Brigitte Brouillard is a kind-hearted animal rescuer who has saved countless wild animals. Brigitte is the Executive Director of Second Chances Wildlife Center in Louisville, Kentucky, and she has helped rehabilitate tons of animals in need.
In 2018, Second Chances Wildlife Center took in an orphaned eight-week-old beaver who desperately needed someone to look after him. Brigitte decided to take him home with her!
Brigitte named the beaver Justin Beaver, or JB for short. JB quickly made himself at home in Brigitte’s house. Soon, he began building dams all over the house. He would use any materials he could find, from toys to Brigitte’s daughter’s lacrosse stick.
JB even stole Brigitte’s doormat and used that in one of his dams!
“I wasn’t sure, when he was moving things around, if he was building a dam,” Brigitte said. “And I quickly learned that’s just what he was doing.”
Brigitte also had to make sure that JB spends enough time in the bathtub. She explained that beavers need to go for swims multiple times a day.
“They need to be in water, clean water, at least four or five times a day,” she said.
Brigitte jokingly said that she had the cleanest bathtub in her town since she has to scrub it before every one of JB’s baths.
JB loved spending time with his mom, and he made adorable noises whenever he was happy. Brigitte made sure to give JB plenty of his favorite food, sweet potatoes!
Even though Brigitte loved JB, it wasn’t always easy having him in the house. Sometimes, his natural instincts kicked in and he started chewing on her walls. In total, he did about $400 or $500 worth of damage in Brigitte’s house.
“It’s just kind of like having a toddler, only more destructive,” Brigitte told Today.
When JB got older, Brigitte knew it was time to bring him back outside where he belonged. Since he wouldn’t be able to survive in the wild, Brigitte decided to build him a big pond in her backyard.
JB absolutely loves his pond, and he always has a great time splashing around in it. He also still gets to spend plenty of time with his mom—he sometimes spends the day in her house.
Beavers can live to be up to 25 years old in captivity, so Brigitte and JB still have plenty of years left together. JB is also a licensed ‘educational animal,’ and so he goes with Brigitte on school visits to help teach kids about wildlife.
Brigitte is so glad that she rescued JB!
“He’s a ham,” Brigitte said.
JB is an adorable beaver who has found a great place to call home. If you want to learn more about JB, check out the video below.
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