perhaps it should state for indoor use only as when my little boy took it into the garden for a walk - it fell on its side a couple of times on the paving slabs and has already become scratched which is a shame. Definitely not a outdoor toy!