what is this on my game-cam?

[rebel-rousing-at-night]

It definitely looks to be in the cat family. I have no ideal as to which one though.

Domestic cats do come in an agouti/ticked pattern which I believe would be the color pattern of a cougar.

I have personally seen a house cat that weighed 24 lbs. at 18 mos. As a cat that was not close to maturity...She Was Huge!

 

[duckinnut]

Quote:
Looking at the neck and front shoulder as well as the hind legs imparticular makes me want to say feline family. The rear leg structure indicates strong quarters which indicates tree climbing and leaping ability and is different from what a fox might posess. The head and neck area also leads me to feline,although blurry it appears the head is rounder than a fox would have and the short triangular ears tells me feline. As to type of feline,not sure. It certainly looks bigger than a standard house cat.The way the tail carries seems very cat-like,never saw a dog,coyote or fox carry their tail like that. The overall length of the tail judging by the picture is 2/3 the of the body length which charateristic of cat family as used for balance during chase as well as climbing.I know alot posters on this thread are going by color but Im concentrating on physical aspects.Hard to tell color in B&W. Not a Fisher thats for sure,their tail is all black and body is either chestnut to black.

 

[Zonoma]

Quote:
I'm from mountain lion country when I was younger. Congratulations. That's one big cat (too little to be a mature cougar, though, maybe another large cat?).

 

[MEchickenfarmer33]

its defenitly feline. but too small to be a mountain lion and too big to be a mink or weasel. i think its a bobcat. I hunt and spend hours a day in the woods and i have seen them before.

 

[harveyhorses]

I didn't think bobcats had tails? We are not 'supposed' to have mountain lions in VA either, but I know I saw one. Looks like a teenager, maybe finding its own territory? The haunches are def. feline and look too long to be bobcat IMO.
Stay safe

 

[Lightfoote]

Okay

I emailed a friend who:

has ranched his whole life, lived in different parts of the US, (always out in the country where the wild critters roam), worked as a State fish & game guy for more than a decade, worked as a State Brand inspector (livestock branding), does contract hunting (predator/pest animals, overpopulation culling, etc...) that brings him in contact with wild cats of all ages and sizes, foxes, coons, coyotes, wolves and more - and I directed him to this website and topic.


He has seen plenty of game-cam photos like these before, and wrote back without equivocation, "juvenile cougar/panther", saying that pic # 5 clinched it for him.

He says that it has just outgrown/lost its spots, is at least 4 months old, and a skinny 35 - 40 lbs. He judges by the lanky frame that it is not very well nourished and may have lost its mother...

Don't ask me how he got all that, I'd just chalk it up to his practiced eye...and I'd take his word.


Lightfoote

 

[gaited horse]

Quote:
I thought he'd say couger.

 

[krissteff]

I just did a web search on cougars in central georgia. interesting reading! it might be a good idea to contact whatever wildlife organization in your area deals with stuff like this. it seems from the articles I've read, there is a lot of controversy over whether there are or are not cougars/panthers/mountain lions in georgia. your game cam photos could help them finally decide. given the many sightings i was reading about, it certainly sounds plausible that it could be a cougar.

here's a link i found: http://www.easterncougar.org/pages/beyondsightings.htm

maybe showing them your pictures could help in identification.

 

[dinahmoe]

good morning everyone!

i am going to go and check the camera this afternoon and see what we get.

i have been looking up some info on grey fox and fla. panthers.the august issue of GON(georgia outdoor news)has an article on "cougar evidence".

thanks Lightfoote for the info-if it is a hungry baby,i have some freezer camp bound roosters it can have.i don't like to see any hungry baby without a mother.if it is a panther,will the DNR come and get it?the panthers are protected and are in a study.17 were tagged and released in south GA a few years ago.all 17 were killed(cars/hunters) or recaptured but they are seeing some offspring(DNA) pop up so it proves that they were able to survive and reproduce.
i live about 2.5 miles from the river so i may never see it again.

as far as grey fox-we have the resident red fox on the propety.do they co-exist or was he just passing thru?

as far as house cat-i am going to set a trap this weekend.i have a coon trap that a house cat will fit into.

i am also going to try and get some tracks.

busy weekend for me .

i'll keep everyone posted.

 

[EMaker]

Quote:
PLEASE be sure if you put out a small trap that the trap is protected from predation. You don't want to inadvertently trap a neighbor's cat and then have the young cougar access the trap and shred the poor cat. Also, if you're going to offer your extra roosters to the cougar, it would be best to humanely slaughter the roosters first. Being ripped apart by a cougar is a horrible death. The young cougar doesn't need it's own kill; the cougar will eat an already killed carcass.