well did you set it???

Got to be something to do with the big creek and catchen possums. Caught 167 south of the creek and only 13 north of it this year. Hate them suckers.

Clay, i caught 491 coon in blind sets for otter working up there for Dave Hamilton on that otter project in 4 weeks. No bait lure, nothing, just blind setting crawl overs and otter toilets. Even tried a blind set along the bank of the creek up and down stream from the otter toilet to cut them off before they got there, all that got me was 3 coons instead of one at a time at the toilet, lol. 4 blind sets up the trail over the levee got me 4 coons at a time. Never could keep them out of otter sets.

Couldn't imagine sets using bait or lure.

Well, I set a trap for that cat yesterday. But I missed him, 82 mile roundtrip for nothing. Trap was sprung and pulled out of the trap bed. Had a tiny bit of bobcat fur in the corner...so I just plain screwed up.

On to water trapping again.

Oops, you will remember that for a long time.
I think I can remember every cat miss with nothing but fur in the trap.
The worst was two pulled out in front of me in back to back locations. One in a trap and one popped a BAD on a snair in front of me. Only times I've had one escape in front of me.

Here is probably the best one of the five. They always look better in the round than on the board. At least the ones around here. It did stretch 40".

Next year? It's January. Can't you still trap?

Peeler that cat doesn't look much different than some of our's down here in the deep south, sorry for your loss, lol. But you are right, they spotted up like a bluetick hound in the trap, put them on a board and they fade away for some reason.

Sage, the price of Wy cats im not sure id of survived witness's such a horror story as you told, glad you survived that ordeal and hope you get over you PTSD soon, lol. That's awful!

I notice on here and have seen it on my own lines alot of toe caught bobcats, is their reaction time just that fast to cause that? Ive had it happen in all sorts and size's traps two coiled or four coiled, my first bobcat was in a 1.5 victor coil back in the grey fox trapping days of the early 80's. We had zero bobcats in my area so he was a odd ball. One quick jerk and out of the trap he came and ran off never to be seen again, I don't think ive lived that down yet.

Jtrapper,
There a good ending to the story.
The cat that pulled out was a drawn down female the only reason I know it was a female is it left a toe and the next year I caught here in he same exact spot. She was a dry cat and was my second highest selling cat of thirty caught that year. The cat that popped the BAD Was a large blue phase Tom and I caught it about two weeks after it escaped in the same set the female had escaped from. When I skinned it ,it had a snair mark around the flank.
I started hearing the age of aquarius in my head lol.

Just curious.Why cut off the rear legs?

Those are cut off at the ankles.

Just never seen that before.Does that show off the belly spots better that way?

If I looked in the back of the truck and saw 4 cats laying there I would call my eye doctor and say that I was at least seeing double or maybe worse And I would have no comment on the number or color of the spots Nice catch

Misspoke...I meant I cut them off at the hocks...I always do it that way, no usable fur below hocks. I shouldn't write before morning coffee.

I think the back legs a bit longer would look better.

OK...from here on out I'll skin out to the ankles. Y'all convinced me. Should get another $50 or so more ....right?

Furriers use a lot of the aurplus pieces left over from garments,either themselves or sell the pieces to platemakers.
I have seen some really sharp looking fur plates made from the triangular pieces of back leg from red foxes,
Myself I can make a hundred bucks on a headband made from a lynx leg.

I'll give you another suggestion. When you stretch your cats comb the fur back toward the head, not toward the tail. The white spotted belly fur, comb it on a 45 toward the head and outward from the centerline. And dry them with the head down so gravity helps you keep the fur pointing the way you want. Combed this way the follicles of each hair will be set as they dry. The hair will be better separated and and the fur will look more full and the belly will look more like it did on the carcass. If you doubt this, next time you get similar cats comb one back toward the tail and one as i've described to dry them. I guarantee you will see the difference. And give them a good dry wash with borax after you take them off the boards.