How many trees?
Can you put up a fence around the perimeter?
Electric fence may work. Put it about 4-6" off the ground.
I'm not sure what we're down to now since I haven't personally seen the damage. There's probably only about a few dozen left by now, but I'm just guessing. It's just an area by the river where we sit and enjoy the scene. A fence would be too cumbersome due to a steep incline and make weeding out the area a pain. We also don't have electricity there. But, I like your ideas.
best thing to do is contact govt trapper and they will remove them...
A govt trapper? I never knew such a thing existed. They do it for free? How would I find one in my area?
To stop them you will have to destroy their dam
At this point, hubby did not see any dam in the area. It is not swampy where we are. Just riverside property. I think the forest service would destroy any efforts for a dam since there are homes on the river and also lots of people using the river in the summertime. But, we'll certainly pay attention when we float the river this summer for any dams and other chewed up trees.
You must walk the stream and destroy any area they start to rebuild for months.
It's a river. It's a no go for us anyways since we are only there a few weeks intermittently during the summer/fall.
This is one way to build it, you can also make it lengthwise for a wide area It needs to be on an area that will not silt in.
View attachment 128006
Those are cool but unfortunately won't work in our situation. The river is full of tubers and kayakers all summer long. Plus we don't have any culverts, nor is the river shallow enough for something like that near our property. Besides, I'm sure the drunks in the canoes would have that torn out in a heartbeat.
I know you don’t want to kill them but it is really the only answer.
I don't mind them being killed. It's just that we can't do it. We're not there for long enough periods of time and when we are there, the beavers aren't.
I spoke to a critter getter today and he said the same thing Ben did. Beavers have to chew, whether they use the wood for a dam or not.....they have to keep their teeth conditioned so they don't get too long. He would put traps out before the river got too overrun with people, but there are no guarantees and he is charging $600 for 30 days. Since they have to check their traps routinely, I understand the charge. We'll re-evaluate when we go down there in a couple of weeks or so and make a plan. I'm thinking that putting wire around the trees that remain might be our best option. It is a river after all, so even if we can get rid of the critters that are causing issues now, there's no guarantee that others won't take their place sooner or later. Hubby's taking his 17 Henry anyways just in case he gets a good shot at one.
I learned a lot about beavers today while talking to the critter getter. It was not really something I was planning on learning today. Ha ha. Thanks to all of you who replied. I learned even more........
