时间:2018-12-15 作者:英语课 分类:VOA慢速英语2008年(九)月


英语课

This is the VOA Special English Agriculture Report.


A burro is a small donkey. Donkeys are related to horses; both are part of the equine family. Another way people say it is BOOR-oh. The name comes from Spanish and, before that, from a Latin term for small horse.


Burros reach an average height of over a meter and can weigh more than two hundred twenty-five kilograms. The long-eared animals are often gray with white noses, jaws 1 and undersides. But they can also have coats of red or blue.


Burros are known for their sure footing on mountains while carrying heavy loads. In the United States, they are best known for their history as pack animals in the desert Southwest. In fact, burros in the wild are related to pack animals that ran away or were freed by gold miners and others.


But burros are not only good pack animals. They can also help calm and control nervous horses and guard sheep and goats on farms. Robin 2 Rivello works with the New Jersey 3 chapter of the American Mustang and Burro Association. She says burros have protected farm animals even against bears.


People may have the idea that burros and donkeys do not like being told what to do. But experts say the animals are not being stubborn; they just like to take their time considering what they will do.


In the United States, there are breeders who raise and sell burros. Or Americans can buy a burro taken from the wild by a federal agency, the Bureau of Land Management.


People who get a wild burro need to "gentle" the animal. "Gentling" means training it to accept the human attention needed for care and grooming 4.


Burros like to clean each other. But these desert animals groom 5 themselves with dust instead of water. So it is normal for a burro to have some dirt in its coat. A brush can remove hardened mud.


Experts like Robin Rivello advise owners not to let their burros eat too much. Being fat can ruin their health. Overweight burros can also develop a condition that threatens their well-known walking ability.


Robin Rivello says a burro's feet should be cleaned and cared for every six to eight weeks. But she warns owners not to raise the feet as high as with a horse. A burro's legs differ from a horse's legs. The pain could make the burro kick.


And that's the VOA Special English Agriculture Report, written by Jerilyn Watson. Transcripts 6, MP3s and podcasts of our reports are at voaspecialenglish.com. I'm Jim Tedder 7.



1 jaws
n.口部;嘴
  • The antelope could not escape the crocodile's gaping jaws. 那只羚羊无法从鱷鱼张开的大口中逃脱。
  • The scored jaws of a vise help it bite the work. 台钳上有刻痕的虎钳牙帮助它紧咬住工件。
2 robin
n.知更鸟,红襟鸟
  • The robin is the messenger of spring.知更鸟是报春的使者。
  • We knew spring was coming as we had seen a robin.我们看见了一只知更鸟,知道春天要到了。
3 jersey
n.运动衫
  • He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
  • They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致,都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。
4 grooming
n. 修饰, 美容,(动物)梳理毛发
  • You should always pay attention to personal grooming. 你应随时注意个人仪容。
  • We watched two apes grooming each other. 我们看两只猩猩在互相理毛。
5 groom
vt.给(马、狗等)梳毛,照料,使...整洁
  • His father was a groom.他父亲曾是个马夫。
  • George was already being groomed for the top job.为承担这份高级工作,乔治已在接受专门的培训。
6 transcripts
n.抄本( transcript的名词复数 );转写本;文字本;副本
  • 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
7 tedder
n.(干草)翻晒者,翻晒机
  • Jim Tedder has more. 吉姆?特德将给我们做更多的介绍。 来自互联网
  • Jim Tedder tells us more. 吉姆?泰德给我们带来更详细的报道。 来自互联网
学英语单词
a cross beam
abounder
all-daier
almost bounded function
astrapia
austenize
ball collar thrust bearing
band stop filter
bill free from claims or defences
bisno
bolometer amplifier
boned
capital repairs
catalogue of articles for sale
chaff jamming
channel scanner
Chediba
chemophobics
chronicle.com
Colocasia fallax
color distinction
compensatory polycythemia
conractual guarantee
constant boiling solution
CSP
definition of irrevocable control strategy
Dolj
drotaverine
ebullience
economic cooperation zone
ethnic-racial
exchange customs
extension screw
feed change gearbox
filling effect rib weave
fond memory
forward transadmittance
full speed turbine stages
gin slings
give cards and spades
graunt
gulps back
hair of head
hba
Hydrocotyle pseudoconferta
hydrological model
impregnative
Induan Stage
internal pin wheel
introduction of
iron-smeltings
isolationistic
isopropylmalonic acid
kagools
lay-
lockstepping
lord of war
lower sample
markup language
mean suns
motorized wheelchairs
negamiles
nucleole
optic-fiber links
os hyoideums
pad weld
parathelphusa sinensis
pentalenolactone
peripheral clearance angle
petchary
pipeline gauge
piroheptine
plant molecular biology
potassium-argons
power drive system
predestining
prenatal care
pyaemia septica
Ranzo
regulating port
Research Libraries Information Network
retroperitoneal pregnancy
roll-on roll-off ship
route of infection
screen sb out
sinical
snap (systems for nuclear auxilary power)
soapsuds
stibium sulfuratum aurantiacum
supercharge
synchronous changes
Torrinha
ultra-soft ray
untangle
vacuum spin-freezing
vatching
virtual waiting time
wainscoting, wainscotting
walk up to the trough, fodder or no fodder
wand exercise
weatherworthiness
Zudan