What are you guys cat tricks? I have been seeing this question being posted on a lot of places lately as to how to call a bobcat in. I have called in 4 confirmed cats over the past 5 years. one was down home here. two were in the northcentral tier and the other in the north eastern tier.
Some things that have worked for me. I scout. I scout a lot. I actually scouted more last year for a cat then I actually hunted for one. While scouting I am looking for mainly tracks. If I find one set of tracks I determine how fresh they are and depending on when it snowed last will determine my confidence in a spot. if it has been a few days since last snow and only one set of tracks I don't get too worked up. I like to find areas that have a few different size's of tracks and a lot of tracks. This tells me that there are cats in the immediate area and are not just passing through. The areas I find the most tracks seem to be old strip mines, thickets/over grown clearcuts, pine trees, and areas with swamps or water near by. This is where knowledge of an area comes into play. If I see a set of tracks I note the areas they are heading too and if I know there is one of the areas I mentioned above I go there and scout some more. most of the times I find there core area there.
Nighttime vs. daytime calling? Out of the 4 cats I have called one was in the morning hours. the other three were either right at dusk or a hour or so after dark. I like calling night time more then anything for cats for a few reasons. number one they have great camouflage. In fact their camo is so good I have seen them disappear standing right on the road. They are slow movers. They don't normally run into a stand like a fox or coyote. Their movements are methodical. It is very hard to pick up sometimes as well. Night time though they give their position away as soon as they look at ya. Their eyes look like pie plates when you hit them with the light. With that said I believe they can be called any time of the day. I think more of it has to do with making sure your in good area and your confidence level. I have more confidence in the afternoon and in the early hours of the night. So that is when I call.
Sounds. There are so many different sounds out there that you can use but you have your basics. Rabbit, bird, and your bobcat sounds along with some other unorthodox sounds. My stands start out normally with a bird sound. wood pecker distress, or any bird sound will work weather it is from a hand call or a E-call. after a little bit of bird distress I normally start working through some rabbit sounds. Then at the very last I normally use a bobcat in heat sound. I have heard that GFP works as well on cats but haven't had it happen yet for me. I still try it though every now and then though to try it.
Decoys are another thing that is brought up alot in the questions. I have used a decoy every daytime stand for cats. I have three decoys a jack in the box, a whirlin woodpecker, and a feather on a arrow shaft. when I am hunting with a partner I normally carry the JIB. when I am solo hunting I used the feather mainly cause it was easy to carry. I believe that too much movement can be a problem though. I have noticed with both daytime cats that as soon as they seen the decoy they stopped and watched. This could be a problem as well as being helpful. The problem arises when the shooter doesn't have a rifle and the cat stopped on the road out of shotgun range. Other problems arise as well when they can see it through the brush but you can't see them. Now a decoy can be helpful as well though because the cat is stationary. Also the cats focus normally is on the decoy and not anywhere else. But these animals have great eyesight as well. So any body movements need to be slow. Night time I do not use a decoy at all.
Stand location. I like to stick to old logging roads passing through the areas I mentioned above. I like thick brushy area on both sides of the trail as well. Both daytime cats came to the road and either sat down or watched. both night time cats came to the road and watched as well. for daytime stands I like to sit on a stool or a turkey hunters seat. This gets me up off the ground for better visibility as well and making me more comfortable. I like to get settled in and comfortable before calling. if you cannot sit still for a honest thirty minutes then re evaluate your gear. buy a foam pad do whatever you need to do to keep from moving. The more you move the less chance you have at seeing a cat before he sees you. a good set of sticks keeps your gun at the ready weather it be a rifle or a shotgun. Wear face masks and gloves as well during the daytime. At night I stand. it is easier to move around and scan. it is also more comfortable then kneeling or sitting in the snow for me at least. The amount of time on stand for me is right at 30 minutes. sometimes longer depending on the location and confidence I have in the spot. The distance between stands also depends on how big an area the cats are hanging in. but most of the time it is no more then 300 yds with the average distance moved around 200 yds each time.
guns. It's a personal decision. I use a .223 scoped rifle shooting a 55gr PSP. I have heard of people shooting cats with .17hmrs as well. I would rather have the cat dead then have to trail it. A predator leaves very little blood to trail and without snow it could be a problem to follow the animal. Some use a shotgun for cats because they will be calling thick brushy area. Loads can range from a dead coyote shot shell down to #2 turkey loads. I use buckshot in a shotgun when I carry one. But like I put above I prefer a rifle. Cats do not normally come in and then vanish quickly. They walk a few steps sit down and look then take a few more steps. A shotgun has a range of 40yds depending on your load. You are also putting it to chance as well that the BB's will hit the right mark. With a rifle you can place your shot in the right spot for a clean kill. But a rifle cannot shoot through brush. Where a shotgun can. This is where a combo gun can come in handy for you. It comes down to personal preference and what you can shoot well.
I hope others join in here and post their findings and thoughts. This is only what has worked for me and take it FWIW. There are many ways to skin a cat per se. The above is what works for me.
