New Lubbock Resident Doesn’t Know What This “Hamster” Is

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What's this rodent called?

Many of us Lubbock natives are very familiar with this little friend. They're everywhere. We even have a little town where you can go watch these little fellers.

Prairie Dogs!

I love them. They're so small and cute and they pop in and out of their little holes and I want to take one home and call it Randy and take care of it forever and be its friend.

Even though most of us know what these things are, it seems people not raised around here are as familiar. Take, for example, this user on Reddit, who specifically asked:

What's this hamster called? It's the size of a small rabbit. They also dug underground burrows.

I see it all over the place in public parks in Lubbock.

I was not born and brought up here so excuse my ignorance.

I'm not bashing you for being new here, friend. We welcome all kinds. It's just hilarious to me how you described it.

Many redditors were kind enough to tell our new friend that this was, in fact, a prairie dog, but many others decided to name our new buddy. Jerry. Big Ounce. Quandale Dingle. Kevin. Larry. Lenard. Alan. Steve. All of these are suitable names for this nugget. I'm a big fan of Lenard, personally.

So, yes, this is a Prairie Dog. Cute little guys. Don't go picking them up, though. I don't think they'll like it.

But you can check out Prairie Dog Town. It's in Mackenzie Park. Go watch the little dudes from afar and marvel at their cuteness. I love them. You will, too. I promise.