Managing bobcat populations

[dwalton]

Bobcat populations are always a hot topic when fur prices are high. Who is responsible for managing the cats? ODFW? Trappers, Hound associations or is it left to the "anti's"? I say it is each one of us as individuals. We each have our own opinion. I catch a lot of flack for the number of bobcats that I kill each year. I feel I manage my take more than any one else that I know. I learned years ago when I hunted and trapped that I could over harvest an area. I took twice the bobcats then than I do now. If I hit an area hard I could take 25 to 30 cats out of it. The next year I would go back and catch 20 to 25 cats. The third year 10 to 12 cats. I learned that if I hit it every other year I could still take the 25 to 30 cats a season. It did not seem to make a difference if other hunters or trappers were working that area to me. It can be over harvested but it was my responsibility and in the cat population best interest to manage my take. Today I watch how many bobcats I take out of a area If I think I have hit it hard I will not hunt it for a few years. I very seldom hunt where I know it it is being hunted hard. I hunt the high rough,limited road areas and next to areas that have private Property that is locked up. I pass up females with young traveling with. On good snow days I will pass up everything but what I think is a big tom. I spend a lot of time hunting new areas looking for pockets of bobcats durning training season. I will drive 2, 3 or even 5 or 6 hours to get out of a storm or hunt a pocket that I know holds several bobcats. By doing this I have caught 4 and 5 bobcats a day. I love to train young dogs and my goal is to breed a bobcat dog. In my opinion there has never been a bobcat breed of dogs just what we use or cross to catch bobcats with. I think there are a few people that are real close to that. I do not let my dogs chew on cats, if it is caught on the ground I spend hours sewing it back together. I cook the meat and feed it to the dogs. I detest someone that lets their dogs destroy a pelt. For it is total disrespect for that animal and it is illegal.
WE can let the game departments regulate us, the antis regulate us or we can be responsible for ourselves. For myself I don't want the antis or government telling me what I can or can't do. I take on being a good steward of the land and animals, as an important part of my life. I am out there in the wilds far more that most. I know what I see, I know what I know from almost 50 years of bobcat hunting, working on bobcat studies and reading information and studies that I can find. Everybody is entitled to their opinion but when someone is not finding bobcats on the same old roads that they have hunted for 30 years, don't see bobcat tracks on a fresh snow, don't start a bobcat every time out or don't catch over a half a dozen cats a season that is not about bobcat populations that is about the weather, where they hunt or dogs they are hunting. There are guys out there that catch high numbers of bobcats year after year. Could they do that with no bobcats out there? Dewey 541-942-4376

[mike martell]

This is a topic for the private side and have been deleted.


Mike

[al baldwin]

Dewey I was told by the government hunter in this area in the early sixties, it was wise to leave those pockets of back country cats, by doing so there would always be cats to migrate in the lower grounds we had access to hunt. I believe he was on to a good cat management plan. Cats were four dollar bounty then and just a few recreational hunters, seemed it was not hard to find cat tracks most places here. Then early seventies fur prices started a race to catch cats, took me awhile to realize we had put a hurt on the cat population in this area. I believe we houndsmen would be wise to put a limit on the # cats each hunter could legally harvest. Realize some would find ways to get around the limit. Can see no reason to have a cat study as Tim suggested, hunters who have cat hunted for years know when there are fewer cats around, & believe majority realizes that. More training, less harvest, would benefit all in the long run in my opinion. Ten cat might be a little to conservative, but a good place to start and negotiate from there. You have every legal right to harvest the numbers you say you do, but I don/t think as vice president of OUSDA, that sets a very good example. Just my honest opinion. Take care Al

[JakeG]

What's the reason for killing that many. Just askin for an honest opinion. In can't be money motivated.

[dwalton]

Jake: For me the reason is my love to hunt bobcats and a need to pay for that pursuit. I live on a very limited income with no help from the government. In the last 6 years I have sold from $18000 to $26000 each year in bobcats hide in a three month season there is nothing that I can do to earn that kind of money. I will hunt bobcats as long as I physically can no matter what the hides bring. With the hi prices it just lets me hunt more. I will be the first to stop killing when the prices go down. The ones that I do take will be skin and taken care of no matter what they are worth. You will find no one with more respect for bobcats than myself. They are the ultimate little big game that is hunted with hounds for me. Until this year my biggest takes were in California not Oregon even though I hunted both states. I have never been able to walk away from a bobcat treed when could bring $1500. I have picked mushrooms, cones, moss, peeled cascara ect to earn a dollar. I built houses and cut timber in my younger days which my body[a back that has been broke and fused] does not do well anymore. Can you or anyone you know walk away from that kind income doing what you love to do? Someone asked me one time why I hunted bobcats. My answer was [ It is what I do and who I am]. I hope this helps you to understand. Dewey

[Tim Pittman]

Was gonna leave this alone,but my name was mentioned. The study would not be for us as houndsmen to know, it would be for scientific data to be in place in case we stand in jeopardy on loosing our hunting[ based on antis wish of elimination]. Was totally my intentions.

[mark]

Tim is right, when the antis come they come fast and hard with lies and false propaganda endorsed by some high flutin scientist or professor. You wont believe how many Bobcat experts they will come up with. A study is a very good idea, however i dont think it will hold much water, people dont want to hear the truth if it doesnt line up with their agenda. It would be a good thing to have in place though just so we would have a leg to stand on. Good sound scientific proof doesnt have the clout it use to. There is no simple answer to this but i think the best place to start is paying attention to what the biologists are saying and interacting with them at every opportunity you can. I have thought about this a lot and i am not sure an open forum is good place to discuss this. I would suggest to have a couple hours set aside at the OUSDA convention dedicated to a civil discussion on it. Im not a big fan of belonging to clubs but i do belong to this one and think that anyone that owns and hunts any kind of dog should belong to it. You dont have to participate just belong and be a number. Im sure JC would make some
time at the gathering for it too. We wont get anywhere pointing fingers back and forth at each other and the trappers. Lets try to come up with some kind of solid plan to approach ODFW with when and if the time arises. Just a dumb--s hillbillies opinion.

Sorry for rambling

[twist]

We have a quota system in this state and its divideded into several regions. It seems to be working well here. Andy

[mike martell]

This discussion should be in the private section. I deleted my post and stand behind any and all comments...This just isn't the place!


Mike Martell
541-602-1398

[catdog360]

Mike, I believe there is a way on the website to set up a private discussion. You could only invite those that you know into it. Maybe a good idea. Also I think David Walker needs to be reading these if he isn't. And I think everyone that thinks this is important needs to be at convention on the 19th of April.

I for one feel that yes some areas are hit hard. But we have way too much locked up land. This land has plenty of cats that we can't access. Also I'm an out of state Oregon hunter. I have hunted Oregon for 18 years now, since we lost cat season in Washington. In 18 years I have seen a ton of land locked up, and I haven't been able to get back there in years. Also with more area locked up up north here it concentrates all of us into smaller areas.

I would start with out of state hunters being limited to 10 cats a season, but please don't shut us out of your state like Idaho.

Mic O'Brien

[LarryBeggs]

Mic I sure dont take offence to out of state hunters or guys traveling to hunt.I would hope no other Oregon hunters would either cause if we were in your shoes we would all do the same.Just would like to see some tighter limits set on the amount of cats being killed.Every one on here seems to talk about letting cats go untill it comes time to put it on paper and make it official. Then heaven forbid. There are plenty of areas with good cat populations and the areas that are being over hunted do recover quick if left alone for a while.So the cat population sure isnt in danger.A day or two a week is about all I can get in to hunt so to have as many nights as I had this winter that I didnt strike any thing can get frustrating.And it isnt because I dont have strike dogs.I know trying to get hound guys to agree that the sky is blue is like beating your head against the wall.You have to be a little hard headed to make a good hound guy.Take care Larry

[mike martell]

Mic

I feel you have as much right as I do to hunt Oregon so long as you pay for your license and tags. I would never lobby for anything less...I love hunting Montana and with family ties from the beginning settlers in the East part of the State...I'm really don't feel like a non resident, but think and act as such and respect the game in every aspect in all States or provinces I hunt...You are welcome to come hunt down here any time!

Larry

What more needs said! Hope you can make the convention so we can all get caught back up! Tell Andrew sorry about the loss of his fine hound Thunder!

Take Care!
Mike

[tman308]

I don't hunt to make a living so my circumstances are different than others. I only kill males and if I can't tell the bobcat lives to run another day. I thoroughly enjoy watching my hounds work out a bobcat track. It brings me great joy to see the dogs put it together. For me the harvest of the cat is merely icing on the cake and I like the cake a whole lot more. My practice is to only harvest the males and to limit myself to 10 in any one given area. My 9 year old boy comes with me and I want to leave some cats for him and my future grandchildren.