Dubysa is connected with the Venta River by the abandoned Windawski Canal started in 1825 by the authorities of the Russian Empire. The canal is 15 km in length and was supposed to have 20 locks. The intention was to connect the Neman basin with the Baltic Sea through the port of Ventspils. The lower reaches of Neman were under Prussian control. The work was interrupted by the Uprising of 1831. The work resumed only at the beginning of the 20th century but was interrupted again by the World War I. After the war there was no purpose for the canal as Lithuania gained control over the Klaipėda region and lower reaches of Neman. The canal was based on the Kartuva rivulet.