After a brutal fire season, Think Wild turns to volunteers to save beaver habitat

BEND, Ore. — Think Wild animal hospital is recruiting hundreds of volunteers this fall to help restore beaver habitat in the Deschutes National Forest, after an unusually severe fire season forced the organization to delay or cancel several conservation projects.

Think Wild is hosting 50 volunteer days in September and October, with the hope of getting about eight volunteers a day. A key focus is building makeshift beaver dams which will mimic the real thing and hopefully draw beavers back to the area.

ANOTHER GOOD IDEA

heidi08 Beavers September 2, 2026

HISTORY LESSON

heidi08 Beavers September 1, 2026

I wrote this for the city grant but thought it would be a paragraph worth sharing here. Hopefully this can help explain things.

The Martinez Beaver Festival is a beloved community event in its 18^th year that celebrates urban wildlife and a uniquely cohesive chapter in the city’s history when families, public figures. Businesses. teachers, institutions, city officials, and interested individuals came together to support the local beavers and find a humane solution to their presence of Alhambra Creek. The milestone achievement remains one of them best-known stories about the city and draws interested attendees from round the county, state, country and even beyond. The festival reminds attendees that solutions are possible when communities work together and is the sole event in the city dedicated to wildlife. The beaver festival provides a fun family venue for learning about beavers, birds, fish, and the variety of species that make up our wild neighbors, teaching attendees how best to live alongside them.

THINKING ABOUT THE ANNIVERSARY

heidi08 Beavers August 31, 2026

It was twenty years ago today
Beavers came in from the strait to stay
And they took a tree beside the creek
Built a dam they guaranteed to leak
So may I introduce to you
The story that has lasted years?
Mainstreet Beavers in Martinez D-A-M

The main street beavers in Martinez built a dam
They hoped we would enjoy the show
Main street beavers in Martinez built a dam
They city said they had to go
Mainstreet beavers, Mainstreet Beavers,
Mainstreet beavers in Martinez built a dam

It’s wonderful to watch them
Its certainly a thrill
So many otters, birds and fish
Attracted to their pond you know
Attracted to their pond!

They promised he could fix the flow
So the water wouldn’t grow and grow
And he alone knew what to do
what no really thought was true
And then they introduced to us
The one and only from Vermont
Here comes Skip to fix Martinez d-a-m.