Cougar Hunts

[huntnphool]

So who, how, where, when do you go to for a cougar hunt. I would like to go on one but since there are no hound hunts here I have no idea what to do. Any help would be appreciated.

[Machias]

Well I start chasing them next Sat with my dogs in NE WA.  You can call, set up on a kill or try and track one down.  You can hunt till March.  Good luck and let us know how you do.  Find the deer or elk and the lions won't be too far away.

[YellowDog]

Hey Machias,

Sory for the thread hijack but I was up elk hunting and there was a guy driving around the Little Naches area in a truck with at least two hounds in the back and another truck with two bow hunters following him.  Was just curious if there there is a pursuit season or something in the area that you might know about?  I don't know hounds but they had what appeared to be tats on their ears.

[Cougeyes]

There is no pursuit only or any hound hunting open in the Little Naches.  Once the quota is reached in the NE then there it turns to pursuit only.  Who knows what they were doing, mayne just taking the dogs for a ride.

[jdb]

those guys in the little naches may have been coon hunters. we coon hunt that area alot and see guys with hounds quite often JB

[huntnphool]

So Machias, are you telling me there are places in the state where you can hunt with hounds? I was under the impression that was no longer legall.

[YellowDog]

Never really thoguht about the possiblility of them being coon hunting.  I definatley thought that they may just be taking the dogs for a ride.  Only problem with that is that they appeared to also be elk/deer hunting.  I guess I didn't think all that much of it since they were on a pretty heavily traveled road so if they would have been doing anything wrong they couldn't have been too bright.  I was actually kind of surprised and  glad to see that the guy driving the truck with the hounds looked to be in his early to mid 20's so I thought it was good to see a younger guy that might be running hounds.

[Machias]

Yes, this is the fourth year of lion hunting with hounds in the NE part of the state.  It was a three study, and they extended it another year.  The complaints, I believe are down quite a bit in the areas open to hounds since the study began.

Those guys in the Little Naches could have been coon hunters or may have been Native Americans, I know several who run hounds and they do not have the same restrictions as the rest of us.  They have never stopped running bobcats, bears and lions in this state.

[MHWASH]

One thing I don't understand is the WDFW restrickted some of the "boot" hunting for cougar in the areas allowing hound hunts. You cant tell me the few people out there trying to call or track a loin can hurt the chances of the hound hunters.

[Cougeyes]

What are the restrictions for those boot hunters?  I did hear something about the boot hunting season open only until like November then hound season is open after that?  Is that correct?  If so, I think the reason is to just give the hound hunters who put in for the permit to harvest an animal and put their hounds to use.  I know boot hunters take quite a few a year in those areas that allow permit hound hunting. 

[billythekidrock]

One thing I don't understand is the WDFW restrickted some of the "boot" hunting for cougar in the areas allowing hound hunts. You cant tell me the few people out there trying to call or track a loin can hurt the chances of the hound hunters.

I agree..

[nwhoundhunter]

Boot hunters have already closed the Chelan unit up even before the hound hunters got in there, so Yes it can happen.  This just happens to be a slim chance, but it's already happened this year.

[Cougeyes]

Yeah that sucks, especially if the game department is trying to manage better in those areas through hound hunting, i mean boot hunting is a chance by chance basis and they would most likely shoot any cat, whereas hound hunters would be more selective, I think in the next year or two you may see a change in cougar hunting in Washington.

[Machias]

Cougeyes normally I would agree with you, about houndsmen being selective, but with the female quota and guys being antsy, they are shooting the first thing the tree, so they get "their" cat before the harvest closes.  I wish they would shut down and not allow any females to be taken period.  Last year in Stevens/Pend Oreille they still had something like 22 lions avaible when the female quota was reached and the harvest was closed.  That was 22 lions still roaming around that could have been thinned out. 

I don't feel too bad for the boot hunters, you guys still have the rest of the state to chase lions till Mar, plenty of lions + tracking snow in the Blues and other parts of the state.

[Cougeyes]

Ok, that makes sense now that you clarified it.  Well, from what I heard they're reallly trying to reinstate hound hunting state wide.

[Houndhunter]

i hope they do bring back hound hunting for lion, and as far as shooting a female goes why restrict it completly?? i wish they would let you shoot any cat and not care bout the sex of the animal. i do hate it when the female quota is reached, then its pursuit only which is still fun to me, but i would rather kill a cat

[Cougeyes]

I think there is a strong chance it will be brought back, just give it some more time.

[Houndhunter]

i've been watchin the meetings and such that they hold and havnt seen any info bout them opening it up again. but i've heard from wdfw workers that it may come back, but the people could vote it back down. and since its the dang hippies that are producing all the commercials influencing the majority, i dont think we got much hope. but i've also heard that they could just expand on what they're doing now with the cat pilot program. i dont know, cause i dont know how all that works on getting new laws like that passed and all.

i dont think we got a chance on opening up bear hunting with hounds again, atleast like how it was

[Machias]

Here's the problem Houndhunter.  Most hunters want the lions gone, actually most hunters are not dead set on the removal of all lions, but the removal of all predators.  It is a thought process I used to share.  Less predators equals more deer and elk for me to hunt.  I get it and understand the thought process.  Later in life I became a big game houndsmen.  I like running and treeing lions and bears, almost as much as I like bowhunting whitetails in the Ozark Mtns.  The problem with killing females is it puts a serious dent in the lion population after a while.  Then as a hound hunter your driving around hundreds of miles looking for tracks to run and can't seem to figure out why there are so few lions.  (I can hear most folks on the board cheering right now )  As a houndsmen I hope we reach a happy medium.  Shoot hog toms and very few if any females, but that is just me.  I grew up chasing after Black and Tans in MO as a teenager.  Used to shoot out every coon we treed.  When I got to be a Junior in High School in stead of treeing 5 to 6 coons a night I was having trouble putting up more then two.  I had shot way too many breeding females.  Sometimes we are our own worst enemies.  For me honestly I would be just as happy if it was pursuit only every year from now on.  I do want to harvest a big tom someday, but that takes a backseat to watching my dogs work.  Last year I treed two females while the harvest was still open, they were nice females one was probably 80 pounds and the other was right at 100.  I had no problem walking away from those trees, actually felt great about it.  Late in Jan after the harvest was closed I treed a nice 140 pound tom, now had the harvest still been open I would have taken him in a heartbeat.  The thing that bothers me about the set up of the current system is it turns it into a competition almost.  Guys gotta take the first cat they tree or they may not be able to take a cat at all.  I believe there was still 19 or 22, can't remember the number of toms still available after the harvest was closed.  Guys talk about thinning the numbers down, if they didn't have the female quota there is 19 more cats that could have been taken.

[hogsniper]

It is hard to say what i would do in this situation. I would love to kill a nice lion but for me just seeing one would be a big feet. Most people dont see the lions like you guys do so the first little female they see it gets shot. I would prob. do the same thing. It sucks because i totally understand where you are coming from but the excitement of actually getting one would take over and the little lion would be on the ground. I do hope they bring back the persuit season cus i love to go out with my buddies and listen to their walkers running thru the mountains.....good luck this year guys...Justin

[Cougeyes]

I do some volunteer work in the winters and tag along with WDFW guys that collar some cats, its awsome to work with good houndsman and their hounds, its deffinetly fun to be part of.

[Houndhunter]

ive been wanting to do that with them, but im to young. i believe you have to be atleast 18, and even then i dont think they'd want someone that young

[Cougeyes]

It doesn't hurt to ask, I've been doing it since I was 17.  Depends on who you talk to and where you live, the state just doesn't go do it just to do it, the're studying them, but i'm not sure where you live and if they're doing any studies nearby.

[Houndhunter]

i live near olympia, so i doubt that there doin any close by me. but i can always go and call them and see.

now will they let you bring your own dogs too??

[WAcoyotehunter]

I agree with you Machias- it's as much about watching and listening to the dogs as is it to harvest the animal.

[Cougeyes]

They're doing it near North Bend and Issaquah area, and no they wouldn't let you use your own hounds, although if the state wanted to save some money on these projects i'm sure people across the state with hounds would love to run cougars for um just to get their hounds out.  I think their houndsman have grant money to pay for all the expenses though.  The reason why they just dont use any houndsman and their hounds is a trust thing i think, and have to know that they can perform and cooperate well. 

[Houndhunter]

huh, north bend aint to far away, i'll call tomarrow and see what info i can get on it

thanks for the help cougeyes