The Author and The Beaver

In my very first blog article, at the beginning of 2013, I posted a love letter to a dog named Chips.

It was Marion Zola's best-selling book:

Romancing the Dog: 

The Struggle To Make A Pound Dog Happy in Beverly Hills

http://www.amazon.com/Romancing-Dog-Struggle-Pound-Beverly-ebook/dp/B0094A14LG

(It's the only book I have come across lately with all five-star reviews)

Of course, Chips is not a beaver. But Marion is very active in all kinds of animal rescues and the survival of the American Beaver is something near and dear to her. 

Today, Marion shares her thoughts on 

the plight of the American Beaver with us:

"For those who missed the wonderful Nature episode on beavers, I'm here to tell you that they're simply fabulous creatures.  Unfortunately, for them and those that are aware of their wonderful virtues, their fur was coveted and they were hunted within an inch of their existence for about two hundred years.  From approximately the 1650s to the 1840s, beaver hats and other products were in style and quite popular.  Then, as silk became cheaper to make garments out of and other furs gained popularity,  beaver pelts were not as attractive.  Fortunately, for us and the beaver, their populations once again began to flourish. Thankfully, many people now realize how valuable these creatures are to have around.        

They are the original dam builders from whom mankind no doubt got the notion that we could build dams too.  Beavers are extraordinary engineers, working long hours on bringing the needed mud, stones and wood to their structures.  As their main food is the bark from trees, they eat the bark on the wood they use for building as well.  Their teeth are incredibly hard so that they can chew through wood with little effort.  

Although the beavers build in order to provide themselves ponds as protection against predators and provide food in the winter, their structures can benefit many animal species and people as well.  Their structures actually change and benefit the ecosystems.  Though many people have removed beavers from places they didn't want them, dam building can restore wetlands, provide flood control, improve biodiversity and cleaning of the water.  Pesticides are removed during the building process and silt is retained.   This silt collection is particularly prized by farmers because it creates a pond bottom rich in all kinds of nutrients.

One Ambitious Beaver

Almost half of the endangered species rely on wetlands that the beavers help restore. Additionally, the dams and ponds they create can provide nurseries for salmon and trout.  Their underwater structures are amazingly complex, with several entrances.  Believe it or not, they teach their young to exit the sleeping and eating quarters in order to relieve themselves, thereby keeping their houses clean.  Beavers are also generous and good- natured beyond belief.  If another species like muskrats or frogs come in their structures during the winter to keep warm, they welcome them and share their lodging and whatever food they have.  Wood with the bark removed is, however, not everyone's favorite meal. 

Beavers are also very affectionate and family oriented creatures.

A wonderful woman who rehabilitates orphaned beavers showed how she had to be careful not to let the beaver get too attached to her, as she wanted to return it to the wild.  They touch noses as one sign of affection, which the woman did with her charge.  She had to bring her wood and hope that she'd learn to eat it.  The beaver did learn this.  The woman also went into the water with her, though the woman was on a kind of surfboard.  The little beaver paddled alongside her, not letting her get too far away.  One day, the young one did swim off and join her own kind.  Eventually, the woman, who kept looking for her, saw her return when she was grown with her own baby.  

Thank goodness there are wonderful people who do try to repair the damage to animals that so many others have done.  I came away from this program really respecting this creature, about whom I knew next to nothing.  During this holiday season, let's remember that we have more choice than any other species on earth and don't need to take the fur away from any other critter to stay warm.  Lucky us!"

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Thank you, Marion, for taking time out of your very busy life to write this article for us. We can never be reminded often enough that all animals must be given their rightful place in our world; or surely we will perish with them.

Please, also check out Marion's blog: www.romancingthedog.com