When I first came to Prague, it didn't take me long to realise that I was in a city of dog lovers. A lot of people keep dogs in England too, but I'd say there aren't so many dog owners in big cities and the cat still remains Britain's favourite pet. Over here, however, dogs just seem to be everywhere! You might love them or hate them, but you certainly can't ignore them. So, in this article you should find all the vocabulary you need to talk about 'man's (and Czech's) best friend'.
If you want to keep a dog as a pet, first choose a suitable breed with a compatible temperament to your lifestyle. If you have young children, for example, then the gentle Labrador and Golden Retriever make an ideal family dog, whereas older people might prefer smaller breeds such as the Yorkshire Terrier. Click here to see the top 20 breeds of dog in the U.K. Some people aren't fussy about the pedigree and will happily adopt a mixed-breed or mongrel from a dog home. Once you've chosen the puppy, you'll need to take it to a vet to get all the necessary injections and you might also buy it a flea collar. Then you'll need to house train it and teach it to follow commands, such as 'sit', 'lie down', 'bed' and teach it to do tricks such as 'roll over' and 'give me your paw'. When you take the dog out for a walk, you'll mainly keep it on a lead and you'll need to teach it to 'heal', 'come here' and 'wait' (eg. before crossing the street). When you're in the park, you'll probably let it off its lead and play games such as 'fetch' ('go fetch!''). You'll also need to feed it a couple of times a day; most dog owners buy tinned dog food or dog biscuits. You'll also want to have some dog treats to reward it for being a good girl/boy and of course you'll often stroke, pat or cuddle your dog too! Not everyone's a dog person and some people get bothered by their smell, or by dog hair getting everywhere. It's also annoying when a dog jumps up at you, especially if they have muddy paws. Some people are simply allergic to dogs. Many people get really annoyed by dog owners letting their dogs poo in the street and not clearing up after them. The problem of dog's poo and the smell of dog's pee on the pavements is the main reason why some people feel that dogs should be banned from cities. It's also a pain when a dog barks, growls or yaps at you as you walk past its owner's garden, especially when the barking sets off other dogs in the neighbourhood. This happens a lot where I live! Some breeds are dangerous and can bite you, in which case they should wear a muzzle. If you don't like dogs at all, you might even refer to it as a 'mut' (for any dog) or a 'yappy dog' (a small annoying dog). As for me, I'm definitely a dog-person, although I don't want to keep one in my flat as I'm away most of the day and it wouldn't be fair to leave the dog at home alone. But whenever I return to England, I always look forward to seeing my mum's lively, lovable Jack Russel! Glossary a pet: domácí zvíře a breed: the race of an animal / rasa temperament: the personality of an animal fussy: úzkostlivý a pedigree: rodokmen a mongrel: voříšek a puppy: štěně a vet: a vetinary surgeon / veterinář a flea collar: a dog collar to protect against fleas / obojek proti blechám to house train: to train a dog to behave itself in the house (not go to the toilet, etc) a command: povel to roll over: převrátit se paw: tlapka a lead: vodítko 'heal!': walk by me! / k noze! to play fetch: aportavat tinned: v konzervě a treat: food (eg. biscuits) for being good / odměna to stroke: hladit to pat: popleskat to cuddle: mazlit to get bothered: být otrávený muddy: zablacený poo: nice word for shit! / bobek pee: nice word for piss! / čurání be banned from: být zakázaný to be a pain: be annoying / otrava to bark: štěkat to growl: vrčet to yap: nafat to set off: spustit to bite: kousat a muzzle: náhubek to tease: dobírat si / škádlit
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Englishman in PragueThis blog is especially for Czech learners of English. Each article features a Czech tradition or a popular Czech pastime. You'll find lots of vocabulary in each article: useful phrases are in bold and translated in the glossary below. |
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