Yesterday we learned that the beaver body brought wednesday was too decomposed to provide any information on disease or tissue samples. To say this was devastating news was a vast understatement, because we were hoping that the small bright light of Junior’s death would be that he would point the way towards how to save the others.
But that apparently won’t be happening.
For a long while I dissolved into a puddle of panicked tears. If we couldn’t find out why the beavers were dying and we couldn’t stop it, then there was every reason to think we’d lose them all. Meanwhile there were numerous phone calls and messages saying this is terrible, or give us a quote, or I think “X” is killing them, always with the message that I should do something – DO SOMETHING – to stop this. Jon was treated to a dramatic Heidi breakdown when he said innocently that whatever I thought was best we would do.
BUT I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO!!! I wailed.
I have listened to all the professionals that will talk to me, and called in everyone that I can think of. I have cc’d the feedback from the pathologist to everyone I can think of that might help, with more than a few hail-mary passes. Honestly, yesterday I was thinking, if our beavers are going to keep dying here, then we need to tear down the dam, rip out the flood wall so they can’t rebuild, stop them with a flotilla of boats and make them leave.
Somewhere they at least have a chance of being safe.
I eventually resigned myself to an advanced death patrol, thinking that if wednesday’s beaver was too decayed for information, we would have to get any other beaver that died to Davis more quickly. So I wrote the local supporters to get people to commit to looking up and down the creek every day. As of now we’re covered thru wednesday. So if you can help, drop me an email. We need all the help we can get.
Last night Dr. Travis Langcore of UCLA responded to one of my SOS’s with an article documenting toxoplasmosis as a cause of death in a young (5 month) beaver. He noted that “If you’ve got a lot of feral cats around the site, there will be a high burden of T. gondii oocysts, which cause it”. Which of course we do, and always have. The article discusses the fact that the cells didn’t show up in a normal autopsy and they had to be specially treated to be identified. Hmm. I sent this onto the vet and pathologist. Hopefully it will help. Hopefully something will.
Emily Dickinson said Hope is the thing with feathers. But of course readers of this website know better.
Hope is the stream with beavers They form a dam with sticks To catch the flow and water store Where wildlife will mix These survived a death decree Endured a sheetpile wall And triumphed when their mom was lost So faith – in them – is all. 
- Yearling – Cheryl Reynolds
