Prairie Dog’n

There’s are lots of people who want to protect the wild life of prairie dogs because of there past extermination. What those people don’t understand is how destructive prairie dogs can be to a farmers land. We have a prairie dog town just north of our farm that has caused a lot of damage to a near by farmers property. Prairie dogs build tunnels that run underground connecting to other tunnels. Their towns can go for hundred of acres, digging holes that cover your landscape. It not only damages land but it can also be a risk to livestock or horses, they can step into a hole and break a leg or take over their pastures.

Prairie dogs also reproduce every year, having between four to six pups so a small town can quickly become a large problem. The costs to poison them or exterminate can be very costly so farmers will try to shoot.
Shooting prairie dogs can of course help to keep down the population on your land but it can be great target practice and a really fun time. I always bring my .204 which I use for most predator or rodent hunting. The other great thing about shooting prairie dogs is how easy it actually is.

We sit in the back of our truck with a chair and gun rest. Every couple of minutes one will pop out of its hole and bark to alert the others the coast is clear then all of them will begin emerging from their holes running around barking commands to each other. They are pretty interesting to watch but after seeing the destruction they have done its all about load, aim, and shoot! Whats your take about killing off prairie dogs?


Aug 28, 2013 | Category: Blog | Comments: 4

 

4 comments on “Prairie Dog’n

  1. Cyndi

    A life is a life. Maybe we should exterminate the farmers for taking over the Prairie dogs home. After all they were here way before the damn farmers.

    • bonaducci

      While I understand your anger (I too am disgusted with this person for her callous disrespect for life.), please don’t attack all farmers. I hate the lies and myths perpetuated by certain groups of people including this uneducated woman, but farmers are hard working folks and if it weren’t for them, you and I and everyone on the planet wouldn’t eat. We can’t lump everyone together. Prairie dogs are extremely important to grassland ecosystems. Education is the key.

  2. bonaducci

    You have virtually NO knowledge of how prairie dogs impact the health of the soil. There isn’t enough space here to go into all the specifics. Here are a few FACTS. Cattle OVER graze the land. Prairie dogs will come into over grazed land and actually restore it. Prairie dog burrows act as aquifers. This helps prevent the water from eroding the soil and has a cooling effect. It’s amazing that prairie dogs co-existed with bison for thousands of years. Now suddenly horses and cattle aren’t smart enough to avoid broken legs?? In fact, this is a very rare occurrence. It’s a myth that has been perpetuated by farmers and ranchers and people like you who simply like to kill for sport. Ungulates actually prefer the grasses around the burrows as prairie dogs turn and mix the soil, creating a nutrient rich environment for healthy vegetation. As for your inaccurate point on how they reproduce, here are the facts. Females don’t breed until their second year. They are only in estrus 5 HOURS out of the year. Getting the picture here? They generally have 3 to 4 pups a year. They only live 3 to five years. Do the math. They are a major food source for other animals. As for populations getting out of control, that happens when other people who like to kill for sport, wipe out all their natural predators. You just like to sit and kill for the fun of it then spout your myths as fact to rationalize your disrespect for life and the importance of a species in it’s environment. Please educate yourself and rethink what you do for sport. Someday you will have to answer to a Higher Power for your foolish stewardship. The fact that you think killing is “a really fun time” is disgusting. If you were killing to eat, then we would have a different and defensible discussion. Oh, and by the way, please proofread before you post.

  3. Catherine Zimmer

    Thank you to the previous commenters for setting the record straight.

    Fortunately, most citizens don’t agree w/the camo queen’s views or activities.

    Camo queen, I suggest you redirect your activities to restoring the Prairie to make it healthier for farming and Wildlife.

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