Got Some Beaver

   / Got Some Beaver #1  

otlski

Gold Member
Joined
Feb 27, 2014
Messages
404
Location
New Hartford, Ct
Tractor
Jinma 204
So this garden tool forum was sitting here all empty... And now that I got your attention, I figured I post something to get it started.

Last summer my 82 year old diabetic friend calls me and says "Hey, you use to have beavers. Do you still have them and if not, how did you get rid of them?" I explained to him that a January rain storm over topped the frozen beaver pond, washing out the dam, lowering the water level and likely killing the beavers. My next words to my friend were "Why do you ask?" He explained that some property he was selling now has a dam and the flooding was devaluing the property. He went on about how the town and state were less than helpful.

He then said that he was going over to the property that day to take the dam out; that he could not get his tractor or mini-ex near the dam unless he partly drained it enough to dry it out a bit. I asked if his grandson was going with him and he said "no". My next words were "I would love to take a little adventure with you today, give me an hour, I will meet you there". He said "wear boots you dont care about, and are you allergic to yellow jackets or poison ivy". My reply "I will see you there".

I grabbed every tool I thought was useful. Shovel, prybars, hoe, etc, and headed out. When I got there he told me the walk in was longer and we should choose carefully what we carried. I took an ordinary shovel and this.
Rogue Hoe Field Hoe with ... | Forestry Suppliers, Inc.

Let me tell you, there was no reason to bring anything else to start manually disassembling a beaver dam than that pro-hoe. What a great tool. Its compactness allowed me swing down near my feet while being precariously balanced on beaver chew logs. It was a pry bar, an ordinary hoe for trenching, a surrogate axe for severing logs and branches. I used it to chop and loosen the pile, getting under it and almost as a shovel to scoop the loosened mud/grass/stick-log mess up.

My buddy kept asking for me to hand it across to him so he could use it. We made good progress until I told him I needed a break: that is when he checks his sugar levels ;o)

The water level noticeably dropped and with any luck it would dry out enough. We broke for the day and he said he would come back with his grandson the next day "and oh by the way, can I borrow that fancy hoe of yours?" This is a man who I have no problem letting borrow tools.

Turns out that him and his grandson went back a couple of times, enough to drop the water level to where he got a mini-ex in there and finished the job. And they all lived happily ever after - except the beavers. Honestly, I think the beavers had already moved on because they did not fix the damage we caused overnight.

So if you ever have to manually disassemble a beaver dam - that pro hoe is the tool to use.
 
   / Got Some Beaver #2  
Well, you got my attention. If you had started hoes it would be even better....

Btw, that thing looks like a grape hoe.
 
   / Got Some Beaver #4  
Meanwhile, my beavers are leading me to become a beaver death expert. Got another permit to pullout another beaver lodge next year, but I'm going to try and trrap the beavers myself as a friend claims they have the best tasting meat on the planet, and this guy knows how to cook, so I believe him. Anyway, good story and thanks for telling us about that tool.
 
   / Got Some Beaver #5  
I have one, or rather the city has to access MY property to get at the dam..
IT doesn't bother me but rather a neighbor 3 houses away.. the water backs up & floods his property..
The city came out w/ a backhoe & destroyed the dam.. only to put the spoils on the bank..
GUESS what happened.?? the beaver just built it back using his OLD material..
They didn't carry it off OR trap the beaver.. typical city planning..
 
   / Got Some Beaver #6  
In my experience the only way to solve the problem is to set traps
 
   / Got Some Beaver #7  
Last summer my 82 year old diabetic friend calls me and says "Hey, you use to have beavers. Do you still have them and if not, how did you get rid of them?" My next words to my friend were "Why do you ask?" He explained that some property he was selling now has a dam and the flooding was devaluing the property.

Wow this friend sounds amazing that at 82 he is still spry enough to get around that well, much less to be able to do that much work.

I sure hope that in 10 years that I will still be able to work like that as I do now.
 
   / Got Some Beaver #8  
When I was a teenager, getting some beaver... or even seeing some, had an entirely different meaning..... :)
 
   / Got Some Beaver #9  
Meanwhile, my beavers are leading me to become a beaver death expert. Got another permit to pullout another beaver lodge next year, but I'm going to try and trrap the beavers myself as a friend claims they have the best tasting meat on the planet, and this guy knows how to cook, so I believe him. Anyway, good story and thanks for telling us about that tool.

Wow, Eric - do let us know how it tastes! I have a real beaver problem myself, as you may recall reading about here on TBN. Had to hire Tree Experts to cut down 17 big Poplar and white birches that the beavers had almost chewed their way through, and which were threatening my giant boat house up at the cottage.

The little bu___rs are still checking the boat house out on a constant basis, and I have had to install a radio and an LED light running 24/7 in order to keep them from stuffing all their sticks under the walls of the boathouse and making a big mess!

I must admit, though, I never thought of eating them! Well, there is a first time for everything. You first.
 
   / Got Some Beaver #10  
When I was a teenager, getting some beaver... or even seeing some, had an entirely different meaning..... :)
Not to mention how you were going to cook it so it tasted good..!
;)
 

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