译◎李 艺 绘◎马豆子

在《绘英语》微信号的调查中，我们有六成的小读者都因为家长不允许，而无法拥有梦寐以求的宠物。其实养宠物的益处多多，下面这六条好处不妨说给父母听听吧。

I think that one of the most enriching①enriching[ɪn'rɪtʃ]v. 使……富足；增进……的价值（enrich的ing形式）and delightful experiences in life is to own a pet. An animal which you nurture and take care of by yourself or with the help of your family is bound to be an almost never ending source of joy and happiness.But why is having a pet so important and what are the benef i ts of having a pet around your house?

1. Responsibility. When you get a pet you will—without a doubt—have to take care of a creature which will depend entirely on you. Effectively having a pet makes a person more responsible, the level of commitment and care of the owner will inevitably ref l ect on their pet.

2. Managing time. Having a pet is not something that you can do without having to give it a signif i cant②signif i cant英 [sɪg'nɪfɪk(ə)nt] 美 [sɪɡ'nɪfɪkənt] adj. 重大的；有效的；有意义的；值得注意的；意味深长的amount of your time. This usually means that you will have to make room in your schedule③schedule 英 [ˈʃɛdjuːl] 美 ['skɛdʒul]vt. 安排，计划n. 时间表；计划表for your little friend something which will put your time managing skills to the test. Having a pet and getting organized around it is a good exercise to develop time managing abilities.

3. Nurturing④nurturing v. 培育；养育；培植（nurture的现在分词）n. 培育；养育. One of the best benef i ts of having a pet is that you will understand that living beings have needs and that these needs have to be taken care of. It is not a coincidence that many great parents are also great pet owners who are very caring and loving of the living creatures around them.

4. Emotional link. The act of actually grooming and petting your little friend will create a great emotional link between you which will last for both of your life times. You will always remember the times you spent together and you will remember that special bond that you created and that made you so happy.

我想生命中最充实且愉悦的经历之一，便是拥有一只宠物。亲自或和家人一起喂养和照料小动物必将是无穷欢乐与幸福的源泉。然而，为何养宠物如此重要？家有宠物的好处到底有哪些？

⒈责任意识。当你养了宠物，毫无疑问，你就得去照料一个完全依赖于你的生命。养宠物得法会让人更具责任意识，主人的付出与关爱程度势必反映在其喂养的宠物身上。

⒉时间管理。养宠物需要倾注大量的时间。这通常意味着你不得不专门安排时间来照顾你的小伙伴，这将是对你时间管理能力的考验。养宠物的同时把周围收拾得井井有条，是对时间管理能力不错的锻炼。

⒊养育之道。养宠物最大的好处之一是让你明白任何生命都是有所需求的，而且这些需求应该被关照。很多了不起的父母同时也很擅长养宠物，这绝非巧合，因为他们懂得体贴、关爱其周遭的生命。

⒋情感维系。为宠物梳理毛发和给予它爱抚将在你们之间建立起美好的情感连接，这样的情感会在你们各自的生活中得以延续。你将永远铭记你们共度的时光，还有那份由你创造的、令你开心不已的特别的牵挂。

⒌改善健康。相较那些不养宠物的人，大多数养宠物的人都拥有更健康的体魄。活泼好动的主人爱宠物并和它们一块儿玩耍，运动量

5. Better health. Most people who have pets enjoy better health than those who don't. Active pet owners who care and play with their pets enjoy an additional⑤additional英 [ə'dɪʃ(ə)n(ə)l] 美 [ə'dɪʃənl]adj. 附加的，额外的dose of exercise while all pet owners who have strong relationships with their pets also have strong bonds that lower their stress rates and therefore prevent various types of illness related with these conditions.

6. Learning about life. It is very important for people to know that nothing is eternal⑥eternal英 [ɪ'tɜːn(ə)l; iː-] 美 [ɪ'tɝnl] adj. 永恒的；不朽的and that both humans and animals live and die. Having a pet helps people understand the cycle of life and how everything we have is bound to end someday.Dealing with life and death is one of the most difficult tasks in life and owning a pet prepares individuals to deal with the harsh⑦harsh 英 [hɑːʃ] 美 [hɑrʃ] adj. 严厉的；严酷的emotional events in life.

So these are some of the most important reasons why I believe everyone should have a pet at least once in their life time. So if you have been thinking about buying a pet for you

and your family and you have the time and money available then you should absolutely⑧absolutely 英 ['æbsəluːtlɪ] 美 ['æbsəlutli]adv. 绝对地；完全地get one, it is almost certain that you will not regret it!更 大，同时，所有与宠物关系亲密的主人其自身压力也可得以减轻，进而预防压力导致的各类疾病。

⒍学会生活。世间没有永恒之物，无论是人还是动物都有生有死，明白这一点非常重要。养宠物能够帮助人们理解生命的轮回，明白现在所拥有的一切终将在某一刻终结消逝。应对生死是生命中最为艰难的课题之一，养宠物能让人准备好面对生命里残酷的别离。

这就是为什么我认为每个人至少应该养一回宠物。如果你一直在考虑要为自己和家人买一只宠物，而且你还有闲有钱的话，一定要养一只，我敢肯定你不会后悔!