Hunting cats without dogs.

[Brambles]

Has anyone sucessfully hunted Cougar without dogs?

I shed hunt in some decent cougar habitat and wonder if they respond to calls or ?????.

I have limited access to dogs and am usually by myself, not sure if calling cougars is the safest thing to do but it would certainly keep the excitement up with the prospects of having a pissed off kitty trying to bite your jugular. I think I could take a cougar "mano eh mano":biggrin:

[Salty]

I've heard of guys having success with electronic calls. Just put a little thought into your set up, cause he'll be comming to eat :-P

[GoatGuy]

Sitting on kills has also worked very well in other jurisdictions.


You could also just try treeing them yourself - it works, just gotta be in pretty good shape!

Or, buy a hound.:p

[guest]

Sounds cool, if I knew kitty cougar was around, and no dogs, I'd set up likely atop a knoll with 360 ' view, use a blind set up. Or better than that, take a buddy or ( X ) you don't like much and just be able to out run him/her. LOL

Seriously though, if you were in good cat country, I would use a deer, elk or rabbit distress call and stay as still as possible. I don't see why not.

Let us all know if it works, sounds cool.

C/T

[hunter1947]

If you find a fairly fresh cougar kill that would be the way to go if you had the patios to sit near by for endless hours and wait for the cat to return.

[Alpine85]

Pick up one of these, cut tracks and follow them as quickly as you can while you repeatedly bark like a raging idiot.

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y200/Alpine85/ux_a07050900ux0023_ux_c.jpg

[spreerider]

my grandpa got a cougar years ago just right place right time, it just happend to walk infront of him when he was deer hunting. Good thing he always had a cougar tag just in case.

[SHAKER]

Hey brams if you wanted to go Cat hunt'n just ask!

As far as the chance\ called approch, you may end up harvesting a female which is seriously frounded apon these days. Calling has been done but their is way more entertaining ways of doing it. Let me know and we can get them hounds rock'n!

[6616]

Has anyone sucessfully hunted Cougar without dogs?

I shed hunt in some decent cougar habitat and wonder if they respond to calls or ?????.

I have limited access to dogs and am usually by myself, not sure if calling cougars is the safest thing to do but it would certainly keep the excitement up with the prospects of having a pissed off kitty trying to bite your jugular. I think I could take a cougar "mano eh mano":biggrin:

It works, I know at least two coyote callers who brought the big cats in.
Watch out for bears as well, right Hunter47.

[BlacktailStalker]

A guy called in a 70-80lb female with a doe call this year in an area I hunt.
He was set up in semi open bluffs with stunted trees and saw partial brown moving 40 yards ahead of him. He got ready and waited for it to appear. After ten minutes he started looking around and 25 feet behind him, was the cat, sitting, just looking at him. He shot it. I was po'd because I know it had kittens last year and if she hadnt taught them to hunt (usually do around a year of age) they're done for.
I am sure the cat was confused and curious as she heard the doe bleat, circled down wind like all prey does and smelled him but had to check it out for herself.
So although he wasnt targeting cats, it can be done I guess.

I also heard of a guy a few years back that would sit in a tree and fawn in distress call during winter and apparently he connected on 2 cats with this method.
Of course you need to know there is a cat in the area to better your odds.

I tried with my Foxpro a couple times, but that got old pretty quick...

[Islandeer]

It works, I know at least two coyote callers who brought the big cats in.
Watch out for bears as well, right Hunter47.
Trouble with the mano mano thing is that the thing you are scrappin with is tougher than 10 Mano's has fangs and wants to rip your head off then feast on your guts. Oh, that would be nasty.:(

[Fisher-Dude]

I've seen exactly zero cougars in the bush, except when I've been cougar hunting with hounds, then I've seen dozens. Best bet is to hook up with some houndsmen, Bubbles, most like to take newbies out for a run just to see what yer made of. :biggrin:

Take Shaker up on his offer, but be careful - it's a VERY addictive form of huntin'!

[Stone Sheep Steve]

Angry Bob get rid of his hounds???

SSS

[boxhitch]

Good post brambles
I saw a track today so fresh the tail was still wisible. I wondered how they would react to a slow stalk maybe moaning and mewing a few times.
Just how afraid of man are these ellusive cats ? Stalking a prey animal can be done, so stalking a predator may be possible, as long as the approach is not predatorial ?

[chilcotin hillbilly]

accidental killings of females causes a lot of orphaned kittens. Unless you have been under alot of treed cats you will probably not have any idea what you are shooting. hunting a female with kittens is illegal in BC and ignorance of sex would not be an excuse in the CO's mind. Calling ,although it would work in some cases you would be better off following a tom track until it makes a kill and sit and wait. The cougar ussually eats several times in a 24 hr period.

[Mr. Dean]

Gotta say; this has crossed my mind too. Its a good question.


All my Bob and Lynx hunting will be with use of calls. I've made up my mind to let any cougars that should show up, walk. I won't even buy a tag - This decision is based on how the regs are outlined.

IMO, the regs pretty much only allow houndspersons to hunt them. Sexing them is pretty much impossible unless a critter is treed.

[Brambles]

Angry Bob get rid of his hounds???

SSS


No, he's still got his hounds, Its not a problem going with him, but the reason I"m asking is for when I'm shed hunting alone..

Of course I've been told to get him immediatly if I cut a good fresh track when out shed hunting and hiking around.

[Greenfields]

I talked to a guy in the Skagit Valley a couple years ago, who finds a Deer yard and just waits. It is like a kitty buffet.

Cheers

[GoatGuy]

Good post brambles
I saw a track today so fresh the tail was still wisible. I wondered how they would react to a slow stalk maybe moaning and mewing a few times.
Just how afraid of man are these ellusive cats ? Stalking a prey animal can be done, so stalking a predator may be possible, as long as the approach is not predatorial ?

They're usually very afraid of people. Buddy's treed 3 of them himself just by following their tracks - just like a black bear a bit of noise and they'll squirt right up the nearest tree. Seen some other video of a capture and all the cat wants to do is get away. Course there's always the exception to the rule.

[chilcotin hillbilly]

bit of noise and they'll squirt right up the nearest tree. Seen some other video of a capture and all the cat wants to do is get away. Course there's always the exception to the rule. More often then not this is not the case, more likely to happen with juveniles or females with kittens. I've tracked lots of big toms and this would never happen. Once they figure out you are following them they start leaving scratches ever 50 yards or so trying to establish dominance. When this happens keep your eyes open as their next step is to set up an ambush. Chances are you won't get much of a look as use every hill bush and tree to conceil thier movements.