Orphaned beaver rehabbing at Chelmsford wildlife rescue must be released from captivity, state says

CHELMSFORD, Mass. — A Chelmsford wildlife rehabilitator is asking state officials to reconsider releasing an orphaned beaver back into the wild.

Meet 2-year-old Nibi.

She was transferred to the Newhouse Wildlife Rescue as a baby after being found on the side of the road. She received life-saving care from Jane Newhouse and her staff for the last two years.

After several failed attempts to reintroduce her back into the wild, Newhouse reached out to MassWildlife to get Nibi a position as an education beaver.

Officials denied this request and ordered Nibi to be released into the wild as early as Tuesday morning.

“I have spent the whole day crying,” Newhouse said in a tearful interview. But supporters of Nibi have taken to social media, pushing for the state to change its mind.

“I’m trying not to get hopeful but I’ve been a bit blown away by the amount of attention, the amount of people who have fallen in love with this beaver,” Newhouse said. “I knew she had a big fan base but the amount of people who are willing to do whatever it takes to help her is really, really warming my heart right now.”

According to Newhouse, when Nibi was first rescued, she was the only orphaned beaver in all of the wildlife rehab centers in New England.

“For successful rehabilitation we really want them to be with others of their own kind, it’s so important,” she said. With Nibi, however, there were no beaver friends to be found for 5 months.

“A baby beaver, they’re very, very family oriented,” Newhouse said. “It’s cruel to just leave them alone with no interaction. [So] Nibi interacted with our staff until she was 5 months old.” Those interactions, she said, may have caused unexpected consequences in the animal’s rehab.

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At 5 months old, Newhouse Wildlife staff transferred in an orphaned beaver from Rhode Island in hopes that the two could learn from each other to be real beavers. According to Newhouse, Nibi wanted nothing to do with her Rhode Island counterpart.

“Obviously the goal of rehabilitation is to get these animals back into the wild,” Newhouse said. “[But] the whole two years we’ve been rehabbing [Nibi] we couldn’t get her to interact with any other beavers...We were really stuck between a rock and a hard place.”

Newhouse came up with the idea to contact MassWildlife and apply Nibi to be an educational beaver. That application was denied.

Newhouse believes if Nibi is released into the wild, she will die due to a lack of survival instincts.

MassWildlife says the animal is perfectly healthy and must be returned to the wild in accordance with state regulations.

In a statement, a MassWildlife spokesperson said:

“The role of licensed wildlife rehabilitators is to care for sick and injured wildlife so that animals can be released back into the wild as soon as possible. Newhouse Wildlife Rescue was informed in June that the beaver is healthy and must be returned to the wild, in accordance with their permit and state regulations. Wild animals like this one belong in the wild, and releasing them back into their natural habitat enables them to lead fulfilling lives and contribute to the ecosystem.”

State officials also say Newhouse was informed in June that Nibi needed to be released. They also said that it’s an appropriate time of year to release the animal into the wild, as beavers typically begin preparing a food cache in late September and early October, and the beaver will have ample time to prepare for winter before temperatures begin to drop.

“MassWildlife has determined the best solution is to release the beaver into the wild in a remote setting away from people without delay to maximize the beaver’s health and survival,” the spokesperson said. They also expressed their gratitude for the services rehabilitators provide.

According to Newhouse, Nibi will be picked up by state wildlife officials on Tuesday morning and released.

There is currently a petition with more than 7,500 signatures hoping that the animal will get to stay at Newhouse Wildlife.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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