DENVER -- April 16, 2009

Marianne was checking her email when she suddenly gave a yelp, leaped up and did a little dance around the room. I jumped to my feet and wagged my tail.

"What's Up?" I asked.

"You have a reprieve, a reprieve a reprieve!" she sang joyously. "I'm so happy! I have to call John right away!" She picked up the phone and reported this happy news to John. When she hung up she sat back down and began furiously typing. "I need to tell Pat and Vanessa and Elizabeth and Diane and Jessica and Jennifer," she said.

"Excellent!" I woofed. "Um, can I ask a question?"

"Sure," said Marianne as she kept typing.

"What's a reprieve?" I asked.

She stopped typing and looked at me. "Oh, I'm sorry, Ross! I should have explained," she apologized. "A reprieve usually means a respite from impending punishment or a death sentence..."

I interrupted, barking in alarm. "A DEATH SENTENCE? WHAT!?!"

"Let me finish!" Marianne laughed, pulling me over for a hug. "In this case reprieve means a postponement of your turn in date. You don't have to go to CCI College until November!"

Oh.

OH!!

"That is good news," I agreed. "Whew! Now I can slack off a bit and not work so hard; what a relief! I was really stressing about learning all those advanced commands by August."

Marianne gave me a stern look. "You don't have to stress about learning your commands, but you don't get to slack off, Buster. I still expect you to pay attention in class and keep working on the advanced commands."

When she calls me Buster I know she means business. So, the good news is I get to stay with my puppy raisers for three more months. The bad news is that I have to work just as hard. Rats.

Chow for now!

Ross

Questions or comments for Ross? Send him an e-mail!

Would you like more information about Canine Companions for Independence or perhaps be a puppy raiser? Call 1-800-572-BARK or go to CCI for details.