SAANICH, B.C. — Connor Belanger and his mom Liz don’t need to look at pictures from their recent tubing trip to remember the sound they’ll never forget. “A very strange, kind of high-pitched squeaking,” Liz Belanger said. “A sound that I’d never heard before.” Liz was moving down the river too fast to see where it was coming from, but her son Connor was far enough behind her to spot something struggling in the rapids. So, the 16-year-old paddled closer and reached out to help. “It kind clawed its way up into my palm,” Connor said. “And then I scooped it up.” It wasn’t until the animal was safely in his arms that Connor saw its tiny tail and realized he’d saved a baby beaver. “It felt awesome,” Connor said with a smile. “And I felt super protective of it immediately.” After it stopped breathing heavily, the baby started falling asleep in Connor’s arms. The beaver cuddled close for the next hour, until they reached the tubing pick-up point down the river. “If anyone is going to have this experience, it’s going to be Connor,” Liz said. “He just has so much empathy for animals.” When they got to shore, they marked the specific location where they’d found the beaver on a map and started reaching out for someone official to help the baby they’d named Chip. “She would open her little eyes, look around, and then snuggle back in and burrow into our arms,” Liz says, showing photos and video of the whole experience. The family took turns cradling the baby, as they drove an hour and a half out of their way to the North Island Wildlife Rescue Association. “It was really good they found (the beaver) when they did,” said animal care technician Joanna Smith. “Without mom, there’s no way she would have survived.” The baby was just a week old, and likely swept out of her den, before floating too far down river for her family to find her. But thanks to the actions of Connor and his family, and after a few weeks in care, the baby beaver renamed Little Timbre is thriving. “She’s a busy beaver,” Joanna laughed. “She’s doing all the beaver things. She’s adorable.” While the beaver is expected to be released back in the wild in about 18 months (in the same location the Belanger’s made a note of marking on their map), Liz and Connor will be look back fondly on their time with Little Timbre forever. “It’s such a Canadian experience!” Liz laughs. “We rescued a baby beaver! Who gets to do that?!”
