Each prairie dog will receive an analgesic after surgery, then released the same day to prevent other males from taking over their territory. During the study, Andelt and Schwartz will monitor the castrated and uncastrated prairie dogs in the wild to see if lower testosterone levels brought on by the surgery changes male behavior. They also will determine if castrating yearling and adult males increases or decreases dispersal of juvenile males from prairie dog towns and if castrated males have a greater or lower tendency to disperse. It is typical for young males to leave home and start a new one in another location. The researchers also plan to monitor the marked females to determine if they are bred by other unsterile males.
Prairie dogs live in colonies commonly referred to as prairie dog towns.
Small groups within the prairie dog towns, called coteries, are generally composed of one or two adult males, three adult females and six offspring. Andelt and Schwartz do not think sterilization will have much impact on prairie dogs, other than to possibly control their numbers. In a pilot study this summer, five castrated male prairie dogs showed no signs of behavioral changes by continuing to defend their coterie territories, Andelt said. Currently, an estimated 5 million prairie dogs occupy about 1 million acres of rangeland in Colorado. Rapid development is taking place in areas that once were prime prairie dog habitat, making relocation an even more remote option than it was in the past.