Sukie (and all!) -
 
I don't know what to tell you about Bruce White.  When I first got into the
idea of working to legalize them everyone told me to get in touch with Bruce.
I did and called him a number of times asking about what I could do and
I never got a straight answer from him.  As a matter of fact (though I
can't say that I KNOW that is is Bruce's fault) the first time I called
Ferret World (which is run out of his garage - I have been there) I asked
the person answering the phone how they and the UFO came about to being
located in Massachusetts, one of the few remaining states where ferrets are
illegal, and she said that the organization UFO used to be located in Maryland
but that it had recently moved to Mass.  She then went on to tell me (this
was last December) that ferrets had just been legalized in Massachusetts.
Of course I ran around screaming and jumping for joy, but quickly decided to
call the Massachusetts Fisheries and Wildlife Office.  They promptly informed
me that that was completely untrue.  Talk about being irresponsible!  The
good thing that occured was that the person that I talked to at the Mass
Fisheries and Wildlife Office was Tom French and if and when ferrets are le
legalized in Massachusetts if will be Tom French that we can all thank.
 
To sum up my feelings on Bruce White:  Up until the hearing he just upset me
a lot because I called him a number of times asking for his input and advice
and never got so much as a few words out of him.  Then a week before the
hearing he calls me (I don't know where he got my number since he would
never take it the other times I talked to him.) and asked me about the bill.
This was on the Friday before the hearing (which was on a Tuesday).  He
also talked to me as if he had never spoken to me before (ie, that he didn't
remember me).  He REALLY wanted to see the redraft and it was too late to mail
it to him so I decided to chance the effort of going to see him in hopes that
he could help the process.  I drove the 200 miles roundtrip from my college
down to his house and spent from 7pm until after 10pm going over the bill
with him and his wife.  We discussed different issues like how to tell
fitches from domestic ferrets, if ferrets should be allowed to be sold in
pet stores, etc.  I asked if he would go to the hearing to speak and he
said that he couldn't.  Then at the hearing he spoke with the opposition
and stated plain as day that he never saw the redraft.  I don't think I need
to say anything else.  The sad thing is that I have several other stories
about him that are "doozies!"  Some really unreal things that happened
that I was involved in, and several stories that other people have told me,
I don't want to really beat the guy into the ground (well, after that
hearing....) but there is one other thing that I feel that I should make
public.
 
When I found out that one of the major issues that the MSPCA had against
ferrets were that they were afraid that shelters would be overrun with them
I decided to call Pam Grant of the Pet Pals Ferret Rescue, Mary Van Dahm or
the Greater Chicago Ferret Club and Rescue, and lastly Bruce White of the
Michael G. Alfonso Ferret Rescue.  Pam and Mary gave me fabulous information
about how they deal with shelter ferrets, the placement records, and letters
stating that Massachusetts wouldn't face the problem of shelters being overrun
with ferrets.  I asked Bruce White about it and he said that the Fall River
Animal Shelter had 40 cats in it this weeks and that they would have to be
put down by the end of the week and that he expected the same would occur
if and when ferrets were legalized in MA.  I have told this story to
Pam and Mary and countless others and have heard outrage from all of them
that anyone would dare even contemplate having to put down healthy ferrets
that are without home.
 
Well, guess I have had enough (or too much) say today.  In the next couple
of days I will get around to typing up the redraft of the bill that we
presented so you can all see for yourselves what it was all about.  I have
send copies of the bill to Pam Grant and Fara Shimbo asking for their advice
(and I plan to send it out to a few others as well) so that we can have a
bill that is airtight for this year.
 
(by the way, think I should submit the description of the Massachusetts
Ferret Legalization Drive to the UFO's newsletter?? ;)  Doubt that it would
go over too well!)
 
Beau
                                                                          
[Posted in FML 0164]