Prairie Dogs

Blacktailed Prairie Dogs

Blacktailed Prairie Dogs are a species of Special Management* for Platte County. Every landowner in Platte County that has Blacktailed Prairie Dogs on their property is entitled to an 80% cost-share up to $1,200. 

*By law, we are required to identify special management zones within the county.  Each participating landowner will be designated as a special management zone, and a list of participants will be published in the local paper.

March 2023 EPA Bulletin

Platte County Weed and Pest begins mapping treatment areas at the end of August and starts treating in September. Landowners participating in the program are required to follow up this treatment as instructed with provided products. Some restrictions apply.

In 2022 we mapped over 10,000 acres of Prairie Dogs for treatment, and in what has been our largest year to date, we were able to treat over 7,500 of those acres. If you are not already signed up for treatment, we encourage you to do so! We will begin mapping some time during the last week of August – the first week of September, 2023 as we transition out of our noxious weeds spraying season.

In the 2022 season, we were able to offer a rate for Platte County landowners of $4.40 per Private Acre and $1.80 per State Leased Acre. This rate applied if signed up for treatment by Platte County Weed and Pest.
If you wish to treat your Blacktailed Prairie Dogs yourself, we offer a cost share of 80% up to $1,200 for landowners that reside in Platte County.

The EPA classifies Blacktailed Prairie Dog Control Products as a restricted use product and therefore, in order to purchase or apply these products, you must have a current Applicator License.

An Applicator License is required to pick up and/or apply Prairie Dog bait. If you do not have an Applicators License you may obtain one by visiting the UW Extension Office in Wheatland or taking open-book test and submitting it to the Wyoming Department of Ag. You may find the open book test manual by clicking here.

If you wish to be added to the Blacktailed Prairie Dog treatment list, please feel free to contact our office at 307.322.3210 or fill out the contact form below!

Below are the forms we require to enroll in the program. These cannot be properly completed until we do an initial mapping of your property, but feel free to review them at your leisure!

Prairie Dog Agreement Form (yearly)
Customer Agreement (if not already on file)
Credit Application (if not already on file)
Follow-Up Letter (after application)

*W.S. 11-5-301-303. Landowners participating in this program will be published in the local paper. Platte County Weed and Pest reserves the right to inspect areas included in the program at any time.

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