Prairie Dog Care Guide

The black-tailed prairie dog is a burrowing ground squirrel from the Great Plains, and the species most often kept as a pet (VCA; Smithsonian’s National Zoo). Wild prairie dogs live in family groups inside vast tunnel systems, which is hard to recreate in a house. VCA describes them as a significant commitment that can turn nippy and aggressive without daily handling. Their trade also has a public-health history: pet prairie dogs were at the centre of the 2003 US monkeypox outbreak, and their sale was banned federally until 2008 (US Food and Drug Administration).

Care requirements

Need	What to provide
Enclosure	The largest escape-proof cage you can manage, made of stainless steel or plexiglass, not wood or a standard rabbit cage. Add 6–12 in (15–30 cm) of bedding to dig in and daily supervised exercise (VCA)
Temperature	About 70°F (21°C); heat risks heatstroke, cold causes sluggish “pseudo-hibernation” (VCA)
Humidity	About 30–70% (VCA)
Lighting	No special lighting. Wild prairie dogs are active above ground from shortly after sunrise to around sunset (Smithsonian’s National Zoo)
Diet	Unlimited timothy, orchard or brome grass hay; a small amount of timothy-based pellets for young animals; dark leafy greens. Treats under 5% (VCA)
Lifespan	About 8–10 years with good care (VCA)
Social needs	Highly social. Keeping one alone is not advised unless you can spend a large amount of time with it (VCA)
Legal notes	The 2003 federal sale and transport ban was lifted in 2008, but import of African rodents stays restricted. State and local rules vary, so check yours (US Food and Drug Administration)

The monkeypox history, and what it means now

In April 2003, a Texas distributor imported about 800 small mammals from Ghana. Some of the African rodents reached an Illinois distributor that also sold prairie dogs. The prairie dogs caught monkeypox (now mpox) and were shipped on to other dealers and pet buyers. The outbreak eventually included 72 human cases, 37 of them lab-confirmed, in several Midwest states. Most patients had direct or close contact with prairie dogs. In one case, 28 children at an Indiana day care were exposed to two prairie dogs that later fell ill and died (US Food and Drug Administration).

In response, the FDA and CDC barred the sale, transport and release of prairie dogs. The FDA removed its rule effective September 8, 2008, judging it no longer needed. The CDC’s separate restriction on importing African rodents remained (US Food and Drug Administration). Some vet care sheets, including VCA’s, still describe the ban as current. It isn’t federally, but state rules vary.

The practical lessons: buy captive-bred animals with a known history, and have a new prairie dog examined by an exotics vet within 48 hours (VCA). Wild colonies are also hit by sylvatic plague, a flea-borne bacterial disease that can kill over 99% of a colony (Smithsonian’s National Zoo), which is one more reason to avoid animals of unknown, possibly wild, origin and to ask your vet about flea checks.

Built to dig

Wild black-tailed prairie dogs dig U-shaped burrows 7–15 ft (2–4.5 m) deep, with nesting chambers lined with dry grass and listening chambers near the entrance (Smithsonian’s National Zoo). VCA’s housing advice follows from that:

• Depth over height. Prairie dogs don’t need to climb, so VCA doesn’t recommend shelves. Give a deep layer of recycled paper or wood shavings (not cedar), with tall sides to hold flung bedding.
• Strong materials. Their teeth and legs are strong enough to beat a typical rabbit cage. Use stainless steel or plexiglass with at least one well-ventilated side, and a lock (VCA).
• Hides and tunnels. Nest boxes, tunnels and large PVC pipes, plus untreated wood blocks to chew (VCA).
• Supervised room time. They are fast and fit under heavy furniture, so don’t give them free run of the house (VCA).

Hay, not treats

Prairie dogs are hindgut fermenters like rabbits, digesting fibre with gut bacteria, so they need a lot of roughage (VCA). In the wild, grasses and leafy plants make up 98% of the diet (Smithsonian’s National Zoo). VCA calls diet-related conditions the most common health problems in pet prairie dogs:

• Grass hay at all times. Timothy, orchard or brome. Feed alfalfa only to growing youngsters and stop it after one year of age (VCA).
• A small amount of pellets. VCA suggests timothy-based rabbit pellets or rodent blocks for young animals, about one to two blocks a week.
• Leafy greens. Kale, parsley, cilantro, collard greens, bok choy, dandelion and carrot tops. Not iceberg lettuce (VCA).
• Treats under 5% of daily intake. Mostly vegetables, with small amounts of fruit once or twice a week (VCA).

Obesity is common in pets that get the wrong diet and too little exercise. Dental disease is also common, including “pseudo-odontoma”, a swelling of the incisor roots in adult prairie dogs (VCA).

Gotchas

• One prairie dog and a busy household. A lone, under-handled prairie dog is the one most likely to become nippy and aggressive (VCA).
• A shelf-filled cage. They need floor space and depth to dig, not levels (VCA).
• Feeding dog food, cat food or nuts. VCA lists these as causes of obesity, dental disease and fatty liver disease.
• An unneutered male with a female. Neutering is essential to prevent breeding. Males can share if neutered, and females can share with or without spaying (VCA).
• Buying an animal of unknown origin. The 2003 outbreak spread through the dealer network, and only 93 of about 200 prairie dogs at the Illinois distributor could be traced (US Food and Drug Administration).

Avoid

• Dog and cat food, nuts, raisins, animal protein, table scraps and extra carbohydrates (VCA)
• Alfalfa hay after one year of age (VCA)
• Cedar shavings, sand and mud as bedding (VCA)
• Wooden cages and lightweight rabbit cages (VCA)
• Climbing shelves and high platforms (VCA)
• Temperature extremes, hot rooms and direct sun (VCA)
• Free run of the house (VCA)

Signs to see a vet

See an exotics vet promptly for swelling around the jaw or face or trouble eating, which can mean abnormal tooth growth or pseudo-odontoma (VCA). Discharge from the eyes or nose can mean a respiratory infection, and wetness around the anus can mean diarrhoea (VCA). Expect sedation for a full exam, since even tame prairie dogs bite when frightened (VCA).