A special dog helps a community heal

2023-10-09周晨曲

疯狂英语·新悦读 2023年8期

主题语境：治疗犬篇幅：347词建议用时：7分钟

1“We knew she was special the moment we got her,” Diana Haneski said about River,her family's therapy dog.

2A therapy dog is a service animal specifically focused on providing comfort and affection for others.These dogs are trained to serve in hospitals,schools,airports,and even at crisis sites.

3Therapy dogs are required to pass a series of tests before joining a service organization.Skills include accepting strangers,sitting politely,being summoned (召唤) to appear when called,and reacting appropriately to other dogs.A therapy dog usually has a wagging tail,warm eyes,and a loving heart.

4Therapy dogs can be beneficial to humans.Several studies around the world have shown that interacting with dogs lowers cortisol (皮质醇),a type of stress hormone.These interactions also release hormones that cause happiness.

5The Haneski family is well-known in the town of Parkland,Florida.Ray is the technology specialist at Westglades Middle School.Westglades is next to Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School(MSD),where Diana is the media center specialist.

6The most famous Haneski,however,is River,MSD's official therapy dog.The Haneskis adopted River in August 2018.Earlier that year,an accident killed 17 people,including students,and injured 17 others.The Haneski family has played a key role inalleviatingthe sadness,trauma,and anxiety felt within the community.Students and teachers at MSD are allowed to visit River at any time throughout the day.“River brings comfort,joy,and love to each interaction,” the Haneskis said.“She was a gift to the community.”

7What is a typical day like for River? She's up about a quarter to six,has her breakfast,and takes a walk.Then she hops in the car and heads off to school.She sees a lot of people.She has her kennel(狗窝)at school,where she'll take some quiet time if she needs it.She does take a rest.School starts very early,so there's a lot of activity.At around eight o'clock or so,she's looking for her downtime and takes a nap.

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Gist 1.What's paragraph 2 mainly about?

A.Diana's views about a therapy dog.

B.An introduction to a therapy dog.

C.A therapy dog's training tests.

D.A therapy dog's special characteristics.

Detail 2.What can be learned about therapy dogs from paragraph 4?

A.They do good to humans.

B.They have excellent appearance.

C.They have low stress hormones.

D.They show a great talent for technology.