Let us extoll the virtues of the Prairie Dog.
They’re also sooo good for the land–like big worms. And they’re smart! They speak language! They identify people based on different sweaters, colors, bikes… ~ Waylon Lewis, ed.
The below comes from an acquaintance on Facebook, and is shared here because the info is valuable and we gotta support our prairie dog friends:
[a prairie dog was caught in a window well of one of these good humans, and got out after being offered a “ladder”]
Thank you so much for being such a compassionate soul and caring about this little dude…
As a prairie dog advocate, I just don’t understand the irrational hatred many people have for this animal. As a declining keystone species, prairie dogs are crucial for the health of our prairie ecosystem and provide food for many animals (hawks, owls, coyotes, badgers, foxes, eagles etc) and shelter (mice, amphibians, snakes, insects). Without the prairie dogs, black-footed ferrets and burrowing owls would go extinct. For millions of years, prairie dogs have aerated, churned and fertilized the soils and made this land what it is.
These humble little creatures really deserve so much respect, but people villainize them and humans continue to do atrocious things to prairie dogs and all the other the animals that are in the burrows (bulldozing them alive, poisoning them with cheap and cruel poisons, using them for target practice).
Exposing the Big Game 
Here in Santa Fe I witness some sweet baby prairie dogs playing with some baby cotton tails–what a wonderful example of inter species communication.
So sweet. Nice share, Rosemary.
Oh what a nice thing to think about, instead of all of the awful stuff in the news.
Prairie dogs are better people than many people living in the West. Just as with wolves, they have been disrespected, persecuted and killed, the exact opposite of the respect, protection and love they deserve.
So True, Robert.