My, We Are Busy!

According to the House Journal, the Michigan House of Representatives was in session a whopping 1 hour and 25 minutes yesterday, from 1:30 p.m to 2:55 p.m. Whew!

I suppose that we should be grateful they showed up for work at all (except that the Speaker did not), or perhaps we should be grateful that they didn't stay in session any longer, particularly when you consider what was going on.

I've already written about the "Worker Freedom Act," but we shouldn't leave our Republican brothers and sisters out if they distinguish themselves as they did yesterday, when seven of the GOP faithful decided that the burning issue of the day involved ferret security deposits!

No, I'm not kidding.

Seven Republicans introduced an amendment to the Pet Shops, Dog Pounds, and Animal Shelters Act. This Act currently requires a person adopting a dog, cat, or ferret to leave a $25 deposit with the adopting agency as security for the person's promise to have the animal "altered" within a certain period of time. "Alteration" is a "professional sterilization procedure performed by a veterinarian that renders a dog, cat, or ferret incapable of reproducing."

This landmark bill, HB 4465, would waive the deposit if "a dog, cat, or ferret is temporarily transferred, for a period of time not to exceed 90 days, to a person who will provide shelter for the dog, cat, or ferret before it is adopted by that person or another person."

Who are these temporary transferees -- ferret brokers? halfway houses for wayward weasels? And why exactly do they need this exception?

I can't shake the feeling that maybe, just maybe, there are more important things to worry about than a $25 refundable deposit to make sure certain animals are sterilized. Perhaps someday, we will ferret out the reason for this bill.