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I am new to the cat hunting world and am currently training my first set of pups.
Read and reread the post "Bobcat Track Age" but wanted a little more foundation.
Thanks,

the worst is when it is below 32 degrees and the wind is blowing . the best is when it rains for 12 hours strait then stops . the brush is soaked and the dogs cat smell the cat better . jmo

jc

Sierra Madre,

There is a wealth of knowledge hidden in the BGH Archives....it is hard to use but try using this form...Good Luck!

type SCENTING CONDITIONS in the 1st box.

Highlight Forun/Website Issues in the 3rd

Leave every thing else alone until you get to RETURN FIRST - CLICK ON THE DROP DOWN AND HIGHLIGHT "ALL AVAILABLE"

Then hit SEARCH.

You will get Posts going back to 2007.....there are some very good ones by Mike Leonard and Pete Richardson

The worst tracking conditions for me rain on snow.wet frozen ground with wind in open country, any change in condition will effect train\ling. Dewey

I would agree frozen ground, frozen snow, bone dry hard ground and the wind blowing...also snow that is in the process of freezing and snow that has had the snow water from the trees melt onto it both of those make a good track go bad.

I'd have to say that my hounds have the hardest time when trailing a track made in the snow and the temp rises to where the snow starts to dissapear. The best conditions seem to be when your trailing in the same conditions as the track was made in without any drastic swings in temp in between. It seems to me it really doesn't matter the age as long as the track doesn't get "washed out" or "froze down". Not sure if that makes any sense or not, but I tried.....

Scott

scott, i agree when it has snowed and is melting the dogs can really run good if the track is fresh. to add to diffaculty or frustration i hate hunting when it freezes at night then thaws out in the late morning . the scent releases from the tracks from the night before and u can hardly go 100 yrds without rigging cat scent.

jc

Being in Texas, this won't help you much, but snow dripping out of a thick forrest of evergreens is the fastest way to erase scent around here. It may snow a foot overnight and then turn warm with blue sky. It's like pouring rain under the canopy. You can't even sight trail a track that was easy to see just a short time ago.

Sierra Madre,

Down here where you are at, your not going to have to worry about the snow.

This time of year is the best to hunt with the cooler weather and hopefully a little moisture to work with. If it is dry right now, hunt early of a morning, the humidity will be higher early of a morning and that will help. Try and pick a time when the wind isn't blowing. As you get into our summer months with the 100 degree plus days scenting conditions gets a lot worse. High temperature with direct sunlight on bare ground is about as tough as it gets down here for bad scenting conditions. During the summer with our hot temperatures the ground want cool off till around 3 to 4 AM in the morning, so at this time only hunt during early mornings.

Right now thru April or May depending on how hot it is during those months, you can hunt at night or early evening. I also like to hunt during the day this time of year if you have a cloudy overcast day with cooler temperatures.

Remember heat, wind, direct sunlight, and bare ground always makes for tuffer trailing conditions. If you ever get a rain, hunt behind the rain while you have some ground moisture.

I have kept rain records here at the ranch since 1993. I have kept records on cats caught since 1995. I have often looked back and compared the two record books. It is amazing how the most cats caught always follow the rains.

Maybe this will shed a little light on the best times to hunt here in deep south Texas and across the border from Laredo, Tx. in Old Mexico.

Happy trails. Robbie

Worse conditions in our counrty which is simular to yours is sandy country with little brush. Sand doesnt hold scent for chit and no brush to catch scent on makes a fresh track near impossible. Heat and wind are the next worse conditions to effect a track. The heat probably has more negitive effects on the dogs than the scent but they both kind of go together.

The best conditions are when the weather is consistant, not too cold( not freezing) or too hot(up to 60 degrees or so) without factores such as evaporating moisture or wind to negitively impact the track. Scent in consistant conditions will last a while and are great for hunting if you have the kind of dogs that is needed for huntng in the desert enviroment. A day or too after a rain or a dy or two after a snow melts and give subsurface moisture are ecellent hunting conditions as stated above

Thanks guys,
I understand that as soon as a track is made it starts to work against you. If there is any weather change after the track was made the process speeds up.

Mr. Robbie, Thanks for introducing me to this site.
20 years of cat hunting records in South Texas, what a library of experience. Our ranch is a valley. The altitude that surrounds us is about 2000'. The sides of the hills are rocky and the brush as you move from the creek bed to the hills gets thinner. Putting pressure on these cats is going to be a challenge, but I can't think of anything I would rather do.

Mr. Clay, You are right. The knowledge to be found on this site is endless. Thanks for the direction and the home work assignment.