VOA慢速英语20060711a

AGRICULTURE REPORT - U.S. Could Face Shortage of Animal Doctors for Food InspectionBy Mario Ritter

Broadcast: Mon, 10 Jul 2006 16:00:00 UTC

This is Shep O'Neal with the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.

Veterinarians are a first line of defense¹ not only for diseases that affect animals, but also those like bird flu that can spread to humans. Animal doctors also help protect the food supply and the agricultural economy. Diseases like avian influenza² and foot-and-mouth disease can cause huge economic losses.


Veterinarian Colleen Thorp treats a three-day-old lamb

In the United States, there is growing demand for veterinarians. A recent study by the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association warns that there could soon be a shortage. Some experts worry that there will not be enough veterinarians specially³ trained to inspect animals raised for food.

The journal says half of all state and federal veterinarians are close to or already at the age when they could retire.

In two thousand four, the United States had about sixty-one thousand veterinarians. But most of them work in areas other than the care of food animals.

Some study diseases. Some work for drug companies. And about half of all veterinarians care for the more than one hundred million cats and dogs and other pets that Americans keep.

To become a veterinarian, students take two years of preparatory studies in college. They learn about animal biology and treatment of diseases.

Then, like a medical doctor, they attend four years in a college of veterinary medicine. They work in laboratories and treatment centers and learn to perform operations.

There are twenty-eight schools of veterinary medicine in the United States. Three out of four of the students are women.

Currently about two thousand new veterinarians enter the job market each year. Veterinarians must pass a test to get a license⁴ to treat animals in the state where they want to work.

The American Veterinary Medical Association is one of the oldest groups in the profession. It started in eighteen eighty-nine. The organization approves schools that teach veterinary science.

The United States Department of Agriculture established the National Veterinary Accreditation⁵ Program in nineteen twenty-one. This program gives veterinarians extra training. They learn to work with federal veterinarians and with state animal health officials.

This VOA Special English Agriculture Report was written by Mario Ritter. You can download transcripts⁶ of our reports at www.unsv.com. To send us e-mail, write to [email protected]. This is Shep O'Neal.

1 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

2 influenza   

n.流行性感冒，流感

参考例句：

• They took steps to prevent the spread of influenza.他们采取措施
• Influenza is an infectious disease.流感是一种传染病。

3 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

4 license   

n.执照，许可证，特许；v.许可，特许

参考例句：

• The foreign guest has a license on the person.这个外国客人随身携带执照。
• The driver was arrested for having false license plates on his car.司机由于使用假车牌而被捕。

5 accreditation   

n.委派，信赖，鉴定合格

参考例句：

• a letter of accreditation 一份合格证明书
• This paper gives an overview of the Verification, Validation and Accreditation (VV&A) in High Level Architecture(HLA). 对基于高层体系结构(High Level Architecture,简称HLA)的仿真系统的校核、验证与确认(Verification, Validation and Accreditation,简称VV&A)问题进行了详细的介绍及分析。 来自互联网

6 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句