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RichInTheUSA
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 08:42am
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Hi. i'm going to take down a beaver dam that's on my creek. Not sure if the beaver is actually living in the dam yet.
Question for you... as I take the dam apart, is there a high risk that one or more beavers will attack?
I have a tractor and a cable... and plan to take much of it down that way... but will need to get into the water and take out sticks 1-1 i believe.
Thanks for an insights!
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FishHog
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 08:49am
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No there is zero risk of a beaver attack
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KinAlberta
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 09:16am - Edited by: KinAlberta
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Maybe keep any dogs away. Beavers can kill even large dogs.
I’m back. Found this:
Amazing! There’s even a Wikipedia page on the subject:
Beaver attack - Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaver_attack
And from there, this:
CBC Archives
Beaver attack!
LISTEN
https://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/beaver-attack
Be prepared to see the dam reappear in a few days. One of the dams on our creek, that was flooding our bridge, was rebuilt over and over again. A neighbour would break a big hole in it and before long it would be patched. So that neighbour and I ended up putting in some plastic sewer pipe aka “beaver dam levelling device†and so far it’s working. Also I owe this guy big time for all his efforts!!!
Before you go to all the work of tearing it down maybe search online for some videos of the dam levelling devices.
'They're aggressive': Edmonton beaver attacks prompt warning from Alberta trapper 'A dog swimming in the water at the wrong time could come under attack' Wallis Snowdon - CBC News Posted: June 23, 2017 “Beaver attacks are on the rise in Edmonton. In the past month, several people have reported that their dogs have been attacked at the Terwillegar off-leash park. Some pets have suffered serious injuries, and people are being encouraged to keep their dogs out of the water.†https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/edmonton-beaver-attacks-dogs-aggressive-warni ng-parks-city-trapper-1.4174855
Rabies anywhere, is scary thing.
Wild video: Rabid beaver attacks father, 7-year-old daughter kayaking on river
https://www.wbaltv.com/article/wild-video-rabid-beaver-attacks-father-7-year-old-daug hter-kayaking-on-river/22695511
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Brettny
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 02:31pm
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Beavers dont live in the dam. They live in the lodge thats in the water the dam makes. If theres not alot of freshly chewed logs/sticks by they may have moved on.
I have broke holes in many dams but never with a machine. Usualy there just snaller sticks and mud. Just stand on the dam and start pulling sticks out and pushing the mud down hill. Its kind of self cleaning once you get things loose.
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xtolekbananx
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 03:21pm - Edited by: xtolekbananx
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Make sure you wear those pants when dealing with angry beavers.
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RichInTheUSA
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 04:00pm
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Progress report..,, I pulled apart half the dam. Lots of fresh sticks and saplings. The tractor and a chain is definitely a big help.
I’ll post some pics after a while ðŸ‘
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Brettny
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 04:22pm
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They will rebuild it fast. Real fast. Like start tomorrow. Your best bet is to kill them if legal. Or call your local fish and game to find out if you can shoot them out of season due to property damage.
Beavers do alot of damage real quick if you dont keep on them. I have seen multipal 6ft tall dams on the same 2ft wide creek.
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KinAlberta
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 09:02pm - Edited by: KinAlberta
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Damage may not always be the right word. They cut down trees and flood areas and change the ecosystem. (The dams and historically low lake water seems to have generated and attracted a lot more wildlife than I can ever recall.)
We have about 8 dams on our property now and they’ve cleared a lot of trees and flooded multiple areas but that is something they’d probably been doing for thousands of years. They’ve opened up a view from our cabin that I only recalled seeing as kid. (Before we had them trapped out of the creek.)
Decades ago they cleared a lot of aspen around our cabins and as a result, spruce filled in the areas (the whole property had been logged of spruce at some point). This latest return had them clearing more poplar/aspen but for now we are mostly ok with the level of “damageâ€. Except that caused by putting our bridge under water just as freezeup occurred. Now I have a bent bridge to repair.
‘Let the Rodent Do the Work’: Reflections of a Beaver Believer “For all of my beaver belief, I’m not naive about what a pain in the butt they can be. They can certainly be a challenging species to coexist with. They dam in road culverts, cut down people’s cottonwoods and apple trees, and flood property. So they can be challenging for sure. The way people usually handle those conflicts is by trapping out the beavers, which is problematic because all you’re doing is putting up a vacancy sign for the next colony. One increasingly popular solution is what’s known as a flow device, which is basically a system of pipes and fences. You can pass the pipe through a beaver dam or road culvert, move some water out of the beaver pond, and regulate the height of the pond — hopefully to a level that is acceptable to both humans and rodents. It’s one way to strike a compromise between our two species. One study in Virginia found that for every dollar you spend on flow devices you save $8 in road maintenance and repeated trapping costs. When you also consider in all the habitat that you’re allowing the beavers to generate, it starts to look like a really cost-effective solution.â€https://environment.yale.edu/news/article/let-the-rodent-do-the-work-reflections-of-a -beaver-believer/
Bolding mine
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RichInTheUSA
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 11:06pm
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Before and After... Still got a little more to do.
Pretty much had to pull many small saplings out by hand... then when there was a good sized branch, I tied the chain to it and pulled it out with the tractor.
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KinAlberta
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# Posted: 19 May 2019 11:47pm
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Good work. Keep us posted.
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spoofer
Member
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# Posted: 20 May 2019 08:32pm
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thats Tiny...I have dams on my property that are probably 60-80 yards long. going to look for a pix
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spoofer
Member
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# Posted: 20 May 2019 08:53pm
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If you look closely, that is a road that under water.
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old243
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# Posted: 20 May 2019 10:50pm
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If you want them gone ,and they are on your property. sit by the dam in the evening and shoot them. When they come to rebuild the dam. Or if you can't do it yourself, get a trapper to , trap the colony , in season. I had a colony at our camp , wanting to build a dam in our culvert. Trapped out five , before they moved on. old243
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RichInTheUSA
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# Posted: 21 May 2019 12:14am - Edited by: RichInTheUSA
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Thanks Kim!
Spoofer, yes it is tiny... however, my "before" pic was really in the middle of the project. The dam went to the right of the big tree another 15 feet or so... still small compared to 60-80 yards for sure.
what do you mean "a road under that water"? Just curious.
Old234, Beaver are "in season" all year around if they are destroying property, and you are the land owner (which I am). I can do it myself... before it gets out of hand.
Here's a video of the little fella.... https://youtu.be/hIJDuHifoeM
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