Bobcats in southern Ablerta

kbjohn · #1 06-29-2007, 09:06 AM

Was wondering if anyone had tried to get one of those bobcats in southern Alberta. Are they hard to find/ hunt is the a prefered method. Are dog needed. I would love to get one some day

Versatile · #2 06-29-2007, 09:16 AM

I was looking all winter everywhere. River bottoms, coulees, basically anyhwere some cover is and I couldnt find nothing. I havent let any dogs go.

kbjohn · #3 06-29-2007, 09:33 AM

My buddy Cougar hounds that may be the answer. I have also see a coyote hunting video where they were calling bobcats in. I,m just not sure of the # of cats around ther I have never seen one down there and have hunted in southern alberta a lot. not even a road kill. But ther must be a good number of them or they wounld let you hunt them ....Would they??

SouthAltaHunter · #4 06-29-2007, 10:56 AM

I have been trying to call in a bobcat for the last 16 winters, with only 1 close ecounter so far. The cat come in to 30 yards in some heavy cottonwoods on South Sask. river valley. Didnt accually see him, but after calling, and walking back to truck I seen his tracks cut across mine 30 yards behind me. They seem alot more elusive to call in than coyotes, as I would think after all this time I would have got one. I have been lucky enough to see 3 cats though in my outings here in the south. 2 were in Cypress Hills area, and 1 was on South Sask. river in WMU 116. We were drifting river in fishing boat, and as we were drifting there was some geese swimming ahead V-ing off to the shore line, as this was happening a Bobcat was scaling the steep coulees and cliffs, watching these geese slowly come to shore, when they got close enough he made a leap from a ledge and grabbed a young goose by the neck and was gone. It was unreal to witness. Some better places to target them would be around Cypress Hills, if you can get to some ranches that have alot of chickens, turkeys or raise pheasants. Some guys were having some trouble there with Bobcats killing there birds the last few years. My wife's parents & uncles ranch north of the park, and they have seen cats occasionally. Here uncle found a dead one a few springs ago frozen in ice in a washout in the bottom of a heavily treed coulee. I have heard of some ranchers calling them in in WMU 151, but in regulations you cant hunt them in that zone. That Red Frog fellow that posts here might have some valuable information to be shared about these elusice cats. Good luck and keep calling.

SouthAltaHunter

tdwarburton · #5 06-29-2007, 12:43 PM

Yeah I haven't seen but a couple in the 10 years I have been hunting. One I saw North of the park (Elkwater) and the second I "bumped" into down along the South Sask River on the South end of Hargrave's Ranch. It was windy as heck and with all the noise through the tree's on the river bottom I guess he didn't hear me coming until I was about 20yrds away. As quickly as I realized what "it" was "it" was gone. I have seen some fantastic mounts of these stealthy critters. Seem to have quite a taste for chickens or so I've been told. A friend of mine who ranches on the Sask side of the Hills said that cat had him damned near out of chickens before he got 'em. Sure made a great mount though.

roger · #6 06-29-2007, 01:02 PM

although i have never seen a bobcat, i have called in a few lynx now,
and i trust there behaviour would be similar.
veeerrryy slllloooowww to respond.
but they are not afraid, so once you see one, connecting with the hmr would be relatively easy...of course, i assumin' now.(and we all know where that leads)

kbjohn · #7 06-29-2007, 01:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tdwarburton

Yeah I haven't seen but a couple in the 10 years I have been hunting. One I saw North of the park (Elkwater) and the second I "bumped" into down along the South Sask River on the South end of Hargrave's Ranch. It was windy as heck and with all the noise through the tree's on the river bottom I guess he didn't hear me coming until I was about 20yrds away. As quickly as I realized what "it" was "it" was gone. I have seen some fantastic mounts of these stealthy critters. Seem to have quite a taste for chickens or so I've been told. A friend of mine who ranches on the Sask side of the Hills said that cat had him damned near out of chickens before he got 'em. Sure made a great mount though.

Hargraves Ranch was that in the bullspring or white rock canyons. Hunt that area often too but never seen a cat. I should get mulies there this year.

Dunezilla · #8 06-29-2007, 01:28 PM

Saw one in the Cadomin mines a few years back and it was a nice cat. I tried to follow it to get a picture but it was camera shy, it won't stop. It was heading where the mountian sheep hang out.

tdwarburton · #9 06-29-2007, 03:09 PM

kbjohn I mis-lead you I talked with my brother in-law (who was with me when we say the critter) and it was in the tree's along the river at the Drowning Ford I believe it was Cactus flats but don't quote me it could be south a little of there. I just started hunting this area and I get confused a little. Sorry. As for the mulies in the Bullsprings and WhiteRock areas they are great. I took a 160 class buck last year but had opportunities (more than one) at one that I think would go 180+. Bow hunting can be VERY humbling.

aulrich · #10 06-29-2007, 03:30 PM

I only ever saw tracks south border of cypress.

RockyMountainMusic · #11 06-29-2007, 05:06 PM

dunezilla, are you sure it was a bobcat and not a lynx? i haven't heard of any bobcats this way but anything is possible.

Redfrog · #12 06-29-2007, 05:55 PM

Calling bobcats in Alberta is tough, for a couple of reasons.
Firstly there aren't many and any place I 've tried to call them, coyotes come in first , and well............you know..........they need killin' too.

I spoke with ranchers in the south, and a few have senn them along the Milk river. One guy sees a family of them every year. We had no luck callng them.

I know there are none up north, but I saw one that didn't know that. He was up in the Peace River area. I was cooking "shore lunch" on the tailgate, and my two friends were calling a half mile away. As I looked up from the tailgate through the windshield, I saw a bobcat stop in front of the truck and crap.

I tried to get to the cab and camera, but it wandered off.

I have killed them in B.C. and each January I go to Arizona calling predators. There are lots there along with grey fox, coyotes, and cougar.

I would guess a person would have to be very lucky or devote a winter to trying to call just cats.

I don't know if Marty Senneker has snared any. I think he works the rivers in the south.

kbjohn · #13 07-03-2007, 02:53 PM

Iwonder why the season for them then. If there are few and far between they should put a ban on them, I wold think like the grizz.

CONSERVATION?????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ?????????????????????????????????????????????????? ??????????????????????

Rackmastr · #14 07-03-2007, 03:05 PM

They are not regulated I think because they are very hard to kill.....they are sneaky and arent easy to find, let alone get in range and kill.....at least thats my take on it. As well, there probably is a very very small harvest, meaning that the population isnt being affected much at all by the harvest....

BTW, the use of the question marks really makes the thread annoyin to read.....

MathewsArcher · #15 07-04-2007, 07:38 AM

Bobcat may be hunted (but not trapped) by a resident on land which the resident has the right of access for hunting in WMUs 102, 104, 106, 108, 112, 116, 118 and 119 and that part of WMU 110 east of Highway No. 2 and south of Highway No. 3.

Bobcat populations are considered stable and/or increasing in the zones where they can be hunted according to the most current Status on Alberta wildlife.

rcmc · #16 07-05-2007, 07:08 PM

I called in 2 bobcats while calling coyotes. Shot a 35 lb. male bobcat several years back, what a thrill.

packhuntr · #17 07-05-2007, 10:03 PM

I think theres afew more in my part of the country than people around here think. Its my opinion they are just really shy and smart, and you dont see em cause they lay down and hide. My dad has taken two cats, and there are quite afew taken on cubbies for bobcat on this southern river, at least i know of afew in the past, but no one is at them anymore. The odd one is caught in a coyote snare for sure, but for the most part these cats arent coming into trails on a dead cow for example. They cant eat frozen meat like a dog. I missed one coming off the point of an island i was calling on years ago

Ive got lots of info on em, weve had more than afew in depth discussions on this in the past. I have looked at methods of targeting them with the call, and figure ive got it, actually afew calls that i know will work, and the dogs wont{shouldnt} bugger a guy up. Just need to find the calls. The reason guys are killing the dogs is cause the cats take a long time to come into a call, and are real slow going. The coyote just comes smokin in and takes the hit, guys never know they had a cat responding to theyre wounded rabbit call. Theyre around boys, i know guys whove been killing cats for years, but my lips are sealed!!

keep a strain on er.