Prairie dogs dig up human remains at cemetery

a santa fe caretaker is taking lethal action against prairie dogs. that’s because the creatures are invading a cemetery he's managing... ... and a warning — what the rodents are doing is grim. gadi schwartz is live in the capital to tell us about the city's latest prairie dog problem. the prairie dog colony at the fairview cemetery keeps growing -- and the more prairie dogs that pop up... the more things that were supposed to stay buried - get dug up. th's a tombstone right behind the head of this curious prairie dog. and it's not the only gravesite in this cemetery that's quickly becoming a burrow. all across the fairview graveyard is a vast network of prairie dog tunnels. even near the tombs of some new mexico governors. and what they are bringing to the surface are human remains that would horrify loved ones. what you are seeing here is this is part of a spine ok this is a rib bone here is a part of the coffin here is another part of a spine the caretaker blames recent construction nearby which has driven more prairie dogs into the area- and he says prairie dog activists are making matters worse... instead of visiting the cemetery to pay their respects -- he says last week he caught a woman who came to visit the prairie dogs. "there was a lady that was feeding prairie dogs here and i told her not to be feeding them and had to ask her to leave because it was just a problem." pete lopez says as long as he is caretaker -- he'll use poison gas and pellet guns to kill prairie dogs in the name of keeping hallowed ground -- from becoming hollowed out. he says a lack of money for cemetery upkeep makes relocating the animals -- a humane but expensive alternative -- impossible. "i'm sure families don't want to have these prairie dogs digging up bones you have all these activists saying leave them alone but you cant leave them alone because they are doing damage." in santa fe prairie dogs are protected in areas where there is construction -- and by law -- must be r...

Channel: ClipSyndicate Video Length: 0s Date Found: Fri, Jun 18 2010 11:25 PM Category: News Date Produced: Fri, Jun 18 2010 7:59 PM View Count: 0