Cats are known as independent creatures, and it can feel like you need them more than they need you. But Swedish authorities disagree. The country has some of the strongest animal protection laws in the world, and the government requires cat owners to check on their cats at least twice a day to make sure they are healthy and happy.

The Swedish Board of Agriculture has rules on how owners should look after their cats. The most important one is, “check on your cat at least twice a day,” because they may seem independent but still need careful care and enjoy being with people. All cats are covered by this rule — even outdoor cats and farm cats — but the board admits that cats with greater needs (such as sick, injured, or pregnant) will need more care and time.

Just leaving food and water out doesn’t meet the need. Pet owners must watch their cats closely to notice strange behavior and make sure they are safe and healthy. By checking on cats twice a day, owners can look for signs of illness, injury, and stress by noticing when their cat is not acting like itself.

While some people outside of Sweden think the rule is strict, many animal protection experts see it as a sign of the country’s promise to protect animals. Cats are generally less studied than dogs, but studies show that there is a close bond between humans and cats. Cats, for example, are able to tell the difference between their human’s usual voice and their “cat voice”.

1.1.What is the basic rule for cat owners in Sweden?

A Feed cats indoors.

B Keep cats at home.

C Check cats twice daily.

D Play with cats often.

解析：选C。C细节理解题。根据文章第一段最后一句“the government requires cat owners to check on their cats at least twice a day to make sure they are healthy and happy”以及第二段中瑞典农业委员会的规定“check on your cat at least twice a day”，可知瑞典对猫主人的基本要求是每天至少检查猫两次，因此正确答案为C。

2.2.Which cats need more care according to the board?

A Outdoor cats.

B Farm cats.

C Sick cats.

D Young cats.

解析：选C。C细节理解题。根据文章第二段最后一句“the board admits that cats with greater needs (such as sick, injured, or pregnant) will need more care and time”，明确提到生病（sick）的猫需要更多照顾，因此正确答案为C。

3.3.Why is only food and water not enough for cats?

A Cats need more quiet rest.

B Owners must watch for health problems.

C Cats dislike lonely eating time.

D Owners have to feed cats more often.

解析：选B。B推理判断题。文章第三段指出，仅仅提供食物和水是不够的，主人必须仔细观察猫的行为，注意是否有异常表现，以确保它们安全和健康。由此可推断，只给食物和水无法满足猫的需求，因为主人还需要通过观察来发现健康问题，因此正确答案为B。

4.4.The underlined word “bond” in Paragraph 4 most probably means ______.

A special habit

B close connection

C common voice

D simple activity

解析：选B。B词义猜测题。根据第四段上下文，该句指出猫和人类之间存在“bond”，后文举例说明猫能够分辨主人的声音，这体现了猫与人类之间的亲密关系，因此“bond”在此意为“紧密的联系”，故选B。

5.5.What is the main idea of the passage?

A Cats are more independent than dogs.

B How to care for outdoor cats on farms.

C Swedish people have good work-life balance.

D Sweden has strict but caring rules for cats.

解析：选D。D主旨大意题。全文围绕瑞典“check on their cats at least twice a day”这一严格规定展开，介绍了规定的内容（第1段）、适用范围（第2段）、原因（第3段）、专家评价（第4段）以及瑞典生活方式如何使其可行（第5段）。选项D“瑞典有严格但充满关怀的养猫规定”准确概括了全文主旨。A、B、C都只是文中提及的细节信息，不能概括整体。故选D。