Muskrats live in marshes, sloughs, streams, rivers, ponds and lakes. A muskrat will dig its home in a stream or pond bank if convenient, or it may gather vegetation from nearby areas and build a large house in shallow water. Cat- tails and bulrushes are packed in a conical pile Wee to four feet high and five to eight feet in diameter. Passages into the house are under water and lead to two to four chambers in the dome, which are connected by tunnels. Each lodge contains at least two exits, one of which must be to deep water to ensure access in the winter