Efforts to save prairie dogs in Castle Rock

“I’ve been watching one colony after another on the Front Range just be, all of a sudden one day there next day gone, just exterminated.”

Deanna Meyer has lived on the Front Range of Colorado all her life. She has been concerned about what’s
been happening to prairie dog colonies as more and more development happens. Now a resident of Castle Rock in Douglas County, Meyer is trying to raise awareness about what is being dubbed as the nation’s largest shopping mall which is scheduled to be built in Castle Rock on land that is home to a large prairie dog colony.

Alberta Development Partners, LLC say that they’re willing to relocate the colony if a suitable area is found, but that it must be done by early April. However Meyer and other prairie dog advocates that this is unreasonable as Colorado Parks and Wildlife doesn’t give permits for relocation until June 1st. This is because female prairie dogs get pregnant in January and February and after giving birth, females tend to stay down inside their burrows until April to May once their babies are mature enough to come out of their nests.

Save the Castle Rock prairie dogs is an citizen led organization that is calling on city officials and the developer to delay the building to allow for the safe relocation of the colony. Castle Rock is hosting a city council meeting on Tuesday February 17th to allow the public to weigh in on the development.