The slogan “a dog is for life, not just for Christmas” has been going strong for 27 years now. Dogs and cats have been popular Christmas gifts in the gifts in the UK and Europe for many years. But some people still haven’t quite got the message.
The slogan still holds good. Some 105,000 dogs were rounded up by local government last year because they had been abandoned, many of them shortly after the festival season.
The main reason given by owners for handing their dogs over to the Dogs Trust is that the dogs need more attention than they can give; behavioral problems and moving home are also reasons given.
But Eleanor Silk, the Trust’s communications director, says, “It’s often four or five months after Christmas, in early summer, when owners find that the dog has got too big and too active, or it hasn’t been trained properly and has caused damage around the home.”
In any case, some organizations that help pets are quick to point out that if you are serious about getting a puppy(小狗) as a pet, Christmas is not the time to do it. Puppies need to get used to their new surroundings, to be introduced to a routine, and to be looked after like small children. It’s hard to meet any of these needs at Christmas. What’s more, pulling a puppy out of a Christmas stocking in itself sends the wrong message to children. It encourages children to think of the puppy as a toy, rather than a responsibility.
Appreciating what you’re taking on with a dog can be a sobering (清醒的) realization. “For life” means thinking about the effect they’ll have on your life. It also infers you will need to care for the dog for its whole life.
小题1:What would be the best title for the passage?
A．Dogs and Cats—the Most Popular Christmas Gifts.
B．A pet is for Life, Not just for Christmas.
C．How to Take Care of Your Pets over Christmas.
D．Let’s Help Those Abandoned Pets小题2:According to the passage, which of the following is NOT a reason for pets to be abandoned?
A．Pets spread some diseases.
B．Pets damage some things in the house.
C．The owners can’t take good care of the pets.
D．The owners have to move to other places.小题3:The underlined words “rounded up” in Paragraph 2 mean “________”.
A．given out as gifts
B．thrown away
C．gathered into one place
D．raised to make money小题4:The fifth paragraph mainly tells us________.
A．how to take best care of Christmas pets
B．the right time to have a puppy as a pet
C．the reasons why Christmas is not the time to get a pet
D．the worries about Christmas pets from organizations that help pets小题5:Why is the author against the idea of putting a dog in the Christmas stocking as a Christmas gift?
A．Because these dogs can still cause damage.
B．Because children will not take dogs seriously.
C．Because children don’t like to have dogs as Christmas gifts.
D．Because a Christmas stocking is not big enough to put a dog in.
