# New to bobcat hunting, any tips?



## Kennyd

I'm new to bobcat hunting. Anyone have any tips on hunting them? I'm in the Albany, NY area.


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## Tommy

Ugh..cats. Haha, I love calling bobcats. This is a run through of each and every one of my cat stands. Step one...camo, camo, camo. If it shines, it wont work for cats. I usually wear glasses, but when we go cat hunting, I put in contacts. Wear the best camo you can afford (you don't need scent lok). Cover your hands, face, gun, and sit in the shadows. Step 2, take some time to memorize everything, and I mean everything. Cats are sneaky critters, and they are very good at being sneaky. A bump on a log that wasn't there, is your cat. We try to key on places where a cat has to hit some sort of edge cover to come to my call.

Calling. I like Tweety, my Quaker Boy Super Screamer, or anything shrill. It seems also that cats are a sucker for the woodpecker distress. In my opintion bobcats have the attention span of a 3 year old, so keep calling at them. It will be a trial an error method at first. Keep in mind that you probably call in a cat every 5th stand, in an area with lots of cats. They are just so dang hard to see.

Okay, you have a cat coming to the call, you see him and he is hung up. When his head starts going back and forth, you better shoot. He is thinking about bugging out on ya. This is where you put the crosshairs betwix his running lights and tip him over.

Sounds simple right?

Good luck!!!! Keep me posted on your success!

Tommy


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## El Gato Loco

Tommy,

Great synopsis on bobcat hunting. Just found it and it has a lot of great tips. Thanks for sharing!


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## wilded

Tommy is right on the mark. Use high pitch and keep the call busy. I find that when you stop calling a cat will often sit down and watch so keep the call going. That is why I prefer an electronic call for cats. Use a decoy, I like a turkey feather on an old arrow shaft or a mojo critter. It will give the cat something it can see to stalk and keep it's eyes off of you. Most cats will use all available cover and will not cross large open areas so set up accordingly. Much of the time the cat will come to the edge of cover and sit down. I even use binoculars to search the edges of cover. I don't know how many times through the years I have gotten up to leave only to spook a cat that had been there all along. Watch for small movements of the tail or ears. I prefer calling cats at night because it is so hard to hide those shining eyes. JMHO


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## bar-d

Kennyd said:


> I'm new to bobcat hunting. Anyone have any tips on hunting them? I'm in the Albany, NY area.


Good advice already. If I feel there is a bobcat in the general are, I will spend much longer on a setup than for coyotes. Sneaky critters indeed. Over the years of all the bobcats I have taken I can only recall 2 or three that I saw moving in. The rest were "just there". Lots of times all you will notice is a bump on a log or a dark spot in the grass that you have not noticed before. This cat just showed up as a dark spot in the CRP that was not there 15 seconds earlier. I had left my electronic caller playing a mouse squeek for about 10 to 15 minutes straight when he showed up.


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## n.w.missouri

The posts above give great advice,camo is the biggest thing. Patience is the second biggest thing to have ,cats I have found aren't as liable to come charging into a stand like yotes and foxes are.


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## Foxpro

Like most here have said, give it time. When you think you have called long enough, give it more time. They are cats, they have patience, me ... not so much, so you have to force yourself to sit and look and wait.

Good luck!


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