Prairie Dogs are illegal to care for as a pet in CO- yet they are a legal pet in other states and countries (in Japan they are a pretty penny). According to World Population Review, they are legal in 31 states, and illegal in 19 states. They are rationalized as illegal in CO because some ranchers hate their guts, and Prairie Dogs are very populous here, forging for their families. This land was/is their ancestral breeding grounds, and due to unsustainable & anti-ecological ranching methods, PD's are legal to shoot or poison to death, but not to cuddle and care for.
Another excuse for illegal domestication is that they carry diseases easily- however this can be avoided if purchased from a breeder, and are Veterinarian-vaccinated like PD's in legal states. Another excuse they use is that PD's belong in the wild- but if that really meant anything to CO, then why are Hedge Hogs, Red Kangaroos, Wallabies, Emu's and other wild animals allowed to be domestically owned as pets here?
This law against PD's is ridiculous and systemically racist because it benefits mostly white ranchers and their profits, instead of honoring this native animal, and the sustainable agricultural relationships they have to this land. The birds and the ground hogs are missing each other and their bug-foods too! Long Live the CO Prairie Dogs!!! Let's make PD domestication legal in CO!!!
Join the Colorado Prairie Dog Coaltion FB Group: here:https://www.facebook.com/groups/893480222457576
