A beaver tale: Here's what happened after the Mounties found this guy at the mall

It's hard to picture a more Canadian start to a news story: the Mounties getting called out to help an injured beaver in a Lower Sackville, N.S., mall parking lot.

And yet there's as much of our national spirit that urge to help to be found in the news of thebeaver's recovery.

Little Nacho, as his caregivers call him, is in rough shape. An injured tail, road rash on his feet and missing fur suggest he was hit by a car, according to the founder of Hope for Wildlife, the rescue group that's treating him.

He's also showing signs of a head injury.

"Head injuries do take a long time to heal, but that's OK, we take whatever time is needed for these animals," HopeSwinimer says. "We've got three others in now so we might actually match him up with one other young beaver."

But youth is on his side; he's roughly a year old and still a year away from adulthood. Swinimer suspects his mother might have died and he was hit by a car while searching for food.

At Hope for Wildlife, located in Seaforth, N.S., he'll be in a place free from predators and the possibility of starvation; in the wild, he might not be well enough to provide for himself without family.

"And giving him some company and companionship when they're younger is not a bad thing, because they're really close-knit family units," Swinimer says of plans to introduce the yearlingto a friend. "It wouldn't be a mate when they're that young they don't even think about breeding."

How you can help

Many of the animals that end up in the care of Hope for Wildlife find themselves there after being injured in an encounter with humans. Last year, the rescue organization saw a spike in the number of animals hit by drivers, Swinimer says.

"Slowing down just five or 10 kilometres can sometimes make all the difference especially at dawn and dusk," she says. "These are the times when a lot of animals are very active so slowing down a bit and keeping a watch by trying to catch the glimmer of the eyes on the side of the road."

The wee beaver will spend the winter at Hope for Wildlife but, hopefully, it won't be his forever home.

"We'll hold them and see how he develops and if he starts acting like a normal beaver then we'll definitely be getting him back out to the wild."