Pest Library

Characteristics

Prairie dogs are fat rodents that have rounded heads, fat body, short legs ,and bushy tails. This animal can weigh 1 to 3 pounds, and may even increase its weight before winter comes. They are light brown in color, and may have a lighter colored bellies. They are social animals that live in colonies underground.

Habitat

This animal creates burrows to survive. Their burrows are found in dry prairies that are surrounded by dirt. The piles of dirt serves as a good hiding place for the prairie dogs to watch predators and also serves to stop water from entering the hole. These holescan be 3 to 15 feet deep and 33 feet long with different rooms or chambers created for different purposes.

Behavior

Prairie dogs can create different pitch sound to identify different predators that are coming their way. They will raise the alarm by making a high-pitched, bark like sound, then they will hide from their hole. The amazing part about the sound these prairie dogs create is the different barks. The sound that they will make for an approaching hawk will be different with an approaching eagle, which makes them a good study for field naturalists.

To survive during the winter, they will need to store additional fat. Although they do not hibernate, they can still do light hibernation, during cold or snowy days. They can sleep for a few days, then wake up again to search for food.

Prairie dogs are curious animals, from how they create intricate burrows to their kissing behavior in order to identify a relative, fascinates naturalists. These animals can create burrows that have separate rooms that includes a toilet that they empty periodically, a sleeping room, and listening room. Their sleeping chambers are even created safe to avoid having water enter inside it.

If a prairie dog is uncertain if the other prairie dog is her relative, she will show her teeth to the other. If the other prairie dog identifies her as a relative, they will touch their lips and kiss as a sign that they are indeed relatives.

Food

Prairie dogs eat a variety of vegetables. They can eat, weeds, grasses, leaves of flowering plants, seeds stems, roots, etc. They can also eat insects, such as grasshoppers and beetles if plants are not available. Their burrows are mostly cleared away by plants because they will consume them to easily spot incoming predators.

Life Cycle

Prairie dogs can produce one litter of young per year. They only have 4 to 5 hours of estrus period where the female can mate with different males to increase the potential of having as many pups as possible. A single female can have three to eight pups through different fathers. After six weeks, the young prairie dogs will emerge from their burrows. The yearlings and some adults may relocate to leave the young pups secure with the mother’s old burrow.

Other Information and Tips

The population of prairie dogs are also in great decline because of the increase in urbanization, improved rangelands, larger lands that are plowed, and the likes. Rules regarding management of prairie dogs may differ from state to state so make sure to know the current regulations concerning prairie dogs to determine the best option of defense against them.

It is still necessary not to get too close or touch this rodent. Prairie dogs carry fleas that may carry different diseases, which could easily be transmitted when in contact.