10 pound hen taken by bobcat/mountain lion

[kari_dawn]

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x a bazillion!

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That's a good point, but ask the general population out in my neck of the woods, dead center in the middle of suburbia if we have bobcats, and 98% of them will tell you no way. The ones that have seen them in the area, generally see a mother with her cubs, but have never seen bobs in the area before. Bobcats don't reach sexual maturity until two years of age, and they don't leave their territories. That means that cat was there for two years minimum before they ever saw her, and her parents are still in the immediate area (behavior different in rural areas).

We average more than 50 annually...an exceedingly SMALL sample of the true population in the area, and greater than 15x more intakes than any other wildlife facility nationally as far as I know...I am no scat expert, but I still think all the other evidence is pointing more towards mountain lion. The other option that crossed my mind was coyote, which are probably very common in the area (and another animal that most people never see), or even a domestic dog (though, in this instance, less likely in my opinion). A five foot fence like that is not enough to keep a determined one (of any size) out. A determined dog is also not above bringing his prize home as a gift for his master

I kinda think the OP may be suprised the types and diversity of wildlife around if they were to set a game cam up for a month...

 

[kari_dawn]

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definate possibility...or they just became less visible...I don't know as much about mountain lions...I have had my hands on hundreds of wild bobcats, but never even on the other side of a fence for a mountain lion...I make a concious effort not to advise on topics I have no experience with, but that does sound very plausible....

 

[cw]

we have them here, just not in the numbers like out west, I thought cali was mt.lion heaven

 

[cw]

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x a bazillion!

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That's a good point, but ask the general population out in my neck of the woods, dead center in the middle of suburbia if we have bobcats, and 98% of them will tell you no way. The ones that have seen them in the area, generally see a mother with her cubs, but have never seen bobs in the area before. Bobcats don't reach sexual maturity until two years of age, and they don't leave their territories. That means that cat was there for two years minimum before they ever saw her, and her parents are still in the immediate area (behavior different in rural areas).

We average more than 50 annually...an exceedingly SMALL sample of the true population in the area, and greater than 15x more intakes than any other wildlife facility nationally as far as I know...I am no scat expert, but I still think all the other evidence is pointing more towards mountain lion. The other option that crossed my mind was coyote, which are probably very common in the area (and another animal that most people never see), or even a domestic dog (though, in this instance, less likely in my opinion). A five foot fence like that is not enough to keep a determined one (of any size) out. A determined dog is also not above bringing his prize home as a gift for his master

I kinda think the OP may be suprised the types and diversity of wildlife around if they were to set a game cam up for a month...

I agree a trail cam is a very interesting investment, and the marks could be from the dog pawing trying to get in then jumping over, though i feel a dog would have killed every bird in the flock

 

[khatar]

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Oh, no! I don't mean they EAT them! I just mean the huge size difference (ten pound cat vs. 35 pound bobcat) would most likely result in injury to the domestic cat...think turkey trying to mate a chicken.

No, bobcats do eat domestic cats, lot's of stories to prove it too!

 

[khatar]

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I totally agree! You need a trap about the dimensions of a smallish dog trap to catch the elusive chupacobra...don't forget to camoflage the trap well, and have a plan (and a camera!) ready when you DO catch him! My personal opinion is to check your local parks and wild website to look for rehabbers that work with the elusive beast!...especially if you accidentally catch that pesky mountain lion...you DONT want to be the one to get that out of the trap!

You guys are joking about the chupacabra, right?

 

[cw]

yes, but if you catch a chupacobra, be ready for all that money,

 

[khatar]

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That is very cool...well, unless the turkey had an owner...sometimes they will be brave and take down something big...if they think they can get away with not expending much energy, and they are pretty sure the catch is a sure thing. We are doing a ton of research on urban vs. rural bobcats, and have found that the differences are amazing.

This is yet another reason why I lean towards mountain lion though...a mountain lion is more likely to actively stalk it's prey, while a bob is more likely to wait for it's food to come to it...

no this was a wild turkey here, were in a pretty rurual area here, I suggested mt, lion, but the op doest think there are any around, she said she saw scat from it, i kinda wish they would picture that, a whole lot can be learned from that, I always thought that part of cali. was populated pretty heavy by mt lion

I not a woman, just so you know, I am of male gender...

 

[cw]

oh no, I am so sorry, its always hard to put a face with a name on the pesky o puter. hey, did you say you found some scat, I know it sounds kinda like I am a sicko, but much can be learned from your foe if you post a pic of it,

 

[khatar]

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Yeah, that would be a reason, hmm...