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Post by robertw on Oct 2, 2006 20:05:34 GMT -6
Hate to bust any bubbles but...There are states east of the Mississippi (especially southern) that have annual bobcat harvests that rival or exceed most western state harvests.
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Post by FWS on Oct 2, 2006 20:23:32 GMT -6
None of em' rivalved the pre-trap ban harvests in CA or AZ, matter of fact CA's harvest was greater than WY, ID, UT, WA and MT combined.
There's at least 20,000 less cats hitting the market due to the restrictions in CA, AZ, CO and WA. And a lot of those were damn good cats.
A question about those Eastern cats is how many are actually targeted versus being incidental to taking other species.
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Post by bobCATching on Oct 2, 2006 20:31:17 GMT -6
I think the "greatest cat lure ever" is a female cat in heat sitting in a trap with two other sets close by. (except in the greater SF area)
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Post by lynxcat on Oct 2, 2006 20:33:04 GMT -6
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Post by FWS on Oct 2, 2006 20:41:30 GMT -6
Probably true, but that speaks to my urine/gland mix as well.
I would say that female isn't exactly quiet in the trap either. An mp3 unit with a yowling cat in heat that operated intermittently would be an interesting test.
Two roosters crowing to each other is a good attractant too I'm told.
And I'll tell you what, there are one Hell of a lot of cats in the areas surrounding the SF Bay area.
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Post by robertw on Oct 2, 2006 20:41:34 GMT -6
FWS;"None of em' rivalved the pre-trap ban harvests in CA or AZ, matter of fact CA's harvest was greater than WY, ID, UT, WA and MT combined."
Your statement is correct but I wasn't referring to 20 years ago, I'm talking about now.
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Post by bobCATching on Oct 2, 2006 20:42:20 GMT -6
I saw the proof in Blackfoot, ID this year. A "lynxcat" was caught by just such a lure
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Post by trappincoyotes39 on Oct 2, 2006 20:50:09 GMT -6
wiley has he made any catches with the lure you got at the convention? Just wanted to know.
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Post by robertw on Oct 2, 2006 20:51:44 GMT -6
FWS;"A question about those Eastern cats is how many are actually targeted versus being incidental to taking other species."
Is that a question or a statement?
If it is a question, yes a good number of cats are caught as incedentals. It can't be helped, they show up in all kinds of coon sets, castor mounds, cross overs on beaver dams and even the occasional cage trap and conibear set for armadillos. Add in the additional incedental catches made by coyote trappers trapping for the live market and you have a majority of the bobcat harvest.
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Post by gunny on Oct 2, 2006 21:16:12 GMT -6
Which only a percentage of cats have a reaction to BTW, it's been studied. Ever check the price on real unadulterated catnip oil ? Not a tincture but the real stuff. When I see it listed as a lure ingredient I have to question if it's real and if so in enough volume to elicit a reaction in cats. Stay away from imitation catnip. Learned that the hard way.
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Post by mostinterestingmanintheworld on Oct 2, 2006 23:06:44 GMT -6
I know some real good trappers that just mix up a bunch of cat turds for filler. add some glycerine and what ever else strikes their fancy and get after it.
Tracy is right about the ingredients. They all show up in a formula sooner or later. And they all work.
The main reason I don't use much commercial lure is because I don't know what is in it.
I don't like some ingredients at ground level and vice versa.
One I don't want the darn things rolling which they do more than most think, maybe more than coyotes. So skunky and other musks go on a clothespin where they can get their face on it without going to the ground.
Also I like their focus someplace else besides on the ground where the trap is set.
Turds belong on the ground, scent belongs up off the ground for the most part. IMHO
I like the lure beyond the trap for walkthroughs. Think snaring where you want his attention beyond your trap not at it.
Also I like more than one smell in the vicinity. Lot's of time you only get one step with a cat. Different smells might get an extra step which will get you a few more animals.
Joel
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Post by Wiley on Oct 3, 2006 7:09:05 GMT -6
Joel,
You make a good point about rubbing. When up against a bank or rock formation, I love to place that call lure, or just straight beaver castor, at a level that is convenient for them to rub as they try to "tip toe through the guided traps".
Then again, what the hell do I know? LOL!
Brad,
Yes that radio telemetry information will eventually be available. This will be a masters thesis for Bernard Hein. Mostly badlands type terrain such as you would find in Theodore Roosevelt National Park in ND and in the Miles City area.
37,
I'm pretty sure he caught some cats on that lure but it goes back to those variables again. He probably could have caught every one of those cats with just droppings, urine, gland lure, or a combination of those or maybe just a flag. Who knows what triggered those cats? We know the combination that works but we speculate as to which factor worked best.
Getting back to the title, "greatest cat lure ever", when you consider all the variables to what I consider a great cat set (but what the hell do I know), and when you consider just the lazy and independent behavior of a cat, cat lure claims are even more comical than coyote lure claims.
My sets usually have bait in the hole, call lure at cat face level on the bank, gland lure to the trash piled side, urine on the rim of the hole, droppings anchored by the hole as guides, flag above.
Now with all that attraction, which factor "killed the cat"?
Probably none of them because if you made your set at the right location and constructed it correctly, that cat would have probably walked through that spot anyway even without any interest in what you had offered it at the set.
I'll bet it's usually the location, flag, and/or hole or bone that gets them there and the nose attractors keep them there. Who will ever know? Speculation!
Even with all that and 2 guided traps, sometimes a cat just walks through and doesn't get caught. WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU?
Then I catch cats in flat sets with nothing more than a single trap and lure. WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU?
Have you ever heard the expression, "it's like herding cats"?
A cat does what it wants to do, not what it's supposed to do.
The thing about a visual is that I believe it has more drawing power at a distance than scents but there is nothing better to catch a bobcat than where a bobcat has been caught. Keep that in mind when using drags. HINT! HINT!
Personally, for that reason, I think it's better to keep them at the set but then again, what the hell do I know? I don't write books or sell lure?
~SH~
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Post by rk660 on Oct 3, 2006 21:20:08 GMT -6
I think fishy odors are pretty overlooked for cats by many. Fresh fish, salmon, shellfish essence oil are all good cat baits and lures. Shellfish is a good smell to use in conjunction with other proven bobcat smells. Probibly clam, crawfish and shrimp essence oil would be good too. I think i'd stay with the fresher fish smells more than the rank smells. One smell mentioned that some guys dont like is one I like for cats is beaver oil.
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Post by lynxcat on Oct 3, 2006 22:11:05 GMT -6
Fish smells are like catnip...I have a cat that given a BAG of groceries...fish...shrimp..steak..bread...pork..mushrooms etc...the FIRST thing he eats is about 1/2 of a mushroom..the the end of the bread loaf...NEVER touches the fish or shrimp...NEVER in 14 years...HENCE the ONLY universal call for cats...URINE/GLANDS/TURDS...the rest are hit/miss....THIS cat goes APE nuts on catnip..my OTHER cats will hit the fish/steak..but TOTALLY shys from the nip...BAD. lynx
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Post by GUTPYLZ on Oct 4, 2006 0:17:19 GMT -6
I don't know if you want to call it a lure, but I will take "location" over lure. I've caught a few, just on walk through alone. with no attractor, lure or urine. I always use at least urine now. I always experiment, and try to do things outside the box for learning purposes on a couple of my sets.
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