There’s a full time prairie dog in the cubicle next to the one I’m
occupying for the day. She looks old enough to be my mistress, but is
talking to her son who is old enough to have gone out drinking last
night. I want to interrupt as she forgets that what was the House of
Blues is now the Tabernacle. Prairie dogs sometimes get shot. I’m too
curious about tomorrow to get shot today. My mouth retracts into a
yawn when she reminds him to carry change for parking. She’s old
enough to think of change in terms of coins. The street entrepreneurs
of Atlanta demand increments of $5 on weekdays. Weekends reach deeper
for twenties, but that isn’t important. None of it is.

What might be important, even if only a little, is that my hat fits a
little too snugly. The same hat keeps the rain off my face. I call it
my lopsided selfish umbrella, but only we know that. Rain wets
everything except my face. I once took up smoking just to have a
reason to go outside for smoke breaks. Smoking didn’t stick, but going
outside did.

The Surgeon General should encourage reading breaks. Lottery lines
should offer short story collections, packs of twenty. Red books for
strong imaginations, Lights for those overcoming a Literature
addiction, and Menthols for people in reading groups. Like I said
earlier, my hat fits snugly.

At the very least, smoking should be encouraged in libraries. You
rarely see someone in a panic because the library closed at 6pm.
Reading should be banned in family dining establishments. Then you
might see angry protesters on the library lawn after dark.

Being a prairie dog has its advantages. If I sit here long enough, I
might come up with some. Until then I’ll subside on sliding dollars
into the next hole and asking for change.

© n02XII Vagabond Lit

And a distant relative of the “emuck” from yesterday would be:

Prairie Duck

And our bodies to your service…

Saying the “blessing” before a meal is a complicated and trying process when there is a group of three of more people. I was made most aware of the awkwardness/intenseness involving the procedure during my Junior High and High School years with my church youth group. It always amused me that we were constantly eating fast food and asking God to bless it to the nourishment of our bodies.

The intensity of it is this: I was a hungry kid with a high metabolism. There was food in front of me, but I couldn’t eat it because I had to wait for everyone to be ready for the prayer. That’s cruel for a kid of any age. (Even at 28.)

The awkwardness of it is this: No one knew who was going to be asked to pray. There’s a bit of a short waiting game as the Designated Pray Person is elected. (And by now, I’ve learned to elect myself.)

But for those who suffer, there is mercy. I’m referring to the It’s Okay to Eat Fries, Peanuts, and Chips & Salsa Before the Prayer rule. For some reason, God isn’t concerned with us not asking his blessing for unofficial appetizers. However, if there is an actual appetizer, like a Blooming Onion for example, a prayer of thanksgiving and blessing is required.

And one must always be aware of the Salad Bar Clause. When dining at a restaurant with a salad bar or optional buffet of any kind, it’s important to make sure that someone prays before the first person leaves to go to the buffet. Otherwise, everyone will be obligated to wait for the buffet-goers to get back to their seats before the prayer can be said and everyone can begin eating.

Such anxiety! It’s a mad, mad, mad, mad world.

aug-2008

While I was doing some much-needed cleaning, I found an old CD with some great pictures on it.  Location: Turner Falls nestled in the Arbuckle Mountains of Oklahoma.  It’s a beautiful area.  Here a few of my favorites.

Above: If you look closely, you’ll notice the fishing line curving in the air.  Love it!

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10/22/09: Don’t Let EPA Kill More Prairie Dogs
Comments must be received on or before October 23, 2009


US Fish & Wildlife photo in Defenders of Wildlife alert, http://www.defenders.org

=============================================================
INSTRUCTIONS TO SUBMIT PUBLIC COMMENTS, FROM THE EPA
=============================================================

COMMENTS MUST BE RECEIVED ON OR BEFORE 10/23/09
Submit your comments, identified by docket identification
(ID) number EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0625, by one of the following methods:

1) ONLINE
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov
Follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
**If you submit an electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your
name and other contact information in the body of your comment.

2) MAIL
Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) Regulatory Public
Docket (7502P)
Environmental Protection Agency
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Docket Facility telephone: 703-305-5805

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Dan Peacock, Registration Division (7505P)
Office of Pesticide Programs, Environmental Protection Agency
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW. / Washington, DC 20460-0001
ph: 703-305-5407; email: peacock.dan@epa.gov

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=============================================================
SAMPLE LETTER
=============================================================

Docket ID EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0625

I am strongly against the Environmental Protection Agency’s attempt to
register Kaput-D as a means to poison prairie dogs in Great Plains states.

The mass extermination of prairie dogs across 10 states is not only
inhumane, but also imperils other at-risk species in violation of the
Endangered Species Act, the Migratory Bird Act and various federal laws.

Black-tailed prairie dogs themselves are contenders for federal protection.
Their eradication in western grasslands exemplifies government duplicity at
the taxpayer’s expense. We pay to bring a species back — and then either
wipe out the species itself, or other animals key to its recovery.

Please end the government’s war on wildlife with your disapproval of
Kaput-D. In addition, promptly repeal the May 2009 approval of Rozcol, a
similar poison to destroy prairie dogs.

EPA is poised to permit decimation of a species that has declined by over
95% from habitat damage, poisoning, shooting and non-native disease. Prairie
dogs are vital to restoration in an area where bison, bighorn sheep, swift
fox and black-footed ferrets form a nearly inclusive Great Plains ecosystem.

In fact, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has invested 26 years and over $25
million taxpayer dollars to renew the black-footed ferret, among the most
endangered mammals in North America. Continued poisoning of prairie dogs –
90% of the ferret’s diet — sabotages all ferret reintroduction plans.

I am shocked that the EPA is even evaluating whether it should authorize two
new poisons to accelerate the deterioration of a threatened species.

Rozol and Kaput-D assure a painful death, with internal bleeding that may
last for several days. Poison also affects such non-target species as
black-footed ferrets, swift foxes, badgers, golden and bald eagles,
burrowing owls and ferruginous hawks.

What happened to the “Protection” in Environmental Protection Agency? Please
withdraw approval for Rozol and deny use of Kaput-D.

Thank you,

=============================================================
SOURCE OF INFORMATION / REFERENCE LINKS
=============================================================

Tell the EPA to Protect Imperiled Wildlife from Poisons!
https://secure.defenders.org/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&page=UserAction&id=1589&autologin=true&JServSessionIdr003=fxkmp5qr12.app217a
Federal Register Environmental Documents
http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-PEST/2009/September/Day-23/p22810.htm
Notice of Receipt for New Use of Diphacinone on Prairie Dogs
http://www.regulations.gov/search/Regs/home.html#docketDetail?R=EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0625

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http://www.gunsandhunting.com/forum/blog/guysagi/index.php?showentry=771

remix on a classic. just cuz.

A mole, or perhaps a vole, a Utah Prairie Dog, or some kind of burrowing rodent is happily bulldozing its way through a dear friend’s yard. After stomping down one mound of dirt, we found a brand new mound today. Then, after I cleared the new mess of dirt and rocks, I went inside for lunch. Guess how long it took the little vermin to create a whole new pile? I’d say twenty minutes. That guy is blasting his way through the lawn like it is his Manifest Destiny. I don’t get it. And my friend doesn’t want his grass destroyed.

So we have devised a plan, he and I. We like little critters, so we just want to re-home this little booger that’s tearing out patches of grass and kicking up mounds of dirt, pebbles, and other debris. The plan is this: wait until dusk and set up a 5 gallon bucket by one of the creature’s tunnel openings (the lip of the bucket level with the ground), place bait in the bucket, and wait until the little guy falls in. After that, we’ll redeposit him somewhere not my friend’s yard. Sounds good, right? I’ll let you know how it goes.

Oh, and when this guy was busy kicking up piles of dirt, I went out to check things out and I saw him. Well, part of his face, anyway. It was all quick-moving whiskers and shiny eyes followed by sprays of earth flying out of the hole. Quite amusing. (Especially for me, since it isn’t my yard.)

More wildlife: While volunteering at Bloomington cave, Jon and I went to check on the status of the temperature gages. When our headlamps scanned over part of the ceiling, we found Myotis evotis bats roosting there. There was a clump of 10-12 of them all together, and another handful spread around the rest of the room we were in. It was super special. Jon had never seen that many there at one time. Our best bet is that they are there because they are not being disturbed as much since the cave gate went in. I hope it stays that way for them.

Here is a photograph I took of them roosting:

Prairie dogs
emerge from their burrows
at dawn
press their hands together
facing east
for thirty minutes

at dusk they return to the burrow
and face west
palms pressed together
for thirty minutes
before going inside

in between this hour
they are as busy
as prairie dogs

busy as a prairie dog
isn’t that a saying?
though we haven’t said
much about them at all
up through the years

now a man has dissected
prairie dog barking
into some hundred items
of communication

there is the word that means
man with gun
and the one that means
man without gun
and the one that means
woman with red shirt

it seems all this time
the prairie dogs
of which only
nine colonies remain
have been watching us
talking about us
among themselves

but when Lewis and Clark
gained a peak
and beheld them
four miles wide
and seven miles deep
prairie dogs had only
use for one word: buffalo

Brittany requested a prairie dog, so I drew this little dude. He looked kinda naked, so I added some western apparel to him. Any other requests out there?

-Jack Cusumano

Walk On The Wild Side is a new BBC series. Great writing.
Don’t have the volume too loud for this first one.

Via Jess.

ok, has everyone seen this yet? http://photography.nationalgeographic.com/photography/photo-of-the-day/squirrel-portrait-banff-pod.html

seriously, this is too hilarious for words. animals are *way* more clever than we give them credit for, in my opinion. and now there’s this ultra nifty thing called “the squirrelizer“, which allows you to insert that photo-hogging little rodent into your own photos!

we, the gerbilize gals, are challenging our readers to go to this site (http://www.lutralutra.co.uk/squirrelizer/) and “squirrelize” your own photos. then send it in to us, along with whatever little story you want to add (fiction or fact) and we will post it here on the blog as always.

i’ll get everyone started by showing you my own squirrelized pic

gerbilize gal #1, toronto

here we see that same sneaky squirrel is causing a stir yet again by flooding toronto’s union station!  is he gonna start to take responsibility for his actions, or just keep going with that “who? what? me?” look of feigned confusion on his face???? seriously, that little scamp created *QUITE* a frustrating commute for me and many other riders in the early hours of a sunday morning….

A black-tailed prairie dog shouts the all clear from its burrow in a suburban Boulder neighborhood of Colorado.

On a visit to National Geographic.com today, I couldn’t believe my eyes as I looked at the Photo of the Day pick. There, featured in the little window was a thumbnail of an all too familiar prairie dog. I photographed him a few months back while hanging out along Boulder Creek Trail, and submitted the pic to National Geographic’s Your Shot.

Needless to say I’m jumping and pointing and wanting everyone to see, “make it your wallpaper!” But bottomline, it’s a reminder to me to enjoy local wildlife. Just because a species seems ubiquitous doesn’t mean it is, (the black-tailed prairie dog is being considered for endangered species listing). And even if an animal is common, isn’t it just as cool that we get see them?

Why not head out to take some pics of your own local wildlife? If you get any you like, feel free to shoot me an email, and with your permission and credit, I’ll post some on The Nature Files.  Or better yet, submit it to Your Shot, you never know where it could end up!

To see more photos from moheimphotography, click the name.

Rhyan, our new border collie, chases squirrels. Whether they are really there or not. And at night, too.

Even at midnight he will run around the yard madly barking and then decide suddenly that he sees a squirrel in a tree, at which point he will jump and yipe. The Admiral says she can just imagine the squirrels, equipped with night vision goggles, throwing nut shells down at him. Now THAT’S a visual!

Meanwhile, one of my coworkers has had trouble with woodchucks burrowing under the foundation of his house, forcing him to a) hunt woodchucks with a laser-equipped rifle, and b) pour new concrete footers before his home collapses.

But here’s the interesting part: woodchucks, aka marmots, are actually…. big squirrels with short tails! That’s right, they are all members of family Sciuridae, which includes squirrels, marmots, and prairie dogs.

Who knew?

Hello, everyone! Welcoome to the GCPDR blog and info site!

Let me begin by saying that I have been involved in black-tailed prairie dog rescue since 1999. I have owned 1 pup of my own, and 8 rescues. I rehomed several rescues that I simply could not keep. I have done a lot of research, networking, and experiential reflections to back up my advice and claims. I am part of several different prairie dog owners and rescuers groups and am known in the PD community. If I don’t know the answer, I can get it!

This site has been created in response to the lifting of the ban on transport and sales of prairie dogs that was enacted in 2003. Now that there are no restrictions, I feel it is important that there be information on the web for this part of the state, as well as a rescue contact for the owners who cannot keep their pets.

I will be adding to this page as I get the opportunity, all in hopes of getting ready for the rut near October.

In the meantime, if you have PD questions, feel free to shoot me an email to gulfcoastprairiedogrescue@gmail.com and I’ll respond just as soon as I’m able.

I don’t even know what you are anymore, you’re so fat. Prairie dog maybe? Ground squirrel? Alien from the planet Obesiton? Oh man. It’s SO ROUND I bet it’s heavy. I imagine it to feel kind of like a fuzzy water balloon, sorta sloshy, and probably about 3 pounds XD I love the total lack of visible legs. I’ve categorized this under “Small Mammals”, but this fellow is anything but SMALL. Submitted by Steve C.