英国学生科学读本 第48期:关于狗的其他事情(1)

 　　Lesson 48 More About The Dog

　　第48课 关于狗的其他事情

　　The different kinds of dogs are so unlike each other, that it is hard to believe that they all come from the same family. What a difference there is in their coats! Dogs like the greyhound, which have been brought to Britain from warm countries, have thin skins covered with short, fine hair. In winter, the masters of these dogs often make a kind of greatcoat of cloth for them to wear, to protect them from the cold.

　　不同种类的狗，彼此实在太不一样了，难以置信都是同一个家族的成员。它们的毛皮多么不同啊！像“灰狗”，是从气候温暖的国家带到英国来的，皮肤比较薄，覆盖着纤细的短毛。冬天，这些狗的主人，经常给它们做一种“布大衣”穿，不让它们冻着。

　　Most dogs, however, have a thick enough coat of hair to keep them quite warm. Some of these long-haired dogs, like the Newfoundland, have rough, shaggy coats; others have hair almost as fine as silk.

　　但是大多数的狗，毛皮很厚，足够为自己保暖。这些长毛狗，其中有一些如“纽芬兰犬”，皮毛很粗糙，乱蓬蓬的；其余的种类，毛皮却像丝绸一般光滑。

　　How many different kinds or breeds of dogs have you seen? Do you know the dogs which are called hounds? They can run very fast. Perhaps you have seen the greyhound, which runs so fast that it can easily catch hares and rabbits.

　　小朋友，你见过多少种类的狗？你知道叫做“猎犬”的狗吗？猎犬能跑得飞快，很容易就能抓住兔子。

　　The fox-hound, which is used to chase foxes, is a smaller dog, with a smooth coat. The deer-hound is a very big dog, with shaggy hair. Big dogs called blood-hounds are sometimes used to track robbers. Many dogs can follow people by scent¹, but the scent of the blood-hound is specially² keen.

　　“猎狐犬”，是用来抓狐狸的，个头儿比较小，有着光滑的毛皮。“猎鹿犬”，身材非常高大，毛也很乱。还有一种大狗叫“寻血犬”，有时候用来追踪盗贼。很多种狗都可以凭着气味跟踪人类，但寻血犬的嗅觉格外敏锐。

　　The biggest of all our dogs is the St. Bernard. It has a curly coat of a yellow and white colour. Among the high mountains called the Alps, St. Bernard dogs are kept to find people who have been lost in the snow.

　　“圣伯纳犬”，是个头最大的狗，长着黄色和白色的卷毛。高高的阿尔卑斯山中的居民，就养着圣伯纳犬，来搜救暴风雪中迷路的人。

　　The Newfoundland dog is a big dog, generally black and white in colour, with a curly coat. These dogs swim very well, and have often saved the lives of children who have fallen into the water.

　　纽芬兰犬也是一种大狗，也长着卷毛，一般是黑色和白色的。纽芬兰犬很擅长游泳，救了很多落水儿童的性命。

1 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

2 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。