Blsum's 2017/2018 season

[Blsum]

Well we finally connected with the bobcat in the first couple of trail cam pics. Unfortunately the kids were with their mother this week and weren't able to go with me. This is our first cat of the year.  We set the trap on the 3rd and finally caught her on the 15th. She ended up weighing in at 15.6 lbs.

[JakeLand]

Good job !! Nice colored cat

[Trapper John]

Nice    two thumbs up
JC 

[Humptulips]

Spotty!

[Blsum]

Thanks guys. I do have some bad news. I missed on another much bigger cat last night at the same location. I have 3 traps set in there and have trail camera video of the one I caught and video of the one I missed and the second cat was quite a bit larger. The time stamp and pics (this camera was set to photo not video) shows the cat working the other set for 35 min before commiting. Not sure how it got out but it did. Hopefully it comes back. Has anyone ever caught a cat they pinched  once before?

[Humptulips]

I caught the same female and turned it loose twice at one set and I am reasonably sure I caught the same cat and turned it loose a third time at another set nearby.

[Trapper John]

That reminds me of Chuck "Bobcat" Bailey.
He caught a female mountain lion in a MB750 in a cubby set with beaver on day.  He's working with the Tribes and the Wildlife Department.
So they knock the cat down / tranquilized it, weigh it, took blood samples, measure her teeth, put a radio collar get as much data as they need on her and let her go. 

Three days later chuck is driving down the road with snow on it and runs across this cat track heading for his set.  He told me you could see the tracks walking in a straight line stops turns and leaps 20 feet into his set and get caught.    He check it and its the same cat they caught three days ago.

Now you would think that if you had a trap on your foot, radio collar on your neck and it was because you went in for this beaver carcass hanging in a tree you would stay away.    But nooooooooooooooo way!    The department Researcher comes up and records the data and lets her go.
JC   

[Blsum]

Finally caught cat number 2. Decent size cat that had some decent markings. But I'm pretty sure it was a female so I let it go.  Same trap as the last cat only 2 weeks later. At first I thought it might have been the cat I missed the day after catching the first one. However when I looked at the trail camera video it looks like this cat was actually smaller then the one I missed.

[teanawayslayer]

 

[redi]

Congrats. Way to be selective.

[Trapper John]

Finally caught cat number 2. Decent size cat that had some decent markings. But I'm pretty sure it was a female so I let it go.  Same trap as the last cat only 2 weeks later. At first I thought it might have been the cat I missed the day after catching the first one. However when I looked at the trail camera video it looks like this cat was actually smaller then the one I missed.

Nice work 
It looks like your having a good season.     
More and more guys are releasing the females ......... mink, pine marten, bobcats
JC 

[Blsum]

Finally caught cat number 2. Decent size cat that had some decent markings. But I'm pretty sure it was a female so I let it go.  Same trap as the last cat only 2 weeks later. At first I thought it might have been the cat I missed the day after catching the first one. However when I looked at the trail camera video it looks like this cat was actually smaller then the one I missed.

Nice work 
It looks like your having a good season.     
More and more guys are releasing the females ......... mink, pine marten, bobcats
JC

Thanks. I have no problem releasing females. She was even bigger then the one I caught a couple weeks ago, only the third one I've caught but the largest.  The first one I wasn't 100% sure if it was a female or not, but she had some really nice markings. It wasn't until after I had dispatched her that I was really able to tell for sure. Had I been sure the first one was a female I would have released her as well. Got to keep the breeders out there. Especially since I know at least a couple other guys are trapping in the same general area. We all talk regularly and try to stay out of each other's general locations, but I still want to have cats to trap in the future.