A horse named Justice sues his former owner

When Justice was discovered on the property of his former owner in Washington County, Oregon, the 8-year-old horse was 【小题1】 extremely bad shape. He was very thin and had suffered severe frostbite(冻伤). He was also covered with lice and had a serious case of rain rot, a bacterial skin infection that causes painful scabbing(斑疤).

A neighbor reported Justice’s condition in March 2017. The horse, who had been left for months without adequate food and shelter, 【小题2】 (take) in by Sound Equine Options, a rescue and rehabilitation organization, 【小题3】 he received medical treatment to save his life.

In May, Justice became party to a groundbreaking lawsuit 【小题4】 (sue) his former owner “to recover the costs of his ongoing medical care and his pain and suffering,” according to The Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF), a legal advocacy group for animals that is representing Justice in his lawsuit.

“ALDF decided to represent Justice in this lawsuit not only because of his great need, but also because we felt he 【小题5】 win,” ALDF attorney Sarah Hanneken tells MNN. “Oregon has exemplary(典型的) animal-protection laws, and, given the details of Justice’s situation, we determined he has a strong case under a legal theory called ‘negligence(疏忽)per se.’”

According to Hanneken, “Negligence per se is a doctrine that essentially says, ‘【小题6】 you are negligent and break a law resulting in someone getting hurt, the injured person who was protected by that law can sue you.’”

The case is back in the news now because 【小题7】 defendant(被告) filed a motion to dismiss the case. ADLF expected this, and is fighting to keep the case in court. A hearing will be scheduled 【小题8】 (decide) the next step.

This is the first time the doctrine 【小题9】 (apply) to an animal. If the lawsuit is successful, according to ALDF, it “would be the first to establish 【小题10】 animals have a legal right to sue their abusers in court.”

Charles Darwin, a young man just out of university in 1831,   【小题1】(offer) a job on a ship on a voyage of discovery around the world. Life on board was tough. Darwin was   【小题2】(terrible) seasick and was only happy when he was ashore collecting plant samples. and observing animals. It was to be the most important journey in his life. It   【小题3】(last) for five years.

Darwin studied nature in South America and in a group of small islands in the South Pacific. On each island there were birds. They were very similar,   【小题4】the shape of their beaks, and even their eating habits varied. Darwin wondered why they were different. Then he realized that over millions of years, all plants and animals have gradually changed into the forms we see today.   【小题5】we call "the survival of the fittest" he named "natural selection". He also called this slow process of change “evolution”.

By 1846, he had published an article describing his voyage. Darwin spent the years   【小题6】followed developing his theories and making them perfect. In 1859, he published them in The Origin of Species. It caused a huge   【小题7】(argue) because it seemed to deny what the Bible said. His The Descent of Man, 1871, pointed   【小题8】that mankind had come from the same ancestor. Other scientists agreed with his ideas and took up 【小题9】(he) cause. The Church prohibited the   【小题10】(teach) of the Theory of Evolution in some countries. However, today most people believe that Darwin was right.

On a【小题1】(freeze) cold day, Mrs Smith’s dog was hungry, but there was not any meat【小题2】(leave) in the house.

【小题3】(consider) there was no better way, Mrs Smith took a piece of paper, and wrote the【小题4】(follow) words: “Give my dog half a pound of meat.” Then she asked her dog to take it to the butcher’s. When the butcher recognized that it was really the lady’s handwriting, he did as he【小题5】(ask) to. The dog was very happy, and ate the meat up immediately.

The next day, the dog came again exactly at midday.And as【小题6】(usually), it brought a piece of paper in the mouth.This time the butcher did not take a look at the paper,and just gave the dog its meat,for he had regarded the dog【小题7】one of his customers.

One day later, to the butcher’s more surprise, it came at six o’clock and brought【小题8】third piece of paper. Though 【小题9】(surprise), the butcher gave him【小题10】he wanted. But what he didn’t know was, that there were not any words on the paper!