Update on Beaver Facing 'Eviction' From MA Wildlife Center Has People in Their Feelings
It seems like Nibi, the 2-year-old beaver currently in the care of the Newhouse Wildlife Rescue in Chelmsford, Massachusetts will be staying with them for a little longer. Tuesday marked the deadline when the organization was meant to relinquish the beaver back into the wild. But that day has come and gone, and now Nibi's future is unclear.
Nibi has been at the wildlife center since 2022, but controversy arose when Newhouse tried to get classified as an educational beaver with the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife.
NBC 10 reports that Newhouse's request was denied. What's more, the organization was told that they'd have to release the beaver into the wild. The organization knew this would be bad for Nibi for several reasons. She was the only orphaned beaver in New England for five months after she was rescued and had a hard time bonding with others.
Jane Newhouse, who spoke with NBC 10 and initially rescued Nibi when she was just a 1-lb. newborn on the side of the road, seemed shocked about the decision at first.
"I just heard back last week with the denial of my request and then an email saying that they’d be contacting me to release her soon," she told the news outlet. "[Nibi] has no idea she's going to be picked up tomorrow and dropped off somewhere she's never been."
The state ultimately filed a motion to take possession of the beaver, a video shared on TikTok by the news station states. Which is when Newhouse reached out to local authorities and created an online petition to save Nibi.
"Nibi was raised under human care and forcing her into the wild could put her at serious risk, a risk we consider not only unnecessary, but also potentially disastrous," the petition reads. Over 15,000 people signed the petition on change.com.
Mass Wildlife had planned to pick the beaver up this week, but in a post on Facebook, Newhouse said the organization told her they wouldn't be taking the beaver as planned. NBC 10 reports that Newhouse filed an injunction against the state and is scheduled to appear in court on October 4.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey has also weighed in on the issue and said that she stopped the plan to take Nibi and pledged to "protect Nibi" going forward.
"I know from my own team about Nibi the beaver, and I can tell you this — we're going to do everything we can to protect Nibi, and I appreciate those who care for wildlife — especially wildlife when they've been injured and rescued — and I appreciate the folks at MassWildlife too, whose job is to make sure we're looking after and protecting wildlife," she said.
"We're going to protect Nibi and make sure that Nibi is taken care of," she continued. "There was talk about releasing Nibi into the wild and I heard about that and said, 'No, we're going to pause on that and evaluate what's best for Nibi.'"
The beaver's future is to be seen.
Looking for more PetHelpful updates? Follow us on YouTube for more entertaining videos. Or, share your own adorable pet by submitting a video, and sign up for our newsletter for the latest pet updates and tips.
