I've been around these amazing creatures for five months now, and never truly knew why they barked like a dog. All I knew was that it was the cutest thing I had ever heard, and couldn't wait to hear it again. However, after doing some research I found that they bark as a warning signal for outside threats.
http://www.defenders.org/prairie-dog/basic-facts This got me thinking about the first week my family had P. Diddy, and Guss. It made me realize how scared they were around us because of how often they barked. We all thought wrong, I guess. And now, this fact becomes clearer to me because the two of them have yet to bark more than once in the past few months. They finally aren't scared, and are comfortable with the presence of humans.
Another thing that caught my attention was the way these animals greet one another. It is the most beautiful and fascinating thing I've seen. They look as if they are kissing or doing the French "
la bise" which in this case fits perfectly because this is how they would greet another prairie dog.
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| Picture from "Prairie Dog" on Wikipedia |
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| Picture from "Prairie Dog" on Humane Society- Wildlife Land Trust |
I love the way these two sleep. They express such love and affection towards each other. "Taking turns using each other as pillows and snuggling closer and closer. Almost as if they were a ying-yang symbol." Field notes 9/17
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| Picture taken by Kayla Polley |
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| Picture taken by Kayla Polley |
Are these all your photos? They are so sweet. I had no idea. The greeting thing makes me think of my dog; she always touches me with her nose. It's sort of like she checks in. About ever 20 seconds or so when we're together (even while running) she will bump my knee with her nose. I wonder if it's the same thing.
ReplyDeleteI like how you described them while they were sleeping, comparing them to a ying-yang symbol. I also think the pictures really helped visualize how cute these little creatures are! Maybe you could get a recording of how they sound barking. That would be great :)
ReplyDeleteYour description of them as yin and yang is wonderful they look just like yin and yang. It's to bad they sleep all the time though and must get pretty boring at times.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very nice post. How do you go into depth with lesser words? You make it look so easy. I love those prairie dog pictures. Do they really bark like any other dog? I would love to hear what they sound like. Those little guys are so adorable; they must have really helped you for art and knowledge. I wouldn't have thought of yin and yang. That probably took a lot of deep thinking. Very nice. I can't wait for the next post.
ReplyDeleteI love the comparison of yin and yang to the way the prairie dogs sleep. Are the barks of these animals different than the bark of a regular dog? If they differ, what does it sound like?
ReplyDeleteI like how you compared you're Prairie dogs to the yin and yang, very good. I like how you compared their kiss with la bise. How did you get them anyways?
ReplyDeleteGreat post you have so far its by far one of my favorite post I have seen. I like the way you setup your blog giving us vivid details, good information, and awesome pictures.
ReplyDeleteP.S. I thinks its awesome that you have Prairie dogs. Are they like big Hamsters?