charlie brown

Well, yesterday I went out with my two dogs, we drove up to pretty high elevations in my Jeep, but did not find any Mt. Lion tracks. That was about a 3 hour trek. I didn't get out and walk at cause I wasn't feeling too well. Today I started feeling better, and about 1:30, I got the idea to go up this one canyon above town just for the heck of it. At 2:00, I saw some tracks up ahead in the road. It had only stopped snowing about 7 this morning, and I could see other tracks that were covered up, made by other animals. When I stopped the Jeep, my Redbone stuck his head out the window. He didn't bark, but I could tell he was on to something, as he started getting really excited, like when a brid dog gets "birdy." Well, I got my dogs out on the leashes, and looked closer at the tracks. We went along for about 100 yards, and the whole way my Redbone was baying like there was no tomorrow. My Walker/Blue Tick was only barking a little bit here and there. I was REALLY tossing the idea around of letting them loose, but decided not to because there was only close to 2 hours of good daylight, and I have to be to work at 6 in the morning. The cat wins today. I later measured the tracks, and they were about 2 1/2" at the widest point. Not as big as I have seen before, but definately bigger than my dogs' tracks. I figured it was probably a juvenile. There were also a lot of rabbit and deer tracks in the area, so I am pretty confident that the cat will at least be in the general area for a while.

Man that was exciting!! First time I have really got to listen to my dogs go nuts on a hunt!! I can't wait until Monday when I should be able to get a chance to go out again!!

PA Bow/Flinter

Hey, good luck on Monday. Hunting lions seems like it would be a fun thing to do sometime. Too bad there aren't any lions in PA....or are there??? LOL

DOUBLE-LUNG

Sounds like the dogs are definatelyready to track dowm that cat!!! Seems to be a natural instinct.Curious question. I don't mean to sound stupid, but is this the first hunt for you and the dogs? Keep us updated. Good luck!!

Jim Beam

How do you train dogs to hunt these cats? You have to have cat scent or whats involved?

gandilamont

Train em on house cats. no joke

charlie brown

Yup, thats about how its done.
This is the first time the dogs have been out in the wild on a track.
My Blue/Walker cross has treed and killed several house cats on her own, hence the people needing to get rid of her. My Red has never been on a tree of any kind, but absolutely HATES cats that hang around the neighborhood.

NVMIKE

YOU ARE SCREWED!!Once you've been bitten by the bug there is no shaking it. You can hire a guide and go after a cat and not catch the fever, but once you've gotten your own dogs on one its all over.

racowboy

A rule of thumb is 38"+ stride for a decent tom. Anything less should be a female or kitten.

charlie brown

Mike - Yeah, no kidding about being screwed!! LOL!! I have been looking at the weather forcast and seeing how I will be able to manage my work schedule around the weather, lol.

BTW - I did get out again today. Tough conditions, a lot of windblown snow, deep drifts, and having to back up close to 1/2 mile down one canyon because the snow just got too deep and my Jeep couldn't take it any more. I did find one set of tracks, I am not sure what it was (I think it was a bob or coyote). That was about 9-930 this morning. But with the wind already having blown it over and the real dry snow, I couldn't be sure. My Blue was sniffing it pretty good, but my Redbone could care less, so I knew it had to be old, considering out he acted the other day.

BrushChimp

My dad and I use to run bobcats with walkers all the time but only ended getting one cougar. They've since banned hound hunting for bobs, cougs, and bears in Washington.

Charlie, Do you have them broke off trash? Deer, Elk, Yotes?