Bobcat cage size; discussion.

[Humptulips]

Years ago I read about Reid Aiton and Yancy doing a lot of testing on cage trap size. The gist of it was cat cages needed to be 19" tall and width was not very important. They used cages as narrow as 6". Standard seems to be a 3' long trap. This size seems to have become accepted by the most notable cat cagers in CA and CO.

I built my first cat cages following these guidelines. I am starting to have my doubts. My lowest roofed trap has also been my most productive trap. Not 100% sure but 15x15 or 14x14. My other traps are either 18" or 19" high and even though they have far more trap nights out then the 15x15 they have not produced particularly well. Could it be a fluke? Absolutely, but if not are the bigger traps really worth it. I've also tried a lot of goofy trap designs some of them pretty big and watched cats look, circle, and leave.
I'm thinking of making some next year and leaning towards 15x15. I'd be interested in hearing others thoughts on cat cage size.

[carpsniperg2]

Me and my buddy talk about this a lot. I am nice to see it come up. We have always felt that they need to be 17-18" tall. i see a lot of like 15-15 traps for very good prices. When you get much bigger they get a lot more expensive. I would love to see if you get more 15x15's out there if they produce more as well.

[Humptulips]

One more thing it'd be nice to hear others thoughts on.
Because of observations on what sets looked like that actually caught cats I am thinking about building cat traps out of wood instead of cage. Door would be metal. It seems like my catches have been ones where I stacked solid material like bark around the trap so it was more like a dark hole. Wood I think would be more natural and that kind of plays into my experience experimenting with conibears for cats several years ago.
I figure I could build three traps out of two sheets of plywood so the cost would be acceptable.

[Boss .300 winmag]

Small hole natural looking food inside, makes sense, put some rats in it for bait.

[3nails]

 I've only trapped a handful of cats so I'm commenting mostly to tag this. When I bought the traps I have from Yancy before he passed I remember him saying he did best with the narrowest of the sets. They came in sets of 12" 10" and 8". Now that I think about it I've caught all mine in the 12". I wonder if it's a terrain thing.

[DUGANDEER]

I agree the more wood and brush in and around the trap make it more natural.  I also use a black thick plastic around my cage to make it appear darker plus it keeps some moisture off the pan and latch. It sometimes freezes up. I built some a few years back and they are 20 tall and 12 wide. I really don't think I needed them near that big looking back. I would like to try some smaller traps and I think they would be better. 

[bugs n bones]

Bruce, i have caught dozens and dozens of cats with my havahart 15x15x42, they are not very tall  but they do work well as long as there covered up from the snow and ice. I like the briarpatch cages the best because of there quality and the guillotine style door. They come in 3 and four clusters making them easy to transport and are 42 long as well. The camtrips are the same style except thinner gauge wire (a noticeable difference between the briars) and are 36 long. They will all catch cats, but on the westside  there is such an abundance of food the cats are not starving and freezing to death like on the eastside making it harder to entice them into a cage. The more sight attractors and scents at the properly placed at the set the better the chance we have. I guess my point is having the most reliable cage you can afford will help. The guillotine style trap are way more reliable hands down. Ive seen it where in the shorter cages the cat will crawl in on his belly grab the bait,  havahart  door fall down on cats back and still back out of it. The trigger pedal on the havahart is to far back in relation to the back of the trap. The briars have way more room between the pedal and the back of the trap. The camtrips are not bad in that aspect as well ,just a little less stout.

[Humptulips]

I don't like the camtrip because it seems too easy to jam the pan. There is so little clearance the smallest root, clod, rock won't let it drop.
Other then that it is an impressive piece of engineering. Plenty strong I think. There is something to be said for a light trap.
If a 15x15 trap is equal otherwise just the savings in space hauling it around would give it the edge I think in my truck.

[bugs n bones]

The pan on the briarpatch is much stronger than the camtrip. The beauty of the briars and cams is four cluster of these traps fit inside each other making it easier to pack more in the truck.t

[jackmaster]

hey humptulips, i know this is off thread but do you have pics of bobcats that you have trapped over the years, maybe even like a new thread kinda like how teacher does his yearly trapping journal and maybe some coyotes, hey heres a question was it or is it legal to catch cougars in a live trap, or a leg hold back in the day? sorry off topic i know, just want to see pics 

[BOWHUNTER45]

I have been spending alot of time on Youtube ..alot of good videos on trapping lately ...check it out because I find it addicting 

[SunnySlopes]

I sure feel sorry for you guys. I just walk around and pick em up after they starve or freeze to death.

[Bigshooter]

I think wood holds to much scent.  But one thing  that me and trapperguy22 have talked about is turning old stumps into cage traps. The only problem is you have to find the right stump in the right spot.

[pnwmtnmn]

Here's my thoughts on a "natural" wood box trap. Why not use local timber, build it like a small log cabin to appropriate size. Build it solid using spike or deck screws. Build it in place at a toilet or some similar place where cats are drawn to. leave it there yearly make the door frame removeable 6 or 8 screws holding the frame to the body of the trap. The frame, door and pan goes in the back of your truck when you are down in that spot. All that is left in the woods is a box of small logs.

[trapperguy22]

That is what I was thinking about trying, a few years ago I saw a post on trapperman where a guy did that with an old stump. I would be nice to only carry a door into a location.