Beaver: Sink or Float?

[caribou]

Beaver sink quickly.
We shoot them in calm water (if your inna river) like an eddy or , mostly ,in a lake, and when they are shot, they sink, so we pullover, have smoke, a cup of coffee, and indeed, they float back up, taking from 1/2 an hour to a full hour and the float up, guarenteed.
They eat vegitation and like cows, their guts bloat up.

Be patient, they WILL float up in a bit of time.
Its easier to wait than to try and catch another.

 

[MrCleanOK]

I've seen them sink and float.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

I trapped and hunted them for years and have never seen a floater unless it had been dead for several hours.

 

[LEVRLOVR]

They sink.

The way I got the few I shot was to send my dog in after them.

Yep, he was a submariner.

 

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

Seriously, I'm gonna re-do this one with a poll, since we have such widely diverse answers. Lol.

 

[KenW.]

As a young person growing up back east, it was unlawful to trap beaver as the state said they were endangered. These pesky endagered beaver would build dams that flooded my Dad's valuable farmland.

I've shot several and they sunk. When decomposition took place they'd bob up and I'd take a rowboat out and remove them from the pond.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

Beaver here in Alabama are furbearers but can be hunted or trapped year round with no bag limit. The appropriate license for either hunting or trapping plus written permission from the land owner is required. Hunting is daylight hours only. I've killed them with Winchester 190 and 290 also Marlin model 60. I am most pleased with the affore mentioned Savage 65M with CCI Maxi-mags. I have skinned nearly all that I have taken but never eaten one(can't get past the smell!). The first one that you skin will work you to death!

 

[Leaky Waders]

Again...I'm from the South too. You blow 1/2 a beaver head away...it's floating. You straffe it with some #6 or a 22 and it swims off. YMMV.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

Not to argue with you,Leaky Waders but of the many dozens that I have shot never has one ever floated,never.

 

[Leaky Waders]

Well the ones that are trying to haul off my decoys get a load of heavy shot in their head...1/2 their head is gone, they are floating and so are my decoys. True, I haven't shot dozens...only a few. Got one pelt treated, the fur is soft...1/2 its head is gone.

I think if they are drt they float. Otherwise they swim off to die. It's just like a deer running 50 or 100 yards or crumbling in the spot shot.

It doesn't make sense from the poster above to shoot one...have it sink and rise in 30 -60 minutes. I think it was still alive, swam down to the bottom and died. And, floated back up.

I guess to solve the problems we need to get some wet beavers and study them Hmmm, I haven't been home since April, so yes I went there.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

I think the vast majority that I shot were DRT because all were head shots. I have only shot one with a shotgun, a small river beaver about 25lbs with a 12ga using #6 shot. That is the only one that wasn't DRT.

 

[Leaky Waders]

Hmm it's weird some float and some don't then? I mean why would some people say they did if they didn't or that they didn't if they did? There's nothing to gain one way or another.

The ones I've killed were on a damn filled lake or the small ponds near it. It was over 6 foot deep. I know because of the line I had out on the dekes.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

It is curious isn't it? Until this thread,it never occured to me that some beaver were just stubborn about sinking. Waiting for the good doctor to put up the poll so we can get an idea of how many sink or float.

 

[jimmyraythomason]

Just to clarify. I have been talking about adult beaver. Kits under 10lbs or so float alive or dead.

 

[45crittergitter]

I shoot quite a few in the creeks around here, mostly with shotgun. All I've killed float or nearly float (say within 1' of the surface).