Getting Rid of Prairie Dogs
Prairie Dogs are subterranean small rodents that are North American natives and mainly live in wide-open areas like the Great Plains and grasslands. These creatures rarely grow larger than one and a half feet and weigh just a couple of pounds. They have shaggy coats that can be a number of different colors including black, gray, tan, and brown. They have small faces and large eyes and can either walk on all fours or stand upright.
They can often be seen poking out their heads from mounds and also standing up so they can view their surroundings. However, always keep in mind that prairie dogs are powerful creatures and when they feel threatened they can be quite aggressive.
People living on the plains consider prairie dogs to be nuisances due to their feeding habits and incessant digging. Prairie dogs are mostly herbivores and like snacking on plant roots and vegetation. That can cause lots of problems for gardeners and farmers who can lose a high percentage of their harvest due to these creatures when the population is big enough.
Also, prairie dogs can damage the lawn or crops by digging tunnels and burrows underground. That can kill plant roots they come into contact with and leave mounds on the lawn. In some areas, prairie dogs also carry parasites and diseases like the plague and rabies.
If you are having a problem with prairie dogs, you can try out the following methods to eliminate them:
POISON
Here at Prairie Dog Pros, we are strongly against using poison for wildlife control purposes. Prairie dog poisons can be purchased fairly inexpensively either in garden stores or online. Usually, they are available in pellet form. The most effective way to get prairie dogs to eat the pellets is to mix them up with some kind of food like some oats, or a fruit mash or vegetables.
Put the poison inside of the burrow or near the outside part of the entrance to make sure that they smell or see the bait. Just keep in mind that poisons are dangerous to other animals, you and other people if they come into contact with it or consume a prairie dog that has been poisoned.
Poison should be used only as a final resort after all other methods have been exhausted.
TRAP
You can attempt to trap prairie dogs. However, that is hard to do, and it might not be very effective if you don’t have experience with it. These creatures reproduce very fast and if there is a large population of them, your traps won’t be able to get even a small percentage of them.
Prairie dogs are also quite intelligent and cautious animals. If they catch a hint of human scent on a trap or something seems suspicious to them, they will avoid the trap. However, if you are able to catch using a trap, make sure to dispose of their carcasses properly and humanely.
FUMIGANTS
There are fumigants that are also available to use on prairie dogs. However, they are very expensive, difficult to control, and in many places they are illegal. If you are planning to utilize gas cartridges and fumigants to handle your prairie dog issue, be sure to call an expert exterminator.
HIRE A PROFESSIONAL
Calling a professional to get rid of prairie dogs is the best way to eliminate them. You can hire a professional pest removal company, or the local animal control office or humane society.
Those experts will have the proper knowledge and tools on how to get rid of these creatures humanely and safely. After they have killed or caught the prairie dogs they also will remove their bodies, fill in the burrows and decontaminate the area so that more prairie dogs are not attracted to the area. It is a more expensive option but it is safe, effective, and will save you lots of trouble.
For more information and tips on getting rid of prairie dogs, please go back and review our main Prairie Dog Removal page.
Add Comment