Our Services
Tindakan provides non-lethal prairie dog relocation services. With over 30 years of combined experience, our team is qualified and knowledgable for any size project. We are mission-driven and founded on the principles of compassionate conservation.
Prairie dogs are a vital keystone species, supporting over a hundred flora and fauna species. Sadly, the prairie dig is down to less than 2% of their natural range. Due to current laws and regulations, it is very difficult to relocate prairie dogs across county lines in the state of Colorado. However, an amazing collaborative project in Pueblo, Colorado between the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, U.S. Army, CSU Pueblo and Pueblo County, has been created to protect short and long grass prairie ecosystems while reintroducing the black footed ferret. This has meant the need to incorporate the prairie dog into this project to ensure its success. Both mixed grass prairies and the black footed ferret depend on the prairie dog.
We will be relocating prairie dogs to Pueblo under this project and are looking to work with municipalities, developers, construction companies and private landowners who may need prairie dogs removed from their site. As we are a nonprofit, we are structured in a way that allows us to submit competitive and EQUITABLE bids to create mutually beneficial, win-win scenarios. Please contact us for more information.
Introduction:
Pueblo Chemical Depot comprises 23,000 acres
in the south-eastern region of Colorado and
rests on a significant conservation area, Chico-
Basin. Both PCD and Chico-Basin encompass a
blend of vegetation types, including shortgrass-
prairie, sand-sage prairie, shrubland, and
wooded riparian habitat. Roughly, 50% of PCD
(11,500 acres) is composed of short grass
prairie, making it ideal for the black-tailed
prairie dog habitat.
PCD once housed the largest
continuous prairie dog complex in eastern
Colorado. Unfortunately, in 2016, PCD
experienced a sylvatic plague outbreak that
dramatically reduced the population of black-
tailed prairie dogs by more than 94%. For this
reason, translocations of black-tailed prairie-
dog colonies have allowed us to: 1) reinforce the
current prairie dog populations on PCD, 2)
improve our understanding of the species, and
3) ensure the planned reintroduction of black-
footed ferrets.
Our efforts to conserve a species
so integral to maintaining the balance of a high
plains ecosystem can be attributed to the
collaborative efforts of USFWS, PCD, USDA
Wildlife Services, Colorado State University-
Pueblo, CUATRO Research Program, and the
Peterson Research Lab.
Processing:
Once the prairie dogs have been
captured from their respective colonies,
they will be transported to our
warehouse at PCD. Upon arrival, the
prairie dogs will be transferred to large
animal kennels. During their stay within
the warehouse, the prairie dogs will be
provided fresh produce, whole oats, and
clean towels. A large bed sheet will also
be draped over the kennel to minimize
stress. Our team members will begin
processing by selecting one individual
prairie dog and placing them within a
pillowcase. Once secured the prairie dog
will be sexed, marked, and PIT-tagged.
Processing:
Once the prairie dogs have been
captured from their respective colonies,
they will be transported to our
warehouse at PCD. Upon arrival, the
prairie dogs will be transferred to large
animal kennels. During their stay within
the warehouse, the prairie dogs will be
provided fresh produce, whole oats, and
clean towels. A large bed sheet will also
be draped over the kennel to minimize
stress. Our team members will begin
processing by selecting one individual
prairie dog and placing them within a
pillowcase. Once secured the prairie dog
will be sexed, marked, and PIT-tagged.
Praire dogs will be relocated to this amazing project from all around the state, helping to protect this crucial species and those that depend on the prairie dog for its own survival.
Pre-Translocation:
Prior to translocation, the release site will be
prepared by: mowing the Release site to < 5” to
minimize predation of the translocated
population, establishing known historic burrows,
and measuring the depth of each burrow.
Additionally, 6-foot by 6-inch holes will be bored
into the ground at an angle of approximately 45
degrees with the intent to utilize them as
burrows. Acclimation cages will then be placed
on select burrows.
Post-translocation:
After processing, the prairie dogs will be
transported to the Release site. Upon
arrival, prairie dogs will be released
together based on the coterie they were
captured in. After release into their
respective cages, we will provide them
with fresh produce and whole oats every
day for a week. The acclimation cages and
supplemental feeding will ensure that the
recently translocated population will
anchor to the release site and reduce
dispersal rates from the release site.
Supplemental feeding:
A week following release, the acclimation cages will be removed from the release site.
To ensure the survival of the recently translocated population and to prevent dispersal from the colony, project coordinators will be supplemental feeding the colony with whole oats every week for the remainder of the year.
Monitoring:
A year following the release of the translocated population, we will be monitored primarily through visual counts. The data gathered during this process will be compared to pre-
translocation data collected during processing the previous year. This will allow us to determine the survival rates of the recently translocated population. Furthermore, the Peterson Research Team at Colorado State University-Pueblo will
continue to monitor the translocated population.
Prairie Dog Facts
Prairie dogs are considered a “keystone” species because their colonies create islands of habitat that benefit approximately 150 other species.