The Raccoon and His Rescuers 浣熊与救助者

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The Raccoon 1and His Rescuers
浣熊与救助者
by Kelsey Bjork
景一编译
Nikki Robinson and her mother Linda are no
strangers to taking after wildlife.They ’ve taken care of a variety of animals.
The mother -daughter duo 2started helping
animals about five years ago when a friend of Nikki ’s had an raccoon they weren ’t able to keep.
Having always wanted to work in wildlife
rehabilitation 3center,Nikki was ready to take over.Because she worked full -time,that was too
difficult to do alone,but thankfully,Linda could help!
Two years later,Nikki discovered 14-week -old
raccoon on the side of the road.
“We rescued him from the traffic and tried to
find a wildlife rehabilitation center that would take him but everywhere was full and all they could offer was to ‘take it to a vet 4to be euthanized 5’
or ‘let nature take its course outside ’,”Nikki said.So,just like they had done before,they took care of the baby raccoon themselves.
Like many of the animals they rescue,the
baby raccoon named Little Hands was unsure of his new environment at first.He was thirsty,hungry,and understandably a little scared.But with some
care and love,they were able to release 6him into the wild after about two and a half months.妮基·罗宾逊和她的母亲琳达对收养野生动物并不陌生。

她们照顾过各种各样的动物。

母女二人组大约五年前开始帮助动物，当时妮基的一个朋友有一只浣熊，他们没办法继续养下去。

由于一直想在野生动物康复中心工作，妮基准备接手。

因为她有全职工作，所以独自一人来做这件事太难了，但谢天谢地，琳达能帮上忙！
两年后，妮基在路边发现了14周大的浣熊。

“我们把它从车流中救了出来，并试图找到一家野生动物康复中心接收它，但是到处都满了，他们所能提供的只是‘把它带到兽医那里安乐死’或‘让一切顺其自然’。

”妮基说。

所以，就像以前做过的一样，她们自己照顾小浣熊。

和她们救助的许多动物一样，这只名叫“小小手”的小浣熊起初也拿不准自己的新环境。

它又渴又饿，当然还有点害怕。

但是在她们的关心和爱护下，它在大约两个半月后就能被放归野外。

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时文阅读“Little Hands has always been a calmer,peaceful raccoon,”Nikki said.“But he has still been wild enough and thrives 7on his own.”
The releasing process doesn ’t take place all at
once.Initially 8
,most animals will come back at night for the food Nikki and Linda leave outside.When they do,it ’s strictly to get the food;they stay away from all humans and leave again right away.Eventually 9,they stop coming back...with one exception.
Three years later,Little Hands still loves to
visit for a late -night snack!Even better,he clearly doesn ’t just stop by for the free food —he also loves to get attention and pats!
“Sometimes,we wouldn ’t see him for a month,
and then on a clear night,he would show up and even let us approach 10
him,”Nikki said.“But the first thing he would do,sometimes even before touching his food,is that he would sit beside Linda,and want pats from her.”
Although they don ’t know for sure why he is
different from the others,they think it may be because he was young when they met him,making Linda ’s place truly feel like home.Whatever the reason is,they ’re just happy their little friend still visits!
“Pure joy,”Nikki said when asked how she
feels when he returns.“And every time he came
back it was a wonderful moment,especially because he wanted our attention as well as our food
which was all that much more special.”
“‘小小手’一直是一只更安静、平和的浣熊。

”妮基说，“但它仍然野性十足，靠自己的力量茁壮成长。

”
放生过程不是一次完成的。

最初，大多数动物会在晚上回来吃妮基和琳达放在外面的食物。

当它们这样做的时候，严格来说就是为了得到食物；它们远离所有人类，然后马上就离开。

最终，它们不再回来了……只有一个例外。

三年后，“小小手”仍然喜欢来吃夜宵！更妙的是，它显然不仅仅是为了免费的食物而来———它还喜欢引起注意和得到爱抚！
“有时，我们一个月都见不到它，然后在一个晴朗的夜晚，它会出现，甚至让我们接近它。

”妮基说，“但它会做的第一件事，有时甚至是在碰触食物之前，就是坐到琳达身边，想让她拍拍。

”
虽然不知道为什么它与其他野生动物不同，但她们认为这可能是因为她们遇到它时它还很小，这让琳达的地方真的像它家一样。

不管是什么原因，她们很高兴她们的小朋友还回来拜访！“纯粹的快乐。

”当被问及它回来后的感受时，妮基说，“每次它回来都是一个很棒的时刻，尤其是因为它像想要得到我们的食物一样得到我们的关注，这一切都非常特别。

”
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▲Discussion 议一议:
1.Have you ever thought of keeping a pet?你曾经想过养宠物吗？
2.What are the differences between pets and wild animals in your opinion?你认为宠物和野生动物有哪些区别？
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【Notes 】
1.raccoon []浣熊
2.duo [].二人组
3.rehabilitation [].康复
4.vet [].兽医
5.euthanize []使安乐死
6.release [].释放；放开
7.thrive []茁壮成长
8.initially []开始，最初
9.eventually [].最终，结果10.approach [].走近11.emotion [].情感
12.exclusive [].独有的
20。