Bobcats are everywhere!!!

[cmom]

I recently caught a couple what I think were a couple of tiger feral cats in live traps. They were not nice cats. We get fog here at night now and then. A couple of nights ago it was foggy. I was able to get a video of a cat around my chick/grow-out coop. I do have electric wire around the coop and the pens on each side of the coop. The cat touched the wire and shot up straight in the air and when it came down, sat for a moment with the look of "what just happened?" then took off. I have to upload it.

 

[Howard E]

Would like to congratulate the OP for making a wise choice on protecting thier birds. The original request was somewhat misstated, as their birds were not free ranging, but were instead "yarded" inside a fence. Hopefully by putting a couple hot wires up to repel climbers has solved their problem.

But as for the request for trapping advice, what we sometimes fail to take into account is we have a different problem than most fur trappers......which is also to our advantage. We are not out hunting them and trying to lure them in with baits and our traps.......we have aggressive animals coming to us.

I would also submit that while 90% of BYC folks could eventually learn to use the same traps that trappers use, there is a learning curve and a lot of carnage can take place while we are getting up to speed. What BYC folks need is a simple and immediate solution, and for 99% that is going to mean cage traps, which are safe and legal to use just about anywhere, with no risk of collateral damage to non-target species. Most folks who try cage traps are reasonably successful at nabbing coons, possums, skunks etc. But move on up to bobcats, foxes and such and the sledding gets tougher.

But again, we have an aggressive predator we can take advantage of.....and a bait most trappers don't have access to......live chickens.

The concept is this....

Note....this cage is NOT a Havahart.

Same concept was used by a BYC member to nab a fox.....neat thread on it I've that I currently don't have time to hunt for.

You could even conceal the open end of the cage in the pop door of your coop....with a live bird clearly visible, but just out of reach.

I think it is also important to point out that the commonly available cage traps most of us are familiar with (Havahart) may not be up to the task. What most are not aware of is there are maybe as many as 10 different outfits making and selling high end professional cage traps to ADC folks and others serious about nabbing varmints. You won't find those at TSC, but they are widely available online. The downside is they cost 2X to 3X what a Havahart costs.

If you don't have a lot of experience with trapping, yet still want to be able to stop the carnage when it arises, a high end cage trap is what I'd recommend for most BYC folks. Plan on setting it up using live birds as your bait.

 

[OhZark Biddies]

Would like to congratulate the OP for making a wise choice on protecting thier birds. The original request was somewhat misstated, as their birds were not free ranging, but were instead "yarded" inside a fence. Hopefully by putting a couple hot wires up to repel climbers has solved their problem.

But as for the request for trapping advice, what we sometimes fail to take into account is we have a different problem than most fur trappers......which is also to our advantage. We are not out hunting them and trying to lure them in with baits and our traps.......we have aggressive animals coming to us.

I would also submit that while 90% of BYC folks could eventually learn to use the same traps that trappers use, there is a learning curve and a lot of carnage can take place while we are getting up to speed. What BYC folks need is a simple and immediate solution, and for 99% that is going to mean cage traps, which are safe and legal to use just about anywhere, with no risk of collateral damage to non-target species. Most folks who try cage traps are reasonably successful at nabbing coons, possums, skunks etc. But move on up to bobcats, foxes and such and the sledding gets tougher.

But again, we have an aggressive predator we can take advantage of.....and a bait most trappers don't have access to......live chickens.

The concept is this....

Note....this cage is NOT a Havahart.

Same concept was used by a BYC member to nab a fox.....neat thread on it I've that I currently don't have time to hunt for.

You could even conceal the open end of the cage in the pop door of your coop....with a live bird clearly visible, but just out of reach.

I think it is also important to point out that the commonly available cage traps most of us are familiar with (Havahart) may not be up to the task. What most are not aware of is there are maybe as many as 10 different outfits making and selling high end professional cage traps to ADC folks and others serious about nabbing varmints. You won't find those at TSC, but they are widely available online. The downside is they cost 2X to 3X what a Havahart costs.

If you don't have a lot of experience with trapping, yet still want to be able to stop the carnage when it arises, a high end cage trap is what I'd recommend for most BYC folks. Plan on setting it up using live birds as your bait.

A cage trap that would be effective for bobcats is going to be at least $150, actually more likely closer to $200 once shipping, etc is involved...

A #1.75 coil spring trap, aka foot hold trap will probably be less than $10 and can likely be found at the local farm store...

Unless it was a juvenile, getting the cat in the cage is something that takes a little knowledge of why bobcats refuse cages and some experience using those traps... the folks that use them in the western US develop a different set of tricks and skills...

Catching the same bobcat with a coil spring, when we know it’s coming in to the location, should not be not that difficult...

I would expect anyone that spends a little time reading up on making a bobcat set in a book or on a trapping dedicated website, and has a bobcat already coming in, to have a very good chance at success

Bobcat sets can be sloppy and don’t need to look natural... generally the hard part of catching them is finding them and understanding a bit about, their behaviors, travel patterns and using that to determine set locations...

If the cat is coming in after poultry, then the hard part of finding a bobcat is done.... and your basic coil spring bobcat set, that you can find in most any beginning trapping information will do

 

[cmom]

I used foot hold traps to catch the bobcat that killed my birds. It made the mistake of coming back for more. I put them inside the pen where it had previously dug under the fence.

 

[InteriorAK]

Great thread, we've got a lot of lynx up here, and I'm looking into the best way to handle them before getting my chickens/ducks.

 

[Howard E]

Great thread, we've got a lot of lynx up here, and I'm looking into the best way to handle them before getting my chickens/ducks.

Best way to avoid problems with varmints is to have a coop / run they can't get into no matter what. Do that and all the other problems go away.

Said another way.....the more risk we expose the birds to, the greater the loss will be. Risk comes in many forms. Confining birds to a tight coop is low risk. But put them in a shoddy built coop or leaky run......risk goes up. Yard or free range your birds and risk goes up even more. Use of traps is just one of many tools we can use to help mitigate the risk of loss we expose our birds to. That is if we are only interested in using traps to help protect the birds. If you are trapping for a different reason, then that is different story.

 

[cmom]

You live and learn. That is why this website is good. We can learn from other members past experiences. I know, I've learned the hard way over the years. Since I put the cameras up around on my property, I was amazed at the predators here that predominately roam at night. I've learned that often times they have routines somewhat, and have been able to identify certain predators by different characteristics.

 

[Howard E]

On the issue of using inexpensive coil spring traps, no argument from me on that. If you have them and have them prepped and ready, and know how to use set them (consider cmom's experience as exhibit A) they can be highly effective. As indicated before, I firmly believe the use of these is within the grasp of 90% of the folks reading this, but again, there is a learning curve. Both in trap acquisition, trap prep and trap deployment. That doesn't happen overnight. If you decide to go that route, you had best get started now so you will be ready when the time comes you need them.

In post 3 of this thread, OP mentioned they had already hired a trapper.....presumably an ADC person or at least someone with skills and knowledge, and he missed. OP themselves had already set a live trap and 9 "jaws" traps.....whatever those are....and no luck. So on it's face, a bit tougher nut to crack than folks might think.

But which trap to use wasn't my point. Concept I'm stressing is to take advantage of what the animal is doing so as to nab him.

Here is a short video clip of a bobcat that is after a chicken.....

He has pretty much thrown caution to the wind.......he would be pretty easy to trick into going down a tunnel (cage trap)......or watch where he places his feet as potential locations where you might place a coil spring trap. Keep in mind, you need to get him to place is paw on a specific target the size of the end of a soup can. Put the bird right there.....and you can do it. And to be clear, we are NOT exposing the bird to any risk of harm. It can be set inside a cage or pet carrier, inside the coop or run. Placement is what we are after....just feet or even inches away.

There is another variation on this theme......

For this video.....go to the 2.0 min mark......and notice how he has set the cage trap INSIDE the coop.......access is through the open pop door.

And yet another variation on the same them...

And keep in mind, while all these videos were showing bobcats, the concept remains the same for other predators as well. A fox, a coyote, coons, minks, etc. Traps and presentation and placement of the traps differ, but concept is the same. Live chicken is the bait and it is right there in front of them.

 

[Howard E]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/i-caught-my-fox-updated-now-with-the-video.677983/

Same concept. Video is post #9.

 

[OhZark Biddies]

On the issue of using inexpensive coil spring traps, no argument from me on that. If you have them and have them prepped and ready, and know how to use set them (consider cmom's experience as exhibit A) they can be highly effective. As indicated before, I firmly believe the use of these is within the grasp of 90% of the folks reading this, but again, there is a learning curve. Both in trap acquisition, trap prep and trap deployment. That doesn't happen overnight. If you decide to go that route, you had best get started now so you will be ready when the time comes you need them.

In post 3 of this thread, OP mentioned they had already hired a trapper.....presumably an ADC person or at least someone with skills and knowledge, and he missed. OP themselves had already set a live trap and 9 "jaws" traps.....whatever those are....and no luck. So on it's face, a bit tougher nut to crack than folks might think.

But which trap to use wasn't my point. Concept I'm stressing is to take advantage of what the animal is doing so as to nab him.

Here is a short video clip of a bobcat that is after a chicken.....

He has pretty much thrown caution to the wind.......he would be pretty easy to trick into going down a tunnel (cage trap)......or watch where he places his feet as potential locations where you might place a coil spring trap. Keep in mind, you need to get him to place is paw on a specific target the size of the end of a soup can. Put the bird right there.....and you can do it. And to be clear, we are NOT exposing the bird to any risk of harm. It can be set inside a cage or pet carrier, inside the coop or run. Placement is what we are after....just feet or even inches away.

There is another variation on this theme......

For this video.....go to the 2.0 min mark......and notice how he has set the cage trap INSIDE the coop.......access is through the open pop door.

And yet another variation on the same them...

And keep in mind, while all these videos were showing bobcats, the concept remains the same for other predators as well. A fox, a coyote, coons, minks, etc. Traps and presentation and placement of the traps differ, but concept is the same. Live chicken is the bait and it is right there in front of them.

I’m pretty sure I could buy a coil spring and have it in the ground within an hour with little or no prep and catch a problem bobcat at a chicken coop... bobcats aren’t worried about the things that canines are that require the prep steps...

Which trap to use might not have been your point but it was indeed my point, after seeing 330 body grips and high dollar cage traps being suggested as solutions...

Folks on this site seem to overthink these things, and much of it is due to people offering up information that is over complicated and often still absolutely incomplete... it’s a disservice to the folks that are attempting to solve a problem to have to sort though large amounts of partial information and misinformation, because it’s leaves them overwhelmed...

Catching a problem bobcat should be a pretty easy undertaking on the spectrum of hard to catch chicken eaters. I think the videos you’ve posted actually make it seem more difficult than it needs to be.

It’s kind of like if you’ve ever worked on an old house or car where some previous owner has done some kludgy work... what you find is often they worked harder at doing it poorly, than just doing it the simple correct way...

why? Because they simply didn’t know the tried and true tested way, and so they just worked with what they had on hand or with what knowledge they had, rather than stopping to learn the time tested simple way and using the right tool for the job...

This is what I’m trying to communicate about live decoy birds and cage traps, plastic tubs and 330 body grips with CDs... none of it has to be that complicated to catch a chicken killing bobcat.