老外在中国：忠犬相伴

The first time I saw Feifei she was chasing a motorcycle.

第一次见菲菲，她正在追一辆摩托车。

My China Daily colleague, Greg Fountain, was chasing her. And, his adult dog was looking on skeptically at the antics of the crazy three-month-old puppy.

我在《中国日报》的同事格雷格正在追她，他的大狗满眼疑惑的看着这只3个月大的小奶狗撒欢耍疯。

Feifei and her litter mates had been left in a trash box on a sidewalk in the Sanlitun area of Beijing. Some kind people rescued them, then Greg and his lovely bride, Maria, volunteered to be foster parents until they could find her a permanent family.

菲菲和同窝小崽被遗弃在北京三里屯路边的一个垃圾箱里。他们被善良的人救助，格雷格和他美丽的妻子玛利亚在找到收容他们的家庭前，自愿抚养他们。

 

 

I took Feifei home that afternoon and sent a Wechat message to my Chinese wife that I had a surprise waiting for her. She probably thought I meant good food, or flowers. She had never had a dog before and was a bit afraid of them.

把菲菲带回家那天下午，我发了一条微信给我的中国媳妇儿，说有个惊喜给她。她觉得我可能准备了一顿丰盛的晚餐或是一捧玫瑰。她从没养过狗，还有点害怕狗狗。

I’m sure that she initially agreed that we could keep Feifei just because I had been badly missing having a dog. I had to go on a four-day reporting trip the first week after Feifei moved in. My wife would call frequently and say, “She’s barking. What does she want?!!!” Now, a month later, I hear her whispering, “I love you, little girl.”

我确信，她一开始同意把菲菲留下来，只是因为我实在太想养狗了。菲菲搬来的第一周，我有个报道任务要出差四天。我老婆一开始总是抱怨，“她又在叫!她到底想干什么!”一个月过去了，我听到她柔声细语对着菲菲说：“我爱你，小宝贝。”

I’ve found that Chinese culture and American culture is usually not that different. In many aspects, I think Chinese culture is better. But, I have to say, with respect to dogs, Americans have it right. It saddens me to see small kids shying away in fear from a five-kilogram puppy. In the US, they would run up and give her a hug.

我发现，中美文化没那么大差异。很多方面，我觉得中国文化更棒。但我必须要说，在尊重狗狗方面，美国人更胜一筹。中国小朋友看到10斤的小狗都吓得直往后躲，这让我挺难受的。在美国，孩子们会冲上去，给她一个大大的拥抱。

On the other hand, this attitude is changing. I walk Feifei every morning in the great park by the Yuan dynasty (1271-1378) walls, where many people walk dogs. Feifei craves her morning play-dates when she can romp with other dogs.

但是，这种态度正在改变。我每天早上都带菲菲去元大都公园，好多人都在那儿遛狗。菲菲特别期待每天早上和小伙伴们打闹的时光。

Growing up, my big collie named Lad was my best friend. I can’t imagine going through the difficult middle-school years without him.

牧羊犬Lad是我孩童时期最好的朋友。如果没有它，我无法想象该怎么度过那艰苦的中学时代。

A 2017 paper in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health concluded: “The review found evidence for a wide range of emotional health benefits from childhood pet ownership; particularly for self-esteem and loneliness.” It also concluded: “Studies also showed evidence of an association between pet ownership and educational and cognitive benefits; for example, in perspective-taking abilities and intellectual development.”

2017年《国际环境研究与公共卫生杂志》的一篇文章称，“研究证明，童年有宠物陪伴对情感健康有诸多好处，特别是对自负和孤独。”还称：“有证据表明，宠物对教育和认知也有好处;例如，有助于培养换位思考能力和智力发展。”

 

 

Young children with dogs were found to learn language faster, read better, and have larger vocabularies. Adolescents with dogs are more emotionally stable and self-confident.

幼儿有狗狗的陪伴，学语言会更快，阅读能力更强，词汇量更大。而有狗狗陪伴的青少年，感情会更稳定，人也更自信。

In other words, if you want your child to do well on the gaokao, and in life, get a dog.

换句话说，如果想让你的孩子高考取得好成绩，成为人生赢家，那么赶快养只狗吧。

Dogs are not just for the kids. A report in the journal Psychology Today concluded that when a person petted a dog “blood pressure lowered, heart rate slowed, breathing became more regular and muscle tension relaxed--all of which are signs of reduced stress.” The American Journal of Cardiology found that pet owners have a significantly higher survival rate after having a heart attack than people who don’t own pets. For older people, “the likelihood that the non-pet owners would end up being diagnosed as clinically depressed was four times higher than that found in the pet-owning people of the same age.” Elderly dog owners “required fewer medical services and were much more satisfied with their lives.”

养狗不仅对孩子有好处。《今日心理学》的一篇报告指出，“当人抚摸狗狗时，血压会降低，心率会减慢，呼吸变得更规则，肌肉也会放松下来——所有迹象都表明你处于减压状态。”《美国心脏病学杂志》发现，在得了心脏病后，养宠物的人比不养宠物的人存活率明显高很多。对老年人来说，“不养宠物的人被诊断为临床抑郁症的可能性是同龄养宠物人的四倍”，养狗的老年人的医疗需求更少，对自己的生活更满意。

My wife says I smile a lot more since we got Feifei. The scientific evidence says she’s right about that.

我媳妇儿说自从有了菲菲，我笑的都多了。科学证明她说的是对的。