Why I wont even go out my door unarmed again!!!!!!

[mo.hunter]

I got up this morning and got a cup of coffee, just like every other morning. went out the back door and herd a growl. Sooo I flip on a light and there is the biggest bobcat I have ever seen sitting a table with a 2 mounth old kitten in its mouth. He went out the door and i went in the house at a speed that would make the petty boys jelous. needless to say, you couldnt have drug a needle out of my butt with a tractor. from now on its pants, shoes, shirt, 45 , coffee.

[Land_Owner]

Could have been rabid, but fortunate for you, another rat catcher is on the prowl. 

[rockbilly]

It is doubtful that it was rabid with a kitten in it's mouth.  Likely just a tired ole mom looking for a handout.

Several years ago one had kittens in the barn, when we found them she refused to come back.  Being curious I decided to raise them.  One died almost immediately, the other one survived and was a quite playful kitten that was growing awful fast.  I finally gave it to a friend who made a nice cage for it and kept it for several months.  He would take it out and take it in the house and play with it along with his two small dogs.  One day the cat had enough of the dogs biting and barking and put a tail whipping on one of them.  His wife went crazy dancing around and screaming, "that wildcat is tearing up my $500. puppy."  He reached for the cat and it went up his arm and darn near tore his left ear off as it waltzed across his head, he got mad and grabbed his shotgun, took the cat outside and shot it.  Afterwards he begain to worry about rabies, he called his Vet and the emergency room asking what he should do.  He was told to bring the head in to be tested for rabies, but since it met with several rounds from the ole 12 gage there wasn't enough head left to test.  He ended up having to take the rabies shots, if I remember correctly, he said 12 of them, one a day around the belly button.  

I don't know why but he blames me for all this............

[slim rem 7]

 bathroom is other end of the house.. i grab my pistol when i have to go in middle of the night.. i ain t walkin up on somebody ,without my
 piece.. its better be safe all the time an lettum think you paranoid than be right an not have ye  stuff with when you need it ..jmo ..besides all i gotta do is slip my pants on. slim
 rockbilly ,i swear sometimes you just can t do nothin right enough that some people won t find fault..they don t do me that way but once.

[swordfish]

Mo, you should be honored to have one around. Why kill it, it will keep rodents under control for you. If it's killing, or aggressive towards your pets or livestock then I understand.

Rock, shouldn't ever try to domesticate wild animals, especially predators, but it cool you tried to save them.

As a hunter, I very much admire wild cats, they are the ultimate hunters. Observe and study their tactics, you will become a better hunter/stalker. To me, they are one of nature’s most impressive hunters.

[Sourdough]

I admire and hate cats at the same time.  Cats are the only animal man has tried to domesticate that has not truly given up it's wild instincts.  When cats are hungry they kill.  When cats are not hungry, they kill for the fun of it.  Cats are lovable and snuggly one day, and will bite you just for looking at them the next day.

Now as for the wild feline predators.  I have seen Wildcats (Bob Cats) in Tennessee, Mountain Lions in the Rocky Mountains, and the Florida Panther in the Everglades.  I've seen sign of the Jaguar in the Southern Arizona, and New Mexico, dessert.  Unfortunately, I was never able to see a Jaguar in the wild.  But looking at it realistically, as our population grows and moves ever increasingly into these areas it is time for them to go.  Oh yes I hate to say that, but be real.  These are big predatory killers, a child is nothing but a snack to them.  I would rather see the end of these big cats in the wild, than see a child maimed, or killed and eaten.  When I lived in New Mexico, a rancher I knew came out of the barn one day and there was a lion, stalking his 6 yr old daughter.  The Rancher ran up and got between the cat and the child.  By yelling and waving his arms, he was able to get the cat to slowly turn and leave.  The cat kept stopping and looking back, as it walked out of the barnyard.  The Rancher bought a pistol and started wearing it while working around the ranch.  About a year later, he came out of the barn and there sat a big Tom.  This lion did not turn and leave, it got down on it's belly.  My friend pulled his pistol and shot it.

That may sound strange coming from me, the guy that lives with Bears and Wolves in his back yard.  But I grew up in Tennessee listening to my Grandmother fussing about, "Something ought to be done about them Wildcats and Wild Dogs, a bodys not safe going to the outhouse anymore".

Why do we not see Wolves and Bears in New Yorks Central Park.  Remember the outcry and uproar a single Coyote made a few years ago when it was discovered living in Central Park?  How Animal Control chased it 24-7 till they were able to run it down and trap it?

[rex6666]

I have lived around Bobcats all my life and raised 3  never heard of one attacking a person, not saying they won't. Wild animals have to be caught before their eyes are open to have any luck raising them gentle.
I don't want to see any child attacked by a wild animal, big cats don't see the
difference in a child and a young deer. I do not understand grown people
moving into lion country and letting their small kids run unattended.
People move into wild animals front yard and expect every one of those animals to respect their wishes. When you get right down to it people are the aggresive
predator I see no end to it, been that way long time, choices have to be made.

[rockbilly]

The drought in Southern Texas and Mexico has driven a lot of game, including cats North.  During the thirty-five years I have lived here I have seen several lions, many bobcats, and tons of Ringtailed cats.  Am fellow on property next to mine caught pictures on a trail camera of a large lion at a deer feeder last fall, I THINK I see him, but am not sure if it was a cat or cayote since it just at dark and the animal was in the tree line shadows. 

I have become more cautious, and when I go out. particulary at night, I always carry a side arm.  I am not afraid of one attacking me outright but I would hate to walk up on one unexpectly and have it turn on me. I don't think a cat would normally attack a human if there is plenty of game around for food, the ones to be cautious of are the old and lame cats.

[Sourdough]

Many people are under the misconception that certain wild animals will not attack humans.  They garner all the experiences where the wild animal turns and runs from a human encounter.  Those encounters are with grown adults.  Let a Lion, Coyote, Wolf, or Bear, encounter a child and the whole scenario will change.

So don't bet your Kids or Grandkids lives on them not attacking humans.  A child is just as inviting as a Fawn, or any other baby animal.

[streak]

Some of the worst offenders are the feral dogs and coydogs! These can be very aggressive and dangerous to anyone!
I have actually seen coydogs try to stop a pickup coming through a agriculture field!The driver was able to stop and killed two out of the pack! These were big animals!

[rockbilly]

I don't percive the cat as a threat in my area, I am more concerned about the wild dogs, and perhaps the coyote.  As for the bear and wolf that would be a different story, but we don't have them here in West Texas.

I have had a couple of bad experiences with wild dogs, even came face to face with a couple of bear, but no problem, both were as eager to terminate the meeting as I was.   I might be more concerned if there were bear and wolf in my area.

One bear adventures was on a hunting trip to Mayhill, NM I was trying to help a friend locate a downed deer in a thicket,  The brush was so thick that I was down on my hands and knees.  It was an area that had burned several years before and lots of downed tree still on the ground, as I crawled up to look over a log...........bam! there was a mother and two cubs.  I almost peed my pants, I had a .270 rifle, but had slung it to crawn thropugh the brush, I also had a .41 Mag in a shoulder holster.  when I finally reached a safe place after my retreat I looked  down and was holding my knife. I don't remember pulling it, and have no idea what would have happpened if the bear had attack.

The second bear was at a RV park near Waynsboro, Va. I had got up early and took the dogs out for a walk, it was right at daybreak.  As I neared the back of the trailer park I noticed something near the trash bins.  At first I thought it was another person, then one of the dogs started barking, something shot by us like a flash, I looked back at the trash bin and there were several other bears there, I made a hasty retreat back to my RV.  I later found out that the son of the owner worked for a company that made cookies, each night at midnight afer completing his route he would dump the outdated cookies for the bear near the trash bins.  After learning this I told the campground owner he was a fool for letting this happen.  He had people sleeping in tents near the trash bins who could have very easily been attack one night when the son failed to deliver their cookies, he agreed and put a stop to the practice,  This experience prompted me to never forget to stick the ole smoke pole under my belt when I take the dogs for a walk in a strange place.

[Sourdough]

Rockbilly:  Be aware, Jaguars are moving north through Mexico.  Their numbers are expanding, and a drought is helping move them north.  They have moved into Arizona and New Mexico with confirmed sightings.  If they are there, I'm sure they have moved into or are moving into West Texas.  They are much bigger than a North American Mountain Lion, and far more aggressive. 

[slim rem 7]

 these cats are in places they ar not suppose to be also.. i don t think mountain lion are suppose to be in the carolinas.. but twice ive seen them.. theres no mistaken that long tale.. last one i saw i thought it was a low flying dog crossing the rd.. but the tale is a dead give away..its a bit scary if your boys stay in the woods,some.. the only thing i ever heard of it, was of a calf being taken .. truth is that probably got it shot an nobody ever knew it.. thats kinda the way things get done here . slim

[williamlayton]

You know boys, you don't have to live in the rurals to have any of those things.
They have gotten use to city life and especially to city food.
We have seen a couple of coyotes on the golf course here, late in the evening and cats are seen less but mostly around some of the bayous here.
To my knowledge, the largest deer taken in Texas, last year, was within the city and in the midst of some large housing S/D's. The caliber used too take it was a Ford Expedition, I think.
I sit on my back poarch/Patio early every morning and watch several hawks. I have seen some young eagles and a number of Osprey lurking around the lakes on the golf course.
I also watch the Mocking birds chase the hawks out of their area. A fun watch.
Strange but, we had a number of Snapping turtles in our ponds at the golf course for a number of years but, slowly they have disappeared.
Blessings

[streak]

As mentioned in my previous post, coydogs can be aggressive. Many years ago I was deer hunting in E.Texas. It was a cold frosty morning and I found a nice little tree that I was able to climb and watch over a good looking area of the woods. Soon after I got in the tree I heard a pack of hounds running a deer!
I started to watch the direction that I heard the hounds. About 20 minutes later I hear something coming through the frosty leaves, I flattened out on the limbs the best I could with the Mod. 600 Rem.
.308 ready. Then I saw the noise maker, talked about a big animal! If I had not known I would have called this a big timber wolf! Although they were not supposedly in that part of the U.S. It`s marking`s were very wolflike. It looked up in my tree from about 50 yards and spotted me and before I was able to get a shot it left the country in a shower of leaves and dirt! Anyway I assume it was a coydog at around 100lbs. or so! He must have been slipping away from the hounds!

[kebs]

I have seen mtn lion tracks in North Carolina.  There is even a rumor that some live on the same mountain as we do.  I have never seen one though.  I also remember seeing coydogs in Ohio that were bigger than my 75 pound lab.  I can't say I worry about larger animals, it is the snakes and spiders that freak me out.

[teddy12b]

All we have in Indiana are coyotes and like Kebs said, some of them get to be bigger than a large dog.  There are rumors of a bobcat loose in the state south of here, but then again there talking about one or two.  I wouldn't be worried about one attacking me, but I would be terrified for kids.