Spaniels are rather small dogs, with curly hair and long ears. The mastiff is a big dog with a smooth coat. He is the best kind of dog for watching the house and frightening away robbers.

“西班牙猎犬”也叫“狗”，个头很小，卷毛，长长的耳朵。“獒犬”，是毛皮光滑的大狗，最适合看家，可以把盗贼吓跑。

Collie dogs are a great help to shepherds in looking after their flocks of sheep. These sheep-dogs, as they are often called, seem to understand every word their masters say to them.

“柯利犬”是牧羊人的好帮手，可以帮他们看守羊群。这些狗一般叫做“牧羊犬”，似乎主人说什么都听得懂。

The dog is the most knowing and clever of all four-footed animals. When he is pleased and happy, his eyes are bright, and look straight up at yours, and his tail is lifted high in the air.

四足动物当中，狗是最善解人意、最聪明的动物。狗在舒服、高兴的时候，眼睛是明亮的，会直直地看着你的眼睛, 尾巴高高地举在空中。

But when you scold the dog, or when he knows that he has done wrong, his tail drops between his legs, and he hardly dares to look at you. A dog loves kind words and smiles just as you do, and he feels shame when he has done wrong. He feels pain very keenly, too, and a kick or a blow hurts him as much as it would hurt you.

但是当你责骂它，或者它知道自己做错事的时候，狗的尾巴就夹在两腿中间，几乎不敢正眼看你。狗和你一样，也喜欢温和的话语和微笑，做错了事也会觉得羞愧。狗对疼痛的感觉也很敏锐，挨了踢，挨了打，感到的疼痛，都跟你一样厉害。

If we do not take care of our dogs by giving them proper food and drink, and a clean, warm kennel or house to live in, they will soon begin to look ill. Dogs which are starved and badly treated often go mad, and bite people; and the people who are bitten by a mad dog soon become mad, and die.

我们要是不好好照顾自己的狗，不给它适当的食物、饮水、干净温暖的狗窝居住，狗很快就会看上去病怏怏的。挨饿、受虐待的狗经常发疯咬人，被疯狗咬的人也会很快发疯死去。

Boys and girls who are cruel to dogs are almost certain to grow up to be bad men and women. We should be kind, not only to our own pets, but to any stray dogs that we may find. In each large town there ought to be a "dogs'home"—a place to which stray dogs can be sent to be taken care of.

对狗残忍的男孩女孩，长大了也几乎肯定会变成坏男人坏女人。我们不仅要好好照顾自己的宠物，也要好好对待可能找到的流浪狗。每个大城镇都应该有一个“流浪狗中心”——也就是人们可以把流浪狗送去照料的地方。

 

英语美文