《中英對照讀新聞》Missing dog returned after five years 找回走失5年的狗

◎羅彥傑

A 12-year-old girl has been reunited with her pet Labrador which went missing five years ago.

一名12歲女孩和她5年前走失的寵物拉布拉多犬團聚了。

Brierley Howard was overjoyed after being told that Iggy had been found 130 miles from her Balladen, Lancashire home, on the streets of Leicester, The Daily Telegraph reports.

布莉兒蕾．郝爾在被告知，「伊基」被人發現在距離她蘭開夏郡巴拉登的家130英里的李斯特街道上後，喜不自勝，每日電訊報報導說。

Her mother Karen Howard said： "We had given up all hope. It is just so great to have him back - although I would never have recognised him. He has put on quite a bit of weight.

她的母親凱倫．郝爾說：「我們已放棄所有希望。牠能回來實在是太好了─雖然我原本沒法兒認出牠。牠變胖了不少。」

"Amazingly though he is just the same and still plays like he is a puppy. Fortunately for us, the woman took him to a vet, they scanned him and got in touch with the microchip people."

「雖然牠還是老樣子，而且表現得仍然像小狗一樣，但真是神奇。我們很幸運，這位女子帶牠找獸醫，他們替他掃描，而且與晶片主人聯繫。」

She added： "They said the only thing we have got on this scan is this dog was stolen five years ago.

她強調：「他們說我們在這次掃描中唯一知道的事情，是這條狗在5年前被偷走。」

"When I rang the lady she said ’What did you say his name was?’. I told her and she repeated it and then said ’Oh goodness, his ears pricked up’."

「當我打電話給這位女士的時候，她說『你說牠的名字叫什麼？』我告訴她，她照著說，然後說『喔老天，牠的耳朵豎起來了』。」

Iggy had originally disappeared in August 2005 as an 18-month-old puppy.

伊基是在2005年8月不見，當時牠只是一隻18個月大的小狗。

新聞辭典

quite a bit：片語，相當數量、相當程度。例句：He used to sail quite a bit as a boy.（他童年時就頗有駕船航行的經歷。）

in touch：片語，聯繫、接觸。例句：We will stay in touch.（我們將保持聯繫。）

prick up：片語，豎起，prick up the （one’s） ears指豎起耳朵仔細聽。

自由時報-990406