When Dan Shaw gets up from the sofa in his home, Cuddles is never far away. When he wants to go outside, he doesn’t take Cuddles out for a walk—Cuddles takes him for a walk. Cuddles is clearly no ordinary family pet. It is a two-foot-high miniature horse and serves as the guiding eyes of Shaw, who is blind.
When Shaw lost his sight, his wife suggested he apply for a guide dog. Shaw, an animal lover, said he couldn’t bear to part with a dog (which usually lives about eight to ten years) and get used to a new one, perhaps several times in his life.
Then Shaw heard of a program about the tiny guide horses. He learned that the horse possess many qualities that that make them an excellent choice for guiding people. They are clean, friendly, smart and have great memories. They can be trained to remain calm in noisy and crowded places. Best of all, they live for 25-25years, which would enable Shaw to have the same guide companion for most or all of his life.
Shaw immediately applied to be and was accepted as the first person to receive a guide horse. The instant he met Cuddles, he knew he was making the right choice. Then he began his training.
Through training, Shaw and Cuddles learned to find way on busy streets, step over curbs（便道沿儿）and find elevator buttons. Cuddles even demonstrated（显示）its ability to step in front of Shaw and block him, to prevent him from walking into a dangerous situation. The little horse also expertly led Shaw through busy shopping malls. They got along without any difficulty. Now Shaw is confident that Cuddles will change his life for the better.
小题1:What’s the meaning of the underlined word “miniature” in Paragraph 1? (No more than 2 words)
小题2:Why didn’t Shaw want to choose a dog as his guide? (No more than 15 words)
小题3:What does Paragraph 3 mainly tell us? (No more than 10 words)
小题4:How does Shaw feel about his future life with the help of Cuddles? (No more than 10 words)
小题5:In your opinion, what is the ideal relationship between man and animals? (No more than 20 words)
