A feel-good story about a bulldog named Molly.
一則令人感到舒服的故事，內容在講述一隻名叫莫莉的牛頭犬。
For various reasons, children sometimes lose their parents. Fortunately, it is common to hear stories of such children successfully finding new homes and loving families to care for them. While this may seem like a statement about the goodness of humans, we are not the only species in the world to take inneedy children.
A recent story about Molly the bulldog taking in a litter oforphaned kittens tugged at the hearts of many. Owned by 84-year-old Elbert Bristow, Molly is a white English bulldog who had given birth to her own litter of puppies right around the time the kittens were born. When the mother of the kittens, which was also one of Bristow's pets, accidentallypassed away, Bristow didn't know what to do. Molly, however, had no troubletaking action and instinctivelyresponded to the 6-week-old kittens by nursing them. The kittens took to their new mother quickly and even began following her around and cuddling with her. Likewise, Molly took as much gentle care of the kittens as she had with her puppies.
Like human adoptions, animal adoptions are common. Zoologists have gotten help from pet dogs with breeding programs of endangered species like tigers and pandas. Having an adoptive mother allows the biological mother to be able to become pregnant again more quickly and gives the zoologists the chance to keep close track of the babies' health without fearing an angry mother. Piglets, panthers, chimps, and monkeys have been successfully raised by dogs as well. Dogs make good adoptive moms because their milk can be digested by many animals. Thanks to these loving mothers, babies that are in need are getting all the love they deserve.
1. What is the main topic of this article?
(A) The effects of adoption on children in the US.
(B) Animals that adopt babies of other species.
(C) Elbert Bristow's many types of pets.
(D) Why having a family pet is good for children. 2. What happened to the kittens' mother?
(A) She was given away to another family.
(B) She became sick suddenly and inexplicably.
(C) She got lost and never came back.
(D) She was killed because of an accident. 3. According to the article, which is NOT an animal that has been adopted by dogs?
(A) Rabbits.
(B) Pigs.
(C) Chimpanzees.
(D) Pandas. 4. Why would zoologists choose to use an adoptive mother?
(A) Zoo animals are always aggressive with their babies.
(B) There's not enough room for a mother and her babies in the cage.
(C) The real mother will be able to have babies again sooner.
(D) It costs zoos less money.
loving a. 慈愛的
statement n. 聲明
species n. 物種（單複數同形）
needy a. 貧窮的
= poor
bulldog n. 牛頭犬
a litter of... 一窩（小動物）
accidentally adv. 意外地
instinctively adv. 本能地
nurse vt. 照料；給……餵奶
cuddle vi. 依偎
likewise adv. 同樣地
zoologist n. 動物學家
an endangered species 瀕臨絕種的動物
an adoptive mother 養母
a biological mother 親生母親
pregnant a. 懷孕的
piglet n. 小豬
panther n. 豹；黑豹
chimp n. 黑猩猩
= chimpanzee
deserve vt. 值得
inexplicably adv. 無法說明地； 難以理解地
aggressive a. 有侵略性的；好鬥的
It is common to V ……是常見的
care for sb 照顧某人
= take care of sb
give birth to... 產下……
pass away 過世（die 的委婉語）
have no trouble V-ing 做……沒有困難
比較 as much as... / as many as... 的用法
這兩個片語皆可與數字並用，用法如下： a.as much as... （量）多達……
（用於表不可數名詞的涵義中）
John earns as much as NT$1,000 per
hour.
約翰 1 小時賺的錢多達 1 千塊新台幣。 注意
one thousand dollars 為複數名詞，但其所代表的是不可數抽象名詞 money，當修飾 money
時要說 much money，而非 many money，故用 "as much as + 表金錢單位的名詞"。 b.as many as + 數字 + 複數名詞
數目多達……
（用於表可數名詞的涵義中）
As many as 50 people were at the protest.
多達 50 人在抗議現場。
various a. 各式各樣的
Nowadays, contact lenses come in various materials and colors.
時下的隱形眼鏡有各式各樣的材質及顏色。
take in... 收留……
The family took in three exchange students last year.
那個家庭去年收留了 3 名交換學生。
orphan vt. 使成孤兒 & n. 孤兒
orphanage n. 孤兒院
Five-year-old Bruce was orphaned when both his parents died in an accident.
5 歲的布魯斯雙親在一場意外中喪生，使他成了孤兒。
tug at sb's heart 觸動某人的心弦
= tug at sb's heartstrings
The sight of the starving child crying tugged at my heartstrings.
看到那飢餓的小孩在哭讓我很心疼。
take action 採取行動
The government took immediate action to stop the disease from spreading.
政府採取立即的行動來阻止疾病擴散。
respond vi. 回答；作出反應（與介詞 to 並用）
Police responded to the 119 call within five minutes.
警方接到 119 的電話後，於 5 分鐘內便作出反應。
take to... 喜歡……
Allen took to his new teacher from the very first class.
艾倫從第一堂課就喜歡上新老師了。
adoption n. 收養，領養
adopt vt. 領養，認養
The couple couldn't have children of their own, so they resorted to adoption.
那對夫婦因為不能生育，所以求助於領養。
Sue is in the process of adopting two children from India.
蘇正在辦理領養兩名印度孩童的手續。
breeding n. 繁殖
breed vt. 飼養，繁殖
The breeding of fish as pets has its origins in China.
將魚飼養用來當寵物源自中國。
keep track of... 記錄……；追蹤……
The nurse kept track of the patient's temperature.
護士把病人的體溫記錄下來。
digest vt. & vi. 消化
Protein and fat are digested slowly and therefore stay in the stomach longer.
蛋白質和脂肪消化得慢，所以待在胃裡的時間比較久。
be in need 在窮困（困難）中
Jill helped me out when I was in need.
在我窮困時，吉兒幫了我一把。
give away sth 贈送某物
give sth away 洩露某事
give sb away 洩露某人身份
As a way to get people interested in our new product, we gave away free samples.
為了讓民眾對我們的新產品感興趣，我們贈送免費樣品。
It was supposed to be a surprise party, but the children gave the secret away.
那本來是一場驚喜派對的，但孩子們把計劃洩露了。
John said he wasn't scared at all, but his high-pitched voice gave him away.
約翰說他一點都不害怕，但他尖銳的聲音使他露餡了。
room n. 空間（不可數）
= space
I cleaned out the fridge to make room for the birthday cake.
我清理了冰箱，騰出空間來放生日蛋糕。
