All Prairie Dogs Go to Heaven

Wildcat File Photo Arizona Daily Wildcat

Often overlooked by the people so adamant about saving really big animals like elephants and mountain lions, prairie dogs are killed ruthlessly throughout the grassy lands of America.

High Plains Films, an outfit run by Doug Hawes from Montana, noticed that this kind of prairie dog genocide was happening all too often in these United States. His new documentary, "Varmints," which focuses on prairie dog eradication in the grasslands, will be showing Wednesday, January 27 at 7 p.m. in Pima Community College's Proscenium Theatre.

John Mangianeli of the Wildlife Damage Review, one of the organizations sponsoring the screening, said that some states "actively encourage people to shoot prairie dogs as recreation." Nancy Zierenberg, also of the Wildlife Damage Review, said there is a federal program, funded by taxpayers, that pays trappers to go out into the wilderness and kill animals such as prairie dogs.

"It's because of this federal poisoning program" that the population is at the level it is, Zierenberg said.

"This movie outlines a lot of the natural history of the prairie dogs," Zierenberg continued.

Prairie dogs, which are highly intelligent creatures, are regarded as pests since they feed on the very same grass that our beloved cows feed on. Allegedly, the prairie dog population has been reduced to two percent of its historic range due to human activity.

The screening is also sponsored by the Sky Island Alliance, and admission is $5. Parental discretion is advised due to graphic footage of prairie dog shooting.

- annie holub