Vanity post - My lake is having a beaver problem, any advice on how to trap them?

04/07/06 | Abathar

[Abathar]

I was hoping someone could answer a couple of questions I have on how to get rid of beaver out of a lake. I live in Indiana now but grew up in Michigan my whole life. Up there if you even look crosseyed at one the DNR will arrest you on the spot, so I was surprised when I called them here to get permission to live trap the d@mn things the officer just laughed and suggested I use dynamite on their home. He told me they were endangered once but since they brought them back our county has classified them as a nuisance. He told me if they were a problem just trap them or shoot them. The problem is they come out mostly at night, and the spillway the little b@stard keeps daming up is about 300 yards away from my back porch, and since they haven't started building a den yet I don't know where they sleep. I have to clean the stupid spillway up at least 3 times a week now, and I am getting pretty upset. If someone has some ideas not involving high explosives I sure would appreciate it.

[CollegeRepublican]

I am laughing already, thinking about the possibilities for this thread.

But seriously though, a .22 would probably take care of them. Consult a trapper.

[KC Burke]

You are right.

When this colloquialism first began to be used in the early sixties, I quoted the dictionary definition in my student newspaper column and it prompted my first suspension from the paper.

[Lucky9teen]

The state of Michigan threatened local beavers with a $10,000 per day fine for failing to remove their dam.

Read story here...it's true

[martin_fierro]

Sorry, all my suggestions involve C4.

[soycd]

In public I'd suggest; break dam, wait until dusk near dam and club it or use small caliber if laws allow.

There are much more fun and tried ways but triple S rules apply.

[Abathar]

I know, but my lake is 12 acres about 50' deep and the spillway is on the levy. The lake overlooks a paved road about 100' away, I have a large umbrella policy on it, but I really don't want to do anything that will hurt the integrity of the mound, it would be very bad if the thing gave way.

[CougarGA7]

Too many beavers? I've never had that problems. :(

[Al Gator]

Muskrats?

Fire up the grill, I'll show you how you and your friends cnan get rid of them and save on groceries too!

[Vaquero]

This is the limit....any further and I get in trouble with ADMIN.

[CollegeRepublican]

http://www.indianatrappers.org/

[najida]

Betcha told'em the dam made their butts look big.

[Bahbah]

it prompted my first suspension from the paper.

LOL. But not your last? Once a troublemaker, KC...:)

[CholeraJoe]

Bait a non-lethal cage trap with onions, capture them and release them far, far away.

[wallcrawlr]

[martin_fierro]

[magslinger]

Any problem can be solved by the judicious use of explosives.

[presidio9]

ping

[Abathar]

We have them too, but they tend to stay at the other end that I don't care about. My wife and I planted about 45 willow trees along the far shore, hoping to block a view of a valley of my neighbors thats a mess. The damn things turned them into what appears to be a pungy pit of death, walking over there could be deadly if you tripped and fell. I have been pulling them out of the spillway every couple of days now, getting very mad at the damn things.

[softwarecreator]

Bait a non-lethal cage trap with onions, capture them and release them far, far away

Wouldn't it be easier just to go to a single's club?

[Vaquero]

In the Bill Murray movie Scrooge there was a TV promo for a new show called "Father Loves Beaver," a TV spoof of "Leave it to Beaver," Wally asks his mom where his dad is. She replies, "Oh, if I know your father, he’s out chasing beaver".