Beaver problem

Beavers have invaded my fish pond which is about 100 feet from my back door. in 3 days, they have stripped bark off several pine trees on far side of pond. I have traps but worry about my dogs and cats. Will sit on the deck with buckshot for the next few nights since it going to be in the 60's all week here in up state SC. I really don't want to loose the trees. Any suggestions?
Richard

Wrap the base of the trees you need to save with aluminum window screen or hardware cloth.

If they're are making a dam, break it in a place and set the traps where you did the damage.

Sniper rifle?

Make a paste of using crushed (use a blender) red peppers, and paint the trees.

.22 at dusk!

They make a snare trap for them that you set in the water so the dogs and cats should not be harmed unless you have dogs and cats that swim a lot

Body-grip traps (also called Conibear traps) that you set in the water with bait or in front of their holes or in their waterways.

.243, 7mm/08, .308.

they are a wiley critter to eliminate. i went thru the same problem a few years ago with them raiding fruit and willow trees along my creeks. you will need to trap them to get rid of them, and if you dont set the traps correctly, they will be trap wise and never go near them. here is a link to a trapping supply that i use. get two books, beaver 2000 by hal sullivan and beaver and otter trapping open water techniques by charles dobbins. they will show proper set techniques for most any circumstance.
poke here

Break the dam and wait with a gun they will show up

About 30 years ago they brought beavers into the proving ground where I worked. It was a swampy area on both sides of the test course and in a short time they had dams built flooding the test course. They trapped a few of them and you had better know what you're doing when handling them. Their teeth is something to be scared of. They even dropped big trees overnight on the test course. Hal

duh/shucks , i was hoping to see some skin fur ...LOL ... we have beavers on both criks on either side of this place . for the most part we leave them alone .. they have harmed some timber,, but we harvested that ,, mostly underage timber and scrppy stuff ,, truely amazing to see their craftiness ,, serveral m iles downstream is a no bridge county road crossing that beavers dammed a good distance below ,, local girls went thru there one nite after a wet week when flow was up a good ft and had water over the seats when they got pulled out,.. they just wasn't expecting that..

Put some musk scent from another clan of beavers on the trap. Beavers are territorial enough that they will be attracted to the "foreign" scent on the trap.

We had a couple take up residence on a neighbor's farm, I told them SSS. You wait around dusk, with a .22, and take 'em out, just like a ground hog. They will bite, and mean business, so be sure to follow the advice in the following video!
That Bites

the castor lure shouldnt be put directly on the trap. construct a castor mound on the shore and use the castor lure on the mound. make a climb out leading to the castor mound and in the water set either a drowning snare set or use a bridger body grip trap set on a stabilizer underwater on the approach. a dive pole would be a good idea to get the beaver to dive under the pole directly into the trap. for a dam set, make two small breaks in the dam about 5 feet apart. on the upstream side, directly between the break, make your trap set perpendicular to the dam, using a snare or bodygrip trap, or if the water is shallow, a leg hold trap. the beaver will approach from upstream carrying debris to repair the dam break. if you make the set directly in line with the break, he will trigger the trap with the debris and will miss him. with the double break, they will repair the first break then turn to the second break, swimming directly into the trap. if they are feeding on the trees, locate where they are actively feeding, find the climb out, and the trail they are using. use a snare in the trail, a 10 to 12 inch loop on a locking cable snare will do the job. dont use castor lure on a trail set,. be sure to anchor the snare with a swivel and a length of dog chain. stake the chain below ground so the beaver doesnt chew off the stake and escape. he will be alive in this type of set, so you will need to dispatch him.

Thanks for all the help. I found my 12 volt spotlight last night and will try tonight with the lead poisoning.
Richard
PS. about 15 years ago, I shot one and left him in the pond. Big mistake. Stunk to high heaven. I will take the john boat and give this one a proper burial.
Another PS. My friend and I went and sat on the deck last night for a few minutes with guns loaded. Then he realized it was Valentine's evening and as he has been married less than a year, he decided it would not be a good idea to go home late and tell his bride he had been out "beaver" hunting.

I doubt that it is legal to shoot them during the day, and night spotlighting and shooting is a whole new ball game. Check with your state fish and game dept. They should have a trapper that will come and get them. Or a commercial pest company. You don't want $500 in fines and court costs for 30 dollars worth of tree.

Gordo

(quoted from post at 07:35:03 02/15/11) I doubt that it is legal to shoot them during the day, and night spotlighting and shooting is a whole new ball game. Check with your state fish and game dept. They should have a trapper that will come and get them. Or a commercial pest company. You don't want $500 in fines and court costs for 30 dollars worth of tree.

Gordo

Click to expand...

Where we live there is no problem.

You don't put the scent on the trap. You put it so the beaver steps in the trap trying to get to the scent.

I trapped beavers for years and they are easy to trap, but try putting roofing tar on the tree in the area they typically chew. I trapped a bunch out for a fella who was losing apple trees along a stream and the tar worked well. I have shot several as well. I never had to use more that a.22LR. If you sit quietly around dusk they will come within feet of you... an easy shot.
they aren't bad eating either. I used to smoke 'em.
........Enjoy!
Cal

Had the same problem. Seems like they make their way up a minor creek from a river miles away and make it to my pond about once every 5 years. Not long after one shows up, I'll have a half dozen. If you value your trees, don't delay, they can do an impressive amount of damage in a hurry. My answer: Jon boat, neighbor, headlamp, 410, beer. Row about quietly after dark, listen for gnawing sounds, ease up to about 10', spotlight, shoot. Wait for impressing death throws to subside, load carcass in boat, reload, turn out headlight, drink beer, repeat. Seems like when they're gnawing on a tree, they're in a trance and put up with the spotlight. If not gnawing, chased all over the pond and never got close. Got a few with longer range .22 shots, too much danger of wounding/suffering for me. Check local laws, I may have dreamed all this.

If legal, shoot them. Be prepared for more to move in again.