Lulu the Prairie Dog

Lulu the Prairie Dog
By Sherry Rheaume

It was springtime on the prairie, and everyone was waking up from a long winter’s sleep. Thunderstorms rolled across the land, filling the streams, and everything was beginning to grow. Green clover now sprouted where a blanket of snow used to be, and leaves were budding everywhere. Tiny mice scurried around, collecting new shoots of grasses. A young hawk that just learned to fly soared across the sky, scanning the land below him.

The prairie dog home far beneath the ground was full of activity. Prairie dogs are not really dogs, but bigger cousins to the squirrel, only with smaller tails. They get their name because they bark warnings to let their families know when there is danger near. They have large brown eyes that can see very far across the land and sky. They are covered in soft brown fur with long toes and claws on their front feet for digging. They dig miles of underground tunnels like a maze that make up the prairie dog town.
This family had four new members to greet the neighbors this year. The very smallest of all was Lulu. They were all very excited about seeing the world outside their home. Mama and daddy prairie dog schooled them with great care to be good lookout guards. Everyone would have to take a turn at standing guard for the rest of the family. It was an important responsibility and a great honor to be trusted with guard dog duty.

Lulu would stand as tall as she could, and practice stretching, in flawless unison with her brothers and sister. With perfect prairie dog form, she would turn her head to see in all directions. Lulu knew all the warning calls better than everyone else did: three long calls for a hawk warning, four short calls for a coyote warning, and a short yep and a whoop when it is safe to come out again. It was very dangerous business being out there on the open prairie, and everyone had to depend on each other for protection. Lulu would practice and practice, but as hard as she tried, she could not bark; when she opened her mouth and tried, only a wheeze and a cough came out of her.

Being so tiny when she was born caused Lulu to have asthma. This meant that when she tried to run or bark, she had trouble breathing. Mama prairie dog assured her that she would one day soon be able to bark loud and clear for everyone to here. Her brothers and sister teased her terribly because she could not bark. Lulu felt very sad, but she kept practicing anyway.

The day had come and they were finally out on the prairie to eat the new leaves and roots and enjoy the sun. All the prairie pups from the neighboring hills gathered together to play tag and to practice standing look out under the watchful eyes of their parents. They chased each other around and then up to the top of each hill to stand tall and show off their skills at standing look out.

Lulu ran up a hill, but when she reached the top, she was so out of breath that she started to cough; that is when the other pups started to tease her. They sang “Coo coo Lulu, can’t bark a woo hoo, go and cry boohoo poor little Lulu.”

Lulu ran away from the teasing crowd. She ran as far and as fast as she could to find a place to be alone, so no one would see her cry. Finally stopping in a valley with a babbling brook and trees all around, out of breath and coughing, but at last alone, Lulu cried. Taking a deep breath, Lulu stopped crying, and looked around at the beautiful valley. Being alone was scary for a prairie dog, but the valley was so beautiful that she began to relax a bit.

She was munching on some grass, when something caught her eye in the distant sky. It was a hawk, and it was circling wide toward the direction she had just come from. All her hurt feelings from the teasing were gone now as panic set in. Visions of a hawk carrying off one of her family made Lulu ran faster than she ever thought possible. She had to warn them and she had to be quick. At the top of every hill, she stopped briefly, and stood as tall as she could and scanned the sky and valley for danger. Only when she could see the distant shape of the hawk did she run again to the next hill.

Lulu reached the last valley, and she knew that her family was just over the next hill. As she started up the hill, a huge shadow blocked out the sun for a second. The shadow that swept over her was in the shape of a hawk. She was so scared that she forgot about not being able to bark and ran even faster. As she reached the top of the hill, one very hard cough came out of her, and something opened her lungs to fill with air, and then it happened: Lulu barked so loud that she could not believe that sound came out of her. Three long calls, then she dove through the entrance and down to the safety of a neighbor’s home.

Everyone heard Lulu’s barks, and all the prairie dogs had made it to their burrows safely. All prairie dogs, both young and old, praised Lulu’s swift actions and loud barks. “Boohoo Lulu” was now “brave Lulu, the smallest hero,” very admired for her great courage and guard dog abilities.

All the prairie dog pups now sang praises to Lulu; “Woo hoo Lulu, Little Lulu brave and true, faster than a hawk she flew.” She now knew that, no matter how small you are, and no matter how weak you are, whatever you work hard for, you can achieve if you just never give up.