In 2022, the BurrowRx Carbon Monoxide Sprayer was featured in a pilot study by Stephen Vantassel from the Montana Department of Agriculture. The study was conducted to determine the duration required for a black-tailed prairie dog burrow to be fumigated with a BurrowRx Carbon Monoxide Sprayer to achieve control.
Another goal of the study was to gain a better understanding of the prairie dog burrow structure. BurrowRx Carbon Monoxide Sprayer allows users to use “smoke oil,” which adds color to the exhaust, permitting applicators to see whether other burrows are connected to the one being treated.
One test site was on an alfalfa farm on the eastern side of the Helena Valley. The soil was classified as a Musselshell-Crago complex with slopes ranging from 2 to 8 percent. Prairie dogs were concentrated in the areas outside the pivot circle, but were encroaching. The area treated was approximately 8 acres in size.
The pilot study obtained 92% efficacy with a four-minute injection, 86.7% with a 3:34-minute injection, and 90% efficacy with a three-minute injection.
During the pilot study, several previously unknown issues arose. The primary concern was the engine’s throttle, which was not identified until hole number 5 in Site 2. Initially set at approximately ¾ open, it was subsequently adjusted to full throttle for the remaining treatments. The potential impact of this adjustment on treatment efficacy remains uncertain, but it likely had some marginal effect, possibly a few percentage points.
Additionally, a secondary issue involved hose length, with both short (10 feet) and long (25 feet) options available. While the shorter hose was predominantly used, the longer hose was utilized for certain burrows in Site 2. While it’s unlikely that hose length significantly affected control, there’s a possibility that the longer hose, combined with shorter injection times, reduced the amount of carbon monoxide entering the burrow.
Vantassel, S. M. (2022). Use of BurrowRx® Carbon Monoxide Generator to Control Black-tailed Prairie Dogs in Montana: A Pilot Study. Proceedings of the Vertebrate Pest Conference, 30. Retrieved from https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1h06s11j
About BurrowRx
Designated as a pest control device by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), BurrowRx Carbon Monoxide Sprayer is designed to control burrowing and tunneling animals, including gophers, ground squirrels, moles, rats, and prairie dogs. BurrowRx Carbon Monoxide Sprayer uses a smoke oil tracer to show where the carbon monoxide is going in the tunnels. As the carbon monoxide enters the burrow system, the rodent breathes it replacing oxygen in its blood and causing the organs to stop working. The product is unlikely to harm any non-target species because once it completely dissipates, the carbon monoxide is no longer a risk to anything entering the burrow system.
For more information about the solution for burrowing pests, visit BurrowRx at www.BurrrowRx.com or call (619) 442-8686. Also, visit the BurrowRx channel on YouTube.