TOO MANY BEAVERS IN PEWAUKEE

VILLAGE OF PEWAUKEE – Beavers are among the many wildlife populations growing in Lake Country, and they are beginning to cause some issues at the Pewaukee River and around Pewaukee Lake.

“I like the beavers, but you have to limit the activity or they can destroy a place,” said Tom Koepp, manager at Pewaukee Lake Sanitary District. “I’ve never seen them come in as much as they have in the last five years or so.” 

Koepp has witnessed their damage in an area near the lake where they have chewed down an entire stand of poplar trees. 

You mean these beavers purposely didn’t starve themselves to serve your interests? The nerve!

“When I walked down the boardwalk by the river I thought ‘Holy cow, we do have a problem here,’ ” Koepp said. 

Other entities, such as the village and snowmobile club, have also noticed issues with the beaver population, and have asked Koepp to terminate a few. 

Koepp said he has trapped four since the beginning of this year. Koepp said beavers are more active in winter and spring, but he plans to continue to monitor them going into summer. 

You know how it is. They’re asking him to “thin out the herd”. Of course Mr. Koepp has no earthy idea how many beavers  are there and doesn’t realize they don’t travel in herds.. He can only count how many trees have fallen. And does he even mention wrapping trees in his complaints? No he does not. Because the only solution he has learned about is the final solution.

For the record, wrapping a few trees would save those trees for the long haul. Killing a few beavers will work until the remaining beavers get hungry.

Which reminds me of the new activity we’re planning for the festival this year. There’s one corner of the park with three small trees and we plan  to wrap them with (A) plastic fencing, (B) chicken wire and (C) welded wire and ask folks which is the correct way to protect them. 

The right answers will have a chance to win this.