November in the northern lower peninsula of Michigan is not normally swimming weather, but it was so warm when the dogs were out hunting last week, we made sure to give them a swim break so they could cool off. They also had a little fun at the same time.
We have to be a bit careful sending the dogs into the water or letting them get too far ahead of us in this area because right across from the pond we saw this…
A couple of weeks ago when we were in this area, these trees were untouched. Beavers can do a lot of damage in a short time. While the beavers are living the high life, the destruction of habitat due to loss of trees and/or flooding can hurt other wildlife populations like grouse and woodcock. When there are too many beavers in a particular area they are considered a nuisance and in fact we ran into a trapper who is working on getting rid of them in this area. He told us where his traps were located which was good because we would not want the dogs to end up in one. Normally we would not worry too much about traps because many trappers wait until winter when the pelts are better; however, this year they were already trapping them.
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I’ve heard of this Sojos brand before, but it’s not in Singapore. Glad the dogs had fun, it looks like later in the day when you took the pictures? Or is it generally darker this time of the year for you?
It was cloudy and over cast so that is why it looks darker. Normally we try to go out when it is sunny, but this year we had better luck on the cloudy damp days.
Hunters scare us but normally you hear a shot or see the orange but traps are hidden. There have been a lot of posts in our tracking groups going around about how to remove a dog from a trap. Very scary stuff!
Knowing how to remove a trap is a important.
My gang was swimming yesterday. I love this weather, especially for preacher to be able to get her swimming before winter.
I love the pic of those two heads above the water! Great photos!
Who would’ve thought dogs could be swimming in November? It hadn’t even occurred to me, but it’s definitely been warm enough here too.
I’ve heard beavers might attack dogs as well….is that true?
Hi Y’all,
A couple of years ago we had beaver buildin’ their lodge where we dock our boat beside the house. They slipped into the water when they saw us, my Humans and myself. They’d started this lodge before we’d returned from the high country. I started peeing on the part that protruded out of the water. Problem solved! They abandoned their building and moved elsewhere.
Y’all come on by,
Hawk aka BrownDog
Interesting. Did your people remove the lodge after they left?
That beaver looks like he’s wearing a raincoat!
It was slimy mud and I have no idea why. He was not near a pond, but maybe he rolled in a mud hole.
Wonderful shots! They look so happy out working!
Cold enough overnight to chill the water surface, Macha and Erynn swimming yesterday, came out with brrs and then headed into some burs! Sun was warm enough, that after toweling they were tearing about and dried quickly. One coat is rougher and was really loaded!
Thunder kept getting into these small sticker bushes around where they were hunting the river. Had to brush and pick the stickers out of his coat. Usually he doesn’t get many burs but those little sticker bushes were a pain.
Swimming? Sheesh! We would be a bunch of ice cubes if we were swimming right now! LOL!
ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!
Looks like Storm and Freighter had a good time! Glad the trapper told you where his traps are! But isn’t there a more humane way of trapping the beavers than with those big, steel traps? Those things I’ve seen on tv shows like NatGeo look horrific.
Trapping is highly regulated in Michigan. They are supposed to use the correct size traps for the species and let any animals caught unintentionally go or report to the DNR if they kill something out of season or not targeted. This trapper said his were under water so I believe they were actually more like snares. He said once he released a live bobcat that he trapped out of season. It was not hurt.
Does your state have a program for trapping beavers, or is it just a common practice? I would also worry about the dogs getting stuck in a trap or having a confrontation with a beaver. 🙁
Michigan allows trapping on public land, just like they allow hunting, snowmobiling, ATV trails etc. We all share the state lands. But trapping is highly regulated and normally we would not be way back in there when it is going on. The trapper said his beaver traps were under water so I think they were probably some kind of snare although we did not discuss what kind of trap he was using. We should worry more about running into porcupines. I am pretty sure Storm could take a beaver….lol.
Oh, that’s worrisome to know there are traps around! Yikes. Just saw your comment above about potential porcupines. Double yikes! Saw some pics online the other day of a dog that got shot in the face by a porcupine. Egad! I can’t imagine! Anyway, the race pics are very cute! Rita loves nothing more than a dunk in some water when she’s hot! (But try to give her a bath…..!)
I do not think porcupines actually shoot their quills. What usually happens is the dog sticks his face close to the porcupine (to smell maybe) and then the quills get stuck in the dog’s skin. They are fine and can get buried in the dogs skin easily. It is not fun to take them out. Usually the dog needs a vet visit. We have been lucky so far and it is one reason we air the dogs on lead at dusk or after dark.
Be safe!
Looks like a fun way to cool off.
that was a little like watching a swimming event of the olympics :o) be careful and avoid that guys with the long teeth… bet they are untasty somehow when they eat so much trees…