Calgarians rescue trapped beaver in southeast community of Riverstone
Residents in a southeast Calgary neighbourhood are questioning the use of leg-hold traps after freeing a beaver caught in one that had malfunctioned.
Tracey Tilden, her husband Breckh and daughter Brook, found the beaver about six hours after it was caught in a leg-hold trap at a creek near their home in the community of Riverstone.
She says it was trying to free itself and looked exhausted. It was dark when they arrived with neighbour Richard Manns.
Breckh and Manns struggled to hold the beaver and free its leg on the muddy bank of the creek.
"This trap, the city told me that it malfunctioned, it was supposed to asphyxiate and drown the beaver humanely," said Tilden. "There's nothing humane in that."
Manns says the beaver waddled away once it was freed.
"As soon as he got released he took a couple of steps and looked back and it was like kind of like a thank you," said Manns. "That was a pretty awesome moment."
Manns says he's glad a person or pet didn't come across the trap that he believes shouldn't be used in a residential area.
"I'm just hoping that somebody looks at this and says maybe this isn't appropriate," he said. "Let's change what we're doing because we can't just let (beavers) do whatever they want but at the same time we can't just throw a trap in the ditch and say 'don't worry about it, it's all good, bye.'"
Tilden says it was disturbing seeing the beaver struggling to live. Her daughter videoed the nighttime rescue and Tilden posted it on the community Facebook page.
"People were shocked and horrified," she said. "The fact that it was in a residential area, such a barbaric trap, inhumane, it had a long cord attached with 40 pounds of weights that this poor beaver was trying to drag around."
Lincoln Julie is the Integrated Pest Management lead for the City of Calgary parks department. He says the city always explores options for co-existence first when it comes to animal issues.
"The difficult part with Cranston, Riverstone is that it is an ideal beaver habitat," said Julie. "Just the way that the channel comes off from the river and then runs down and then goes back into the river."
He's tasked with weighing the benefits of the beavers in the community with the damage they create on the landscape. Then he has to deal with a divided community about the topic.
"There's one side that wants us to leave the beavers and one side that wants us to get rid of the beavers," said Julie. "Our ideal situation would be somewhere in the middle."
Julie says the city has hired a contractor with 35 years of experience dealing with beaver issues all over western Canada. The contractor recommends a smaller population of beavers on the landscape and is trapping some to do that.
"We have to work with them and trust their expertise," said Julie. "But also, you know, consult with other industry experts on best ways to manage beavers and then there's people throughout the industry that we discuss this with."
The city has placed wire mesh around trees to protect them from hungry beavers. It's also tried water levellers and opened up dams to reduce area flooding. Julie says this is the only community in the city where it's dealing with a beaver issue and even a few can do a lot of damage.
"Just in that little channel, one family is probably the maximum that it can sustain," he said. "One beaver can take down 200 trees a year so if you have a couple of beavers, that's 400 trees and then add some kits that come along with that, that can very quickly just deforest the whole area."
Julie says better communication in the area could help educate residents on what the city is trying to achieve with a healthy landscape and beaver population.
"We want again, to co-exist with all wildlife," said Julie. "Whether it's beavers, it's coyotes, bobcats whatever, that's what's great about Calgary is that this wildlife exists in Calgary and we do coexist peacefully for the most part."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
12 students and teacher killed in Columbine school shooting remembered at 25th anniversary vigil
Thirteen victims of the Columbine High School shooting were remembered during a vigil Friday on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the shooting that was the worst the nation had seen at the time.
Man who set himself on fire outside Trump trial dies of injuries, police say
A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former U.S. President Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza city of Rafah kills at least 9 Palestinians, including 6 children
An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza's southernmost city killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.
Mandisa, Grammy award-winning 'American Idol' alum, dead at 47
Soulful gospel artist Mandisa, a Grammy-winning singer who got her start as a contestant on 'American Idol' in 2006, has died, according to a statement on her verified social media. She was 47.
Iraq investigates a blast at a base of Iran-allied militias that killed 1. U.S. denies involvement
Iraqi authorities said Saturday that they were investigating an explosion that struck a base belonging to the Popular Mobilization Forces, a coalition of Iran-allied militias, killing one person and injuring eight.
The House is on the brink of approving aid for Ukraine and Israel after months of struggle
The House is preparing in a rare Saturday session to approve US$95 billion in foreign aid for Ukraine, Israel and other U.S. allies.
'It was joy': Trapped B.C. orca calf eats seal meat, putting rescue on hold
A rescue operation for an orca calf trapped in a remote tidal lagoon off Vancouver Island has been put on hold after it started eating seal meat thrown in the water for what is believed to be the first time.
Sask. father found guilty of withholding daughter to prevent her from getting COVID-19 vaccine
Michael Gordon Jackson, a Saskatchewan man accused of abducting his daughter to prevent her from getting a COVID-19 vaccine, has been found guilty for contravention of a custody order.