The Last Dog

Which detail from the text best supports what central conflict of the plot for Brock at the beginning of the story?

• The clerk who gives Brock his equipment for going outside tells him the outside conditions are so threatening that hardly anyone ever uses it.

• Brock wonders if he is the only normal person still curious about the outside or if he is abnormal because he wants to see it.

• Even though the characters in the “ancient fictions” frighten him a bit, Brock cannot get enough of them.

• Dogs had supposedly died off during the dark ages, when the atmosphere had become warm and poisonous.

What conflict does Brock, the main character, face at the start of “The Last Dog”?

• He wants to explore outside the dome but worries that doing so makes him different.

• He struggles to overcome his fears of the “ancient fictions” that interest him.

• He wants to have a live dog even though scientists say no live dog exists.

• He struggles to survive the dangerous conditions outside the dome.

What effect has living in the dome setting had on the emotional lives of the characters who have never left the dome?

• It has dulled their emotions.

• It has strengthened their emotions.

• It has allowed them to feel only positive emotions.

• It has prevented them from controlling their emotions.

What does the context suggest is the most likely meaning of the word flourishes? In the warm, humid climate of Louisiana, Spanish moss flourishes, absorbing water from the air as it hangs from trees all over the state.

• dies slowly

• changes the climate

• destroys other plants

• grows in large quantities

Where is Brock at the beginning of “The Last Dog”?

• He is inside a research lab.

• He is beside a running brook.

• He is near a quarantine station.

• He is at the gates of a sealed dome.

In "The Last Dog," why is Brock nervous about going outside the dome?

• He realizes that his protective suit may be worn out and may fail.

• He thinks he will run out of liquid and food tablets.

• He has heard that people who leave never return.

• He fears that he may get lost in the mountains.

In "The Last Dog," what does Brock do when he finds the puppy?

• He calls for help on his scanner.

• He takes her inside the dome.

• He leaves her under the tree.

• He searches for her parents.

What do the scientists plan to do with Brog, the puppy, in "The Last Dog"?

• They plan to experiment on her.

• They plan to free her into the wild.

• They plan to sell her to fund research.

• They plan to breed her with another dog.

At the end of “The Last Dog,” why do the scientists let Brock and Brog leave the dome?

• The scientists have completed their experiments on Brog.

• The scientists want to observe Brock and Brog’s activity outside.

• The scientists think that Brock and Brog have a dangerous disease.

• The scientists realize that Brog will survive only by returning to the wild.

Which of the following could best be described as threatening?

• a soaring bird

• a hungry kitten

• a shivering mouse

• a hissing rattlesnake