'Disbelief' as 'big' beaver walks into Staffordshire pub

The Yew Tree Pub in Norton Canes became an unexpected nature reserve when a beaver wandered into the pub around 8.45pm on Monday evening.

The beaver is then believed, after wandering into the main bar area, to have run through the bar and into the smoking shelter outside, where it hid under a section of chairs.

A member of Linjoy Wildlife Sanctuary and Rescue - Midlands was called to the pub to check for the beaver, with founder Lindsay Newell saying there had been some disbelief about it to begin with.

She said: "We were called about this and were a bit surprised to hear it was a beaver as we've never seen one up close and were struggling to believe a beaver would actually walk into a pub.

"Gareth, our volunteer, went down to the pub and found him outside under the chairs, but managed to get him into the cage by tapping it with his shoe and the beaver just ran into it.

"When he brought it into us, we were surprised about how big it was, but it was a such a nice and docile creature and just sat there eating leaves as we worked out the next step with it."

Ms Newell said the beaver was checked over by a vet and found to be healthy, and then the group began the work liaising with Natural England and different wildlife trusts to release the beaver, which has now gone to a specialist centre somewhere in Staffordshire.

She said there had been different jokes passed around about what drink the beaver had wanted in the pub, with the best one being Beavertown Neck Oil, but also said it had been a wonderful experience to see the beaver up close.

She said: "It really was a beautiful creature to see up close and the sheer size of it was crazy as you think beavers are very small creatures, but it was very large, with big teeth and a defined tail.

"I don't know what drink it wanted in the pub, but I'm just glad that it got out safely and Gareth did a good job dealing with it."

The Yew Tree have been contacted for a comment.