Prairie Dog Relocation

Feb 24, 2005 9:48 am US/Mountain
DENVER (CBS4) Denver taxpayers are paying tens of thousands of dollars to protect a small colony of prairie dogs, while at the same time, a CBS4 investigation found the prairie dogs have been ravaging prized soccer fields.

These prairie dogs have really been biting the hand that feeds them. They've been damaging city soccer fields for a year-and-a-half. At the same time, the city has been spending tons of time and money trying to figure out what to do.

Between 40 and 60 prairie dogs, cute and cuddly to some, a nuisance to others, live around Kennedy soccer fields. The prairie dogs were there before the city spent $1.3 million to install the fields.

"At the time of the construction, we didn't think that, we thought they could probably co-exist and it wouldn't be an issue," said Tiffiany Moehring, spokeswoman for Denver Parks and Recreation.

But it hasn't worked out that way.

Since the fields were completed in 2003, the city has been struggling with the issue of what to do with the prairie dogs and trying to relocate them. But there has been one roadblock after another.

"We've tried to meet the needs of as many people as we could," Moehring said. "And hear the concerns of as many people as we could in trying to address this issue."

CBS4's investigation found dozens of government agencies and private organizations involved in the discussion of what to do about a few dozen prairie dogs. In the meantime, the dogs have burrowed in and around the soccer fields, damaging landscaping and irrigation, causing an estimated $83,000 damage.

Parks and Recreation personnel say the holes are a safety hazard for soccer players and kids. City estimates put the cost for fencing, barriers and relocation at another $40,000 to $50,000.

That means the city has or will spend a minimum of $3,000 per prairie dog.

But prairie dog advocates, such as Kathy Boucher, say while prairie dogs may not be endangered, these dogs must be preserved.

"There are not enough animals left there to raise the price up too high," she said. "They are fun to watch and there are a lot of people who really enjoy them. They're ground squirrels.

"Denver is a great city, it should act like a great city and save what's left of its wildlife," Boucher said.

But not everyone agrees.

In an email obtained by CBS4, Denver Parks and Recreation Safety Director Ron Sanders wrote, "I'm not sure how one can look at nuisance animals like prairie dogs any different than you look at rats which are allowed to be eradicated by extreme means. Prudence says do what you can to preserve the species but deal appropriately to eliminate those that become a nuisance to human safety. Someone needs to make the hard call here."

Moehring said the department is exploring all its options.

"The department really would like to see that [eradication] as a last resort," she said. "We really want to be able to believe that we've exhausted every other possibility before we resort to something like that."

After a year-and-a-half, the city is still working on finding a place to relocate the prairie dogs. If they have to pay for land, that $3,000-per-prairie dog price will go up.

The situation got so crazy that at one point the city was talking about sending the prairie dogs to Texas, because Denver officials couldn't find anyplace for them in Colorado.