It’s not easy being small. Bigger guys pick on you and you never get asked your preferences when decisions are made. But the advantage of being little and unimportant, is that the big predators and raptors go tearing off after the larger game and never notice you. Ask any mouse or compy, it’s hard being little but sometimes it leaves you safely ignored when the big bads come looking for dinner.
This used to be the fate of the State of the Beaver Conference, which existed in a rarely visited other universe where folks actually cared about the work beavers can do. For the most part politicians ignored it, and we could get on with the business at hand without much debate. No more. Ask Senator Coburn who recently wrote the new Secretary of the Interior kindly pointing out how to stop wasting money and keep its doors open.
Coburn also called on the department to do away with certain conferences, including those which are also sponsored by other departments. One peculiar example? A gathering held at a casino in Oregon called the State of the Beaver Conference.
“The State of the Beaver 2013 Conference, held at the Seven Feathers Hotel and Casino Resort Convention Center in Oregon several months ago, was sponsored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as well as the USDA Forest Service, the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, and the Department of Commerce’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,” Coburn said.
That’s not exactly true, Tom. The beaver advocacy committee made the decision to list an organization as a sponsor if presenters paid to get themselves there. Worth A Dam was listed as a sponsor. Not because we gave money to the conference, but because we self-transported. Technically we gave money to chevron, or American Airlines, or Amtrak. Fueling the economy. Chalk this up to similar outrage upon learning that the US spent money to study volcanoes. Or Climate Change. Well, you get the idea.
If you’d like to write Secretary Jewell your own thoughts on why the State of the Beaver conference is worth having, it would be nice of you to send them here. For now, we can just waive a fond goodbye to our ‘compy’ status, and get ready for the bigger leagues.
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Congratulations to the other half of Beaver Solutions ‘other half’.
NORTHAMPTON – Integrated Wildlife Control partner Don LaFountain loves the outdoors – and after receiving the Wildlife Professional of the Year award from the National Wildlife Control Operators Association, his love and accomplishments have been recognized nationally.
LaFountain has been working to help people and animals co-exist since establishing Integrated Wildlife Control in Florence. The non-profit organization specializes in helping people share habitat, specifically with beavers.
I’ll explain. Don is the business partner of Ruth Callahan who is Mike Callahan’s wife. Small Beaver World.
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My aunt from Oregon sent this clipping recently about San Jose. Not sure which paper it ran in but it’s nice to know we’re not forgotten. Oh and more beavers in towels because you know you need it. I think we should make a calendar.
