A Burlington, Vermont man is back on dry land and recovering after a wild Fourth of July swim in Lake George turned into a full-on beaver brawl. The man dove in to help a friend who was being bitten and ended up with serious wounds to his finger, wrist and stomach, prompting state officials to warn swimmers and boaters to stay clear of parts of Turtle Island while they keep an eye on the local beaver colony.
Brandon Shortsleeve told WBAL that the animal first clamped onto his friend’s leg. When Shortsleeve pulled the beaver off, it turned on him instead, forcing him to fight it off and toss it back into the water. He and the other swimmer were treated at a hospital and began a series of rabies shots, according to WNYT.
DEC Issues Water Safety Advisory
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation is urging people to steer clear of the waters around campsites 1–5 off Turtle Island through at least July 14 while officers monitor a group of beavers that “may be infected with rabies,” according to NYSDEC. The agency is asking campers and boaters to use “utmost caution” and to report any strange animal behavior to the regional DEC office. In an emergency, officials say to call 911 or DEC dispatch.
Why Officials Suspect Rabies
State wildlife experts say this was not normal beaver behavior. A beaver that approaches people at all “would be considered abnormal,” said Jackie Lendrum, director of DEC’s Fish and Wildlife Division, and a DEC wildlife health leader noted that beavers are typically a “dead-end host” for rabies, meaning they rarely spread it, per reporting from the Times Union. Wildlife rehabilitators interviewed by the outlet added that healthy beavers usually want nothing to do with humans and should be given a wide berth.
What Recreators Should Do
Officials are reminding people not to touch or feed beavers, to keep pets away from shorelines, and to report any odd animal behavior to the DEC regional office at 518-623-1200. In emergencies, they say to call 911 or DEC dispatch at 518-897-1326. NCPR reports that DEC officers are patrolling around Turtle Island, though tracking down a single problem beaver in the area would be nearly impossible.
A GoFundMe drive has pulled in several thousand dollars toward a $10,000 goal to help cover Shortsleeve’s medical bills, according to the campaign page. WNYT and other local outlets report that both men are undergoing rabies vaccinations and are on the mend while crews continue to monitor Turtle Island and the beaver colony offshore.
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