[Illustration: After spending a little more than a month below ground, newborn pups warily venture into the daylight, closely watched by their mother. They soon lose their timidness, venturing farther and farther from the burrow but remaining obedient to mother’s commands. Most of the first few weeks on the surface are spent mauling, kissing, or grooming each other and their parents. As the weeks go by, the adults tolerate less play and the pups learn more and more day-to-day survival responsibilities.] [Illustration: A prairie dog eats a blade of grass sitting on its haunches. After falling over a few times, pups soon learn this dining posture. The dogs eat various grasses and forbs, though for different periods they tend to ignore some plants in favor of others. However, they usually clip off all vegetation around their burrows even if they don’t eat it. This habitual grass-cutting apparently is defensive, for predators can conceal themselves better in tall grasses. That is why you don’t see prairie dogs in lush grasslands where there is a bountiful rainfall. They satisfy most of their needs for water with the juices of green plants and grass roots. Prairie dogs also eat insects that inhabit their towns and sometimes prey upon the eggs or young of animals, such as the burrowing owl, that dwell in homes deserted by prairie dogs.] Burrowing Out a Home [Illustration: Prairie dog]