【明報專訊】The Police Dog Unit (PDU) now consists of 168 police officers and about 150 adult police dogs. However, 21 of the dogs are retiring at the age of 9 in 2019. Therefore, the PDU is preparing itself with raising and training puppies that are suitable for performing police duties.

The good news came when police dogs Arwen and Lily gave birth to 11 Malinois (Belgian Shepherd) puppies and 9 Labrador Retrievers respectively last year. Newborn puppies are given chance to participate in daily patrols (巡邏) to get used to the environment when they are 5 months old. They only start their professional training when they are 12 to 14 months old. Besides breeding police dogs, the PDU also accepts dogs from the public. The dogs are only accepted if they are of certain breeds and have passed tests and trainings.

Some police officers recalled that these adorable creatures have helped them arrest suspects in fights and thefts. The police officers also undergo training to build friendship with their partners. Eva Chung, Hong Kong's first female Police Dog Handler, says, "I have always wanted to be in the Police Dog Unit, so I signed up for the unit when it was recruiting. However, 3 of my 6 doggy partners have passed away." The sad and unforgettable farewells make her spend as much time with her partners as she can even when she's not on duty.(Source: MingPao)

■English highway﹕breed

As a noun, breed refers to a kind of animal that is usually tamed and whose growth is controlled by humans. As a verb, it means to produce young animals in a controlled manner.

e.g. Scientists have bred a new breed of penguin.

■Game １

Eddie / Timmy /Ricky / Ada

To allow the dogs to receive instructions clearly, the PDU prefers to give their dogs names of sharp pronunciation. MoMo thinks names beginning with vowels are good choices. Which of the above name(s) would MoMo suggest?

■Game ２

Only certain breeds of dog are employed in the PDU based on their characters and abilities. Which breeds are these dogs?

(See the picture )

˙a. German Shepherd

loyal, brave and strong

˙b. Labrador Retriever

superior sense of smell

˙c. Belgian Shepherd

great agility, long-lived

˙d. Rottweiler

intelligent, loyal and brave

(Answers on next text)

■Glossary

consist of (phr v) 包括

respectively (adv) 分別地

suspect (n) 疑犯

agility (n) 敏捷

[Smarties' Power English 第210期]