I. Read the text and give the title to the text Annie Stewart has been a keeper at Woburn Animal Kingdom for the past twelve years, and for eight years before that she worked at another safari park. It’s hard physical work, out in all weathers — animals have to be fed and looked after every day of the year.
“My working day normally begins at 8 a.m., but if an animal is sick I may have to be up all night with it. Week-ends and bank holidays are our busiest times while we’re open to visitors between March and October. I begin by loading feeds onto my car, then I drive to the eland (a type of larger antelope). I feed and check them. Then I go through a similar process with the giraffe and the hippo.
We always have to take special care in our dealings with the rhino — remember that they are dangerous wild animals. They have to be watched all the time in case something upsets them. And the eland can be especially unpredictable1 when the strangers are around. They only trust two of us to go near them, so if there are any problems with them on my day off I might easily be called in.
During the season when we’re open to the public, it’s part of the keepers’ job to patrol the park watching the public as much as the animals. People can be amazingly silly, ignoring signs and warnings. They seem to have no idea of the possible danger. Some get out of their cars to take photographs when they are frighteningly close to an animal that could kill them in an instant. We have to try and be diplomatic and maintain a sense of humour.
I get to know all the animals in my care individually. I fill in a daily diary and a weekly report, making a note of any changes of behaviour.
This is a job that requires dedication and hard work. I was first attracted to it when I saw a documentary about this place 20 years ago. I had experience of looking after dogs in boarding kennels2, and I was fascinated by the safari park concept. So I wrote to them and was lucky enough to get a job, learning as I went along. It’s like a wild animal farm here -the animals have plenty of freedom and I enjoy the independence and responsibility which are central to my job”.
1 unpredictable—непредсказуемый
2 kennels — псарня
II. Find synonyms from the text:
a) to feel not well
b) to give smth to eat
c) to make smb sad
d) to make pictures
e) to take care
III. Answer the questions
1. How many years does Annie Stewart work as a keeper at Woburn Animal Kingdom?
2. What things about Annie’s job are the most important for her?
3. What animals can be dangerous in a safari park?
4. Why do people need watching as much as the animals? (ОТВЕТЫ ДОЛЖНЫ БЫТЬ ПОЛНЫЕ)
II. Synonyms from the text:
a) to feel not well - to be sick
b) to give smth to eat - to feed
c) to make smb sad - to upset
d) to make pictures - to take photographs
e) to take care - to look after
III. Answering the questions:
1. Annie Stewart has been working as a keeper at Woburn Animal Kingdom for the past twelve years.
To find this answer, we have to read the first sentence of the text, which says "Annie Stewart has been a keeper at Woburn Animal Kingdom for the past twelve years".
2. The most important things about Annie's job are the dedication and hard work that it requires.
To answer this question, we can refer to the last paragraph of the text, where Annie says "This is a job that requires dedication and hard work".
3. The rhino and eland can be dangerous in a safari park.
To find this answer, we can refer to the fourth paragraph of the text, where it says "We always have to take special care in our dealings with the rhino — remember that they are dangerous wild animals" and "And the eland can be especially unpredictable when strangers are around".
4. People need watching as much as the animals because they can be silly and ignore signs and warnings. Some may even get out of their cars to take photographs when they are dangerously close to an animal that could kill them.
To answer this question, we can refer to the fifth paragraph of the text, where it says "During the season when we’re open to the public, it’s part of the keepers’ job to patrol the park watching the public as much as the animals. People can be amazingly silly...".