Foothills Prairie Dog Task Force

09/14/2022

We’ve received several private messages through this website and via NextDoor from community members who are concerned about the prairie dog extermination currently going on at Clement Park. We share your frustrations and suggest you let the Foothills Park and Recreation Executive Director and board members know how you feel about it. Change won’t happen until they hear from more of us. My guess is that the board members don’t have prior knowledge of planned extermination events. A good course of action might be for the board members to require the Executive Director to notify them in advance of any colonies needing “control” and require discussion and a vote before exterminations occur. You can find their email addresses here:

Located in Unincorporated Jefferson County, Foothills is managed by an executive director and governed by a five-member elected Board of Directors.

05/14/2022

I took these pix of prairie dogs at Mossbrucker just the other day. The mom in the one photo clearly nursing.

Now they’re dead - exterminated by poison or asphyxiation in their burrows.

Foothills, I presume, came in an exterminated all of the prairie dogs there by the Mossbrucker parking lot. All of them. There’s not a single one left over there.

I’m not unreasonable - I understand population control can be necessary periodically. But to kill them in the spring when there are pups in the burrows?! Whomever ordered the extermination is either totally ignorant, flat out doesn’t care, or is just utterly barbaric - although sadly, it’s entirely possible it’s all of the above.

If you’re as outraged by this inhumane slaughter, please consider emailing the Foothills Executive Director ([email protected]) and demand humane practices be implemented for prairie dog colony management.

I’d also suggest writing Ali Lodice, the newly-elected Director for Ward 3, but Foothills apparently has it together enough to kill a bunch of prairie dogs, but doesn’t have it together enough to have updated their website yet with contact information for Ali. Nice. Maybe priorities need some adjusting.

-shared by community member, Tina Blackmore Gurdikian

11/10/2015

Friends - someone posted this flyer at the 4-way stop in front of Mount Carbon Elementary school. A group of us were planning to be at the Foothills Park & Rec meeting tonight anyway regarding the revised Prairie Dog Management Plan. We would appreciate your support in addressing this issue if you are able to join us. The meeting is tonight, November 10th. It starts at 6pm at the Peak Wellness Center (near the Ridge Recreation Center). Thanks - hope to see you there!

06/26/2015

Look at this little guy or gal getting an early morning stretch in - so cute!

06/11/2015

Here's Sandy Nervig working hard (but very apparently loving what she's doing) releasing prairie dogs from the mall site in Castle Rock to their new home :-) Thanks Sandy!

05/25/2015

Prairie dog friends - we just started a GoFundMe account to help us to raise funds for our relocation efforts. Please consider a donation - we need all the help we can get! Thanks in advance!
http://www.gofundme.com/vfkh54

The Foothills Prairie Dog Task Force was formed by constituents of the district who are working with the Foothills Park and Recreation District to humanely and responsibly manage prairie dogs on the ~30 Foothills properties upon which prairie dogs currently reside. Through our efforts, we hope t...

05/20/2015

This is Frank. I know - I shouldn't have named him, but I'm out there so often now, he's totally used to me. He is a persistent little guy - definitely doesn't like that I've apparently closed up some of his most favorite burrows! Sorry Frank!

05/20/2015

Pups are up at Mossbrucker! They are ADORABLE!

05/11/2015

Just saw Mossbrucker's first prairie dog pup of the season! So cute! Sorry the pic isn't that great - the pup is next to his/her mom in the background - will take my better camera tomorrow when I go out :-)

05/07/2015

Columbine Courier article from our meeting with Foothills last month http://www.columbinecourier.com/content/citizen-group-urges-humane-option-controlling-prairie-dogs

A group of prairie dog lovers wants the Foothills Park and Recreation District to always consider a humane option when controlling the rodents on its properties. Tina Gurdikian and Gina Writz, members of the Foothills Prairie Dog Task Force, urged the rec district board April 28 to move a colony of…

05/07/2015

Had an awesome time today w/4th graders from Mount Carbon who took a walking field trip over to Mossbrucker and Dancing Willows for their science class today! Chatted with them for a few minutes about the value of prairie dogs to the ecosystem - the challenges of having pdogs in an urban settings - management techniques - it was SO cool to see how the kids were totally engaged and asking really thoughtful questions!