Bobcats- Please share your bobcat stories and mishaps and run-ins with bobcats

[hayley3]

My neighbor who is a hunter, told me a week ago that we have bobcats in Southern Indiana. I was shocked but didn't worry cause I've not ever seen one. So anyway, last night I was in bed when I heard the sound of a cat like it was being hurt. It was really loud and when I get outside I see something run off which had the coloring of a bobcat and was bigger than a house cat. (Had to be for me to see it. lol) But I'm not sure. I did listen to sounds of bobcats but it didn't sound like that. I have heard house cats when they are fighting and mating but this was not the sound I heard. I know what foxes sound like. We don't normally ever see cats outside running around either but anything is possible.

So now I'm wondering if it was a bobcat that killed my chickens when they were free ranging. Would a bobcat have killed my pygmy goat? She weighs about 30-40 lbs. She's pretty fat for a pygmy goat.

 

[RoxysAnimals]

My neighbor who is a hunter, told me a week ago that we have bobcats in Southern Indiana.  I was shocked but didn't worry cause I've not ever seen one.  So anyway,  last night I was in bed when I heard the sound of a cat like it was being hurt.  It was really loud and when I get outside I see something run off which had the coloring of a bobcat and was bigger than a house cat.   (Had to be for me to see it.  lol) But I'm not sure.   I did listen to sounds of bobcats but it didn't sound like that.  I have heard house cats when they are fighting and mating but this was not the sound I heard.  I know what foxes sound like.   We don't normally ever see cats outside running around either but anything is possible.  

So now I'm wondering if it was a bobcat that killed my chickens when they were free ranging.  Would a bobcat have killed my pygmy goat?  She weighs about 30-40 lbs.  She's pretty fat for a pygmy goat.   

Definently. Bobcats can get some big prey. An adult is capable of dragging up to 50 lbs. It could have easily been one. That would actually be my best guess for South Indiana. There aren't tons of them up there, but they like hunting more at night in populated areas.

 

[CGilbert]

A bobcat can take down a full grown deer. So yes, it could take down a pygmy goat (or a non-pygmy for that matter).
If your neighbor is a hunter, see if he has any bobcat traps and could set a trap somewhere around your property (in the direction the cat ran off).
Good luck!

 

[chickengeorgeto]

My neighbor who is a hunter, told me a week ago that we have bobcats in Southern Indiana. I was shocked but didn't worry cause I've not ever seen one. So anyway, last night I was in bed when I heard the sound of a cat .......
So now I'm wondering if it was a bobcat that killed my chickens...... Would a bobcat have killed my pygmy goat?.......

In a little more than a year I have trapped 2 bobcats and one of them I know had killed a pullet by pulling her up against the wire and eating off her legs like you would expect a coon to do. The pullet killer weighed 42 pounds and was a grizzled old veteran who had lost his left eyeball likely to another bobcat tom.

A good friend of mine was a game warden who claimed that he slept with the bears, and in his 45 year career he had less than 5 minutes of wild bobcat viewing time. They are out there, but they are sneaky. I also heard both of my bobcats get caught, and it was before 9:00PM no less. The thing that floored me was that I caught both these bad boys in a cage type trap. It makes me think that bobcats are loosing respect for humans. A few years ago a bobcat attacked a grown man in a New England state so don't sell the bobcat short.

At one time I had 2 to 5 Red Bone hounds that had free run of the place and those dogs kept all the varmints honest. In my younger days if I woke at night and heard my dogs treed I would simply pick up my .22 rifle and a light and go to them. Over the years a lot of possums and coons met their maker that way.

 

[BlackRubleHatch]

Well I don't have a story about my chickens and a bobcat but I was turkey hunting last spring and as I was sitting there 30 yards from my decoy and 10-15 hens just scratching around eating acorns I had a big nice gobbler about 60 yards coming in at a full strut gobbeling like crazy. I see some movement out of the corner of my eye, apperaintly the hens did too because they took off, after a few seconds I found out why. From behind a rock a big bobcat appeared and was going to pounce my decoy. I had to run the bobcat off but at least it didn't get my brand new decoy lol.

 

[CGilbert]

I have caught a lot of bobcats. At least a couple, sometimes a dozen every year, for many years. I have released a bunch of them from traps, as well as let bobcats walk away that responded to a predator call, and left some in a tree after being treed by hounds. I have spent a lot of time in the outdoors. I have seen very few bobcats that weren't in a trap, treed by hounds or responding to a predator call. They are masters at not being seen. Even when caught in a trap and knowing where the trap is, they can be difficult to make out until close enough to see their eyes. I have called in bobcats and not seen anything approaching until I saw a little pink tongue licking lips that materialized right in front of me, at other times I have seen yellow eyes materialize out of a bush just a few feet away. Masters of camouflage. There are always a lot more bobcats around than most people realize.

They are really good eating, probably the best meat that there is. Chickens like them, too.

Really? I've heard cat meat is awful. Me and hubby got our first bobcat this year trapping.

 

[tlundell]

Trapping bobcats is illegal in California without a permit from Dept of Fish and Wildlife after demonstrating that the cat is a danger to . humans, pets or livestock. So we obtained the permit, but it has to be issued to a licensed trapper....although his trap was too small so we bought a big one from a great trap builder in Georgia, trapped him ourselves then called the trapper to pick him up to be euthanized per state law. The pelt has to be properly disposed of to prevent trading in pelts...but we are just happy that peace has settled on the chicken pen again.

 

[CGilbert]

 bobcat got 2 of my chickens. Now I wish I kept my mean rooster.

I'm sorry I feel your pain. If you have a rooster and an incubator, start rebuilding now.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Interesting links in your signature considering the topic. You should be able to get some pretty good clues as to what it was killing your chickens from those. Not all predators read the book so they don’t always do what that species tends to do, but most bobcats tend to try to bury or conceal uneaten portions so they can come back later for it. Most clues are just clues but scat or prints get real close to evidence.

I did not witness this but I think it is pertinent since your chickens were killed while free ranging. A breeder nearby said she was washing the lunch dishes just after lunch when she saw a bobcat take her rooster. She was looking through the kitchen window in early afternoon. While many predators hunt mostly at night, practically any of them will also hunt during the day.

One bright sunny day at 1:00 pm, I saw a possum eating at my compost pile. Possum are among the most nocturnal of critters. I’ve seen bobcats, foxes, and coyotes out hunting in the middle of the day. While the risk is higher at night, both because more things hunt at night and because of less human activity they have longer to work their mischief undisturbed. Your best protection at night is locking them in a secure coop, but they can still be vulnerable during the day.

It is hard to see at night, especially for some of us. You might think back on how it moved more than the body shape. Cats move differently than canines. Still, that’s just a clue.

 

[hayley3]

@RoxysAnimals
My pygmy goat was spooked and wouldn't eat for a month following that chicken massacre.

@CGilbert

I don't know anything about bobcats. I've had chickens a loooong time and have never suspected bobcats because we had none but that seems to have changed. Actually the sound was more like a mountain lion when I was looking for cat sounds on youtube, but I'm pretty sure we don't have one of those. But this video is similar to what I heard:

@Ridgerunner

I did find what I thought to be fox poo. All indications were fox. And piles of feathers.
Chickens were fine when I left in the morning and at 5pm they were gone. It was dark when I got home and I was frantic when I found out I had lost my chickens, with 3 terrified and hiding in the stall, one seriously injured. I don't think chickens are really stupid...especially now because the one that was injured has a fit if it's near dusk and she's not in her coop. She will let me know she wants to return to the safety of her coop. She had never done that before.

I don't even have possums hanging around. We saw them all the time and now they are gone as well. Not sure if foxes eat possums. Need to look that up.

My neighbor says he has traps out for the bobcat and will bring it to me when he catches it. He seemed pretty sure he would catch it. He said our deer population had dwindled because of them. I live alone with my daughter so that's a scary thought to know they are out there.