Black-tailed prairie dogs are keystone grassland species providing food and habitat for over 150 species, yet face systematic poisoning and shooting that impacts their welfare and the entire prairie ecosystem.
Prairie dog welfare encompasses both the acute suffering of poisoning and plague death and the disruption of complex social communities. Prairie dog colonies have alarm calls that distinguish predator types, teaching information passed between colony members. Poisoning programs kill these social communities entirely, including juveniles that have learned colony-specific knowledge. Plague kills rapidly but with apparent suffering during the acute bacterial infection. Protection of prairie dog colonies from persecution enables the natural colony dynamics and social complexity that define prairie dog welfare at the community level.