Differences Between Service Animals

One difference between Ricochet and Confetti is that Ricochet —

• helps a person with special needs

• has an owner who cares about her

• was unsuccessful at becoming a guide animal

• had to learn to do something before helping others

What is the main idea of the selection?

• Spencer spent a long time trying to find a guide horse to help her.

• Confetti is a miniature horse that has become a wonderful guide animal.

• Guide horses must be trained before they can help people with special needs.

• Confetti is a lot like a dog and can go anywhere a guide dog can go.

Both selections express the importance of —

• making animals famous

• making new friends

• teaching about animals

• caring for those in need

Which sentence best describes a difference between Ricochet and Confetti?

• Ricochet required training, but Confetti did not.

• Ricochet helps many people, but Confetti helps one person.

• Ricochet spends time outdoors, but Confetti works indoors.

• Ricochet does not notice other animals, but Confetti does.

What is one difference between the animals featured in the two selections?

• Ricochet was able to stay with her owner, but Confetti had to leave her owner in order to do her job.

• Ricochet’s duties are typical for a service animal, but Confetti performs tasks that are not usually done by an animal.

• Ricochet’s owner believed she would make a good guide animal, but Confetti’s owner worried that she would not make a good guide animal.

• Ricochet must stay at home with her trainer, but Confetti travels as part of her job.

What prevented Ricochet from becoming a service animal?

• She was distracted by birds.

• She had to get on a surfboard.

• She had to learn how to open doors.

• She received too much attention from people.

The author wrote this article most likely to —

• convince the reader to support the work that dogs do for others

• inform the reader about the special work of an unusual dog

• explain to the reader how a dog becomes a service animal

• teach the reader how to train dogs to surf

What information is included in the section titled “A Talented Fund-Raiser”?

• Some of the causes that Ricochet has helped

• A description of how Ricochet learned to surf

• An explanation of why Ricochet could not be a service dog

• A story about the first time Ricochet surfed to raise money

What is the best summary of the article?

• Ricochet can surf very well. She helps many people and animals who are in need. She has helped buy pet oxygen masks for fire departments. She has also helped raise money for teddy bears for children in hospitals and people in nursing homes.

• Many people have watched Ricochet surf. The first time the dog surfed for a cause, she hopped on the back of a boy’s surfboard. People were amazed. Because of this, they gave money for the boy to get his own service dog.

• Ricochet helps people and animals by participating in fund-raising events. She helps out by surfing, even though she is a dog. The first person she helped was a boy named Patrick who had always dreamed of surfing even though he could not walk.

• Ricochet was training to be a service dog but did not qualify. Instead, she learned to surf, and her trainer realized that she could help others with this unusual skill. Today, Ricochet surfs for an organization that raises money for different causes.

Read the dictionary entry for the word common. Which definition best matches the way common is used in paragraph 1?

• Definition 1

• Definition 2

• Definition 3

• Definition 4