VOA慢速英语 A Dog's Sniffer Could Be Your Best Friend in Disaster

AS IT IS 2015-09-13 A Dog's Sniffer Could Be Your Best Friend in Disaster

When devastating¹ earthquakes hit Haiti, Japan and Nepal, rescue dogs were among the first to arrive.

American search-and-rescue teams and their specially² trained dogs also helped during U.S. hurricanes Katrina and Sandy.

Ron Sanders and his 6-year old Labarador, Pryse, were part of a U.S. team to help find survivors³ in Nepal.

Sanders, a retired⁴ firefighter, says Pryse and the other special canines⁵, are essential to the team.

“The dogs obviously have a wonderful sense of smell. So they can quickly determine where the scent⁶ is coming from and hone in that location that we need to dig down.”

The dogs can also navigate⁷ quickly through collapsed⁸ buildings and squeeze through tight spots to find victims.

For the dogs, the job is a fun and playful adventure. “They want to go find that person, to play with that person."

But becoming a rescue dog is serious business. To become certified⁹, the dogs train long and hard for six to 12 months.

What helps them get there is lots of practice.

They train in Virginia. A former prison has been made to look like a disaster site. The dogs learn to follow hand signals and voice commands while running on narrow planks¹⁰ of wood. They go up and down ladders, walk over rough terrain¹¹, and search in the rubble¹² for survivors.

Finding one, which they almost always do, is the ultimate reward.

"So we're looking for that ability to play, intelligence, great agility¹³, of course, because we're going to ask them to climb on things that are very unnatural¹⁴ for a dog to climb on.”

The dogs also train on helicopters because roads might be impassable in a disaster. The dogs are taught to get in and out of a helicopter while it's on the ground and running. They become used to the noise, the vibrations¹⁵, and the wind from the helicopter blades.

They are picked up from the ground in a special harness, too, and lifted through the air into the helicopter.

“It teaches them to trust us and to know that it will be all right,” says Sanders.

At the end of the day, it's all about trust between the trainers and the dogs, says Sanders. Being trained and ready can make the difference between life and death, he says.

Words in This Story

sniffer -- n. slang for 'nose'

hone -- v. sharpen, refine or perfect

certified -- v. officially recognize

terrain -- n. a stretch of land, specially with ups and downs 

ultimate -- adj. final or best

impassable -- adj. impossible to travel over

1 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

2 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。

3 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

4 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

5 canines   

n.犬齿( canine的名词复数 )；犬牙；犬科动物

参考例句：

• For example, the teeth are more primitive. There are large canines and unusually shaped incisors. 譬如，牙齿更为原始，有大的犬齿和非常合适的门齿。 来自辞典例句
• Well-to-canines can attend doggy daycare centers while their owners work. 富人家的狗在主人上班的时候可以去狗狗托管中心。 来自互联网

6 scent   

n.气味，香味，香水，线索，嗅觉；v.嗅，发觉

参考例句：

• The air was filled with the scent of lilac.空气中弥漫着丁香花的芬芳。
• The flowers give off a heady scent at night.这些花晚上散发出醉人的芳香。

7 navigate   

v.航行，飞行；导航，领航

参考例句：

• He was the first man to navigate the Atlantic by air.他是第一个飞越大西洋的人。
• Such boats can navigate on the Nile.这种船可以在尼罗河上航行。

8 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

9 certified   

a.经证明合格的；具有证明文件的

参考例句：

• Doctors certified him as insane. 医生证明他精神失常。
• The planes were certified airworthy. 飞机被证明适于航行。

10 planks   

（厚）木板( plank的名词复数 )； 政纲条目，政策要点

参考例句：

• The house was built solidly of rough wooden planks. 这房子是用粗木板牢固地建造的。
• We sawed the log into planks. 我们把木头锯成了木板。

11 terrain   

n.地面，地形，地图

参考例句：

• He had made a detailed study of the terrain.他对地形作了缜密的研究。
• He knows the terrain of this locality like the back of his hand.他对这一带的地形了如指掌。

12 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

13 agility   

n.敏捷，活泼

参考例句：

• The boy came upstairs with agility.那男孩敏捷地走上楼来。
• His intellect and mental agility have never been in doubt.他的才智和机敏从未受到怀疑。

14 unnatural   

adj.不自然的；反常的

参考例句：

• Did her behaviour seem unnatural in any way?她有任何反常表现吗？
• She has an unnatural smile on her face.她脸上挂着做作的微笑。

15 vibrations   

n.摆动( vibration的名词复数 )；震动；感受；（偏离平衡位置的）一次性往复振动

参考例句：

• We could feel the vibrations from the trucks passing outside. 我们可以感到外面卡车经过时的颤动。
• I am drawn to that girl; I get good vibrations from her. 我被那女孩吸引住了，她使我产生良好的感觉。 来自《简明英汉词典》