To update the post about the soon-to-be homeless ferrets:
  Baby and Bandit Ferret, their pal Jake the Snake and all the others (birds,
chinchilas and fish) have been granted a reprieve until May 25th, end of the
current school year.  After that, no animal will be allowed on campus for
more than a week without permission from the district superintendent.  Mark
Reese, age 9, was quoted as saying "it feels good".  He and his classmates
used a letter and petition campaign to win the reprieve.  Democracy in
action!
  This situation occurred several years ago in the Houston area when someone
complained about a classroom's adopted pot-bellied pig.  Although banned, he
now lives with one of the teachers, and apparently still visits his old
"home".  Hopefully, the same good fortune will visit these folks also.
 Certainly this is one group of kids who will grow up knowing more about
ferrets than the misguided person who complained.
 
Bryan McCullough
[Posted in FML issue 1151]