Horror as swarm of feral beasts dig up loved ones' graves in local cemetery

Daily Mail​

08-05-2025

Residents in Wyoming are in uproar as feral animals in the area are digging up the graves of their loved ones in the local cemetery.
Rawlins Cemetery has been plagued by a group of prairie dogs who have been digging in and around graves as locals are furious over the disturbance of their loved ones graves.
Janice Martinez and her husband, who visit the cemetery every day, shared their anger over the dog holes across the grounds, Cowboy State Daily reported.
In a Rawlins based Facebook group, Martinez wrote: 'I cannot believe the damage "ground squirrels" are causing to our cemetery. Maybe whoever's in charge of this should take a drive through the cemetery and take a look at the daily destruction these animals are doing.'
In response to the issue, the City of Rawlins Government wrote in a Facebook post that its Park Division would be 'increasing efforts to control the ground squirrels.'
'Our priority is to create an environment where our loved ones' resting place is treated with respect. These animals have caused major damage to our cemetery,' the post said.
'Their burrows and tunnels create unstable ground, which then damages gravestones and irrigation. They are also very destructive to turf.'
Some of the combative efforts that the city has said they plan to implement include tripling the number of T-trap bait stations for their annual placement of Rozol, which can be used to combat prairie dogs, rats and gophers.
'Rozol will be placed in the stations this spring and again in late summer,' the post added. The city furthered that risk toward 'non-target' species is being monitored.
But the issue has stirred the local community and is a struggle known to many cemeteries.
Darin Edmonds, superintendent of the Campbell County cemetery district, told the Cowboy State Daily: 'People get squirrely about anything digging underground where their loved ones are.
'Prairie dogs are a nuisance and their holes are unsightly, but it's one of those things that can happen in rural Wyoming.'
Edmonds said that cemeteries in 'the middle of nowhere' often run into problems with persistent prairie dog digging.
'Prairie dogs probably do the most damage, visibly and physically, of any critter I've encountered,' he added. 'But in Wyoming, you're subject to the natural tendencies of wildlife.'
After trials and failures to flood the dogs out, Edmonds said the most effective way to rid cemeteries of the issue is poison.
'Poisoning is probably the best remedy, fortunately or unfortunately,' he said. 'We went out to the extent of that environment, applied poison, and it seemed to work.'
'Prairie dogs are a nuisance and their holes are unsightly, but it's one of those things that can happen in rural Wyoming,' said Darin Edmonds
'You could try live trapping them, but the quickest, shortest and most effective remedy is to poison them.'
The damage, however, remains a sore point for those with loved ones buried at Rawlins.
Martinez told the outlet: 'I read the post about the new poisoning system. It breaks my heart to see graves being dug up, stones covered in dirt and new holes dug on a daily basis.'