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Have you ever noticed that while it's pretty easy to tell your dog is sick, it's much harder to know how your cat or bird are feeling?
你有沒有注意到發現狗是否生病很容易，但想知道貓或鳥的感受就比較難了。
Well, before you start asking your dog why it can't be more stoic like animals half its size, it's probably worth considering each animal's place in the food chain.
在你問“為什么狗不能比身材不及它一半的動物更堅強”之前，應該思考一下狗在食物鏈中的位置。
You see, the lower down the food chain you are, the more important it is for you to hide any sign of illness.
要知道，在食物鏈的位置越低，隱藏疾病的任何征兆就越重要。
Obvious illness or pain function as red flags for predators. You may as well wear a sign saying, “Easy meal, guys. Come and get me.”
明顯的疾病或疼痛對食肉動物來說是危險的信號。就好像你身上有這樣的標語“容易到手的午餐，伙計們，快來吃我吧”。
Now, even small dogs are genetically programmed to function like predators, which makes sense considering they are close relatives of wolves.
現在，即使是很小的狗也由基因決定了是肉食動物。所以把狗看作狼的近親也是有道理的。
And birds–you can probably figure out why the only way you'd find out your bird is sick is when it dies.
至于鳥類，也許能知道它是否生病的唯一途徑就是死亡。
The situation with cats, as compared to dogs and birds, is much more interesting.
而貓的情況與狗和鳥相比，就更有趣了。
On the one hand, cats are predators, but on the other, they're small enough to be prey.
一方面，貓是食肉動物；另一方面，它們身材矮小很容易被捕食。
So how can you tell if your smaller pets need medical attention?
所以你要怎樣判斷寵物需要醫藥治療呢？
For one thing, trust your hunches.
首先，相信預感。
No one knows your pets like you do, so if you notice even very subtle changes in habits and behavior, you may want to have a vet look them over.
沒有人比你更了解你的寵物。當你注意到它們生活習慣上盡管是非常微小的變化，也要請獸醫對其進行檢查。
For a cat, other signs of illness might be that it has stopped grooming, is losing weight, vocalizing more or less than usual, or missing the litter box.
而貓生病的其它征兆，可能就是精神不振，食欲不佳等癥狀。
