Registered: Jul 2012
Location: Clay city, IN
Posts: 139

I'm in Indiana, and up until recently I've never seen a bobcat in my life. My one year old has been running something at this one woods but was unable to finish the track out. I chocked it up to just learning and would take him someplace else. Just today, I was walking out of the woods after deer hunting and saw a bobcat cross the road. Big male, about the same size as my redbone. He stopped and looked at me from 50 yards away. Got a real good look at him. My question is, how do bobcats react when being trailed, as in how do they run? Straight lines, circles, or up the closest tree? Forgive me, but up until now, I've never had a chance to deal with this. I don't want him running them, since there's no season for them and you kill one and a huge fine gets slapped on you. Any help would be appreciated.

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Mathew Osborne
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Registered: Sep 2013
Location: KY
Posts: 644

From what I have seen a Bobcat will run just like a coon. The surefire way to tell if your dog is running one is the dog will tree for a while then run track for a while then tree again. The bobcat will jump out and run until treed again. I have dealt with this a few times with my dogs if they tree and leave and start running again then tree again and again I put the shock to them.

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Registered: Jul 2004
Location: Pennsylvania
Posts: 1839

They'll circle but once they know you're there they'll get out of the country. They'll tree but normally jump out b4 you get there. I hunted a few times with a guy and his pack. He was from West Virginia but we were hunting in Clinton County, Pennsylvania.

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Al Tarantella

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Registered: Mar 2012
Location: WV
Posts: 144

makes for a long night and lots of walking! Got after one, one night and with it jumping when you got near tree, we ended up with 5 trees and walking 3 to 4 miles before we got dogs off it

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Registered: Jun 2008
Location: Burlington, CT
Posts: 1758

The whole running and jumping, is something gray foxes will do, as well. I've known some guys who had dogs that would run fox, and preferred to claim it was a bobcat. Not sure why, as it's still off-game, but maybe a bobcat sounded more exotic!

It sounds like you have a bobcat in the area, but if you find your dog doing this a good deal, in different areas, it may be gray fox, which are a bit more common.

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David Schmidt
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Registered: Oct 2013
Location: Maryland
Posts: 2633

I had a dog that did this once. For some strange reason he always did it on the same farm. After about the third night of walking into the "tree" only to have the dog blast off on another race we decided that the next time whatever this animal was it would get tired and stay there before we did.
There haven't been bobcats in southern Maryland for a good long time and in spite of everyone tellin' us, "it has to be a bobcat cause that's the only thing that will jump out when he see's your light," I never believed it. I have spent too much time in the woods other than coon hunting that if they were around I should have at least seen a track. I know bobcats are slick and secretive.
We went back to that farm with the mystery animal only this time we had our 3 wheelers.{been a while ago.} After about ten "jump outs" we finally ran it enough that it just couldn't go any further...the mystery jumping animal was a big ol' fat doe. The dog blowing down the tree was when the deer would stop to catch his breath and the dog was baying it about 6 feet away. It did run again when it seen our lights but I am pretty sure it wasn't up no tree. I ain't saying your dog is running off...but I am saying that mine was not chasin' no bobcat. Several years later {and a different dog} we treed a bobcat across the river in Virginia. We didn't know it wasn't a coon until we shot it out and it hit the ground.

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Registered: Dec 2011
Location: juniata county pa
Posts: 640

if your dog trees one go into the tree with your light off. usually when you get about 100 to 50 yds from the tree with your light on is when they will jump out and be on the run again. they will do this over and over in about a 3 mile run. we treed one five times in 3 miles of tracking. they go far before they climb unless you got a fast tracking dog that can put the presure on them. they usually dont run circles, its like the other guy said,they run like a coon but faster and farther. at first you will think its a big old boar coon in maitting season giving you a good run. thats the best I can describe it.

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Registered: Jan 2010
Location:
Posts: 319

leave your dog till daylight it will be there when you walk in.

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Registered: Jun 2003
Location: Washington, NC
Posts: 3314

My experience.

When a coon jumps the dogs will leave the tree screaming on a hot track and usually slam the tree.

When a bobcat jumps the dogs take off almost like they are cold trailing for about 100 yards. Then the track picks up until they sound like they are about to catch it on the ground and then they slam the tree. If the cat gets far enough ahead to trot he can stay in front of the dogs all night.

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Bill Harper
Washington, NC
252-944-5592

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Registered: Jul 2012
Location: Clay city, IN
Posts: 139

He hasn't ran it yet, he's been laid up sick for the past month. Respiratory problems of some sort. I was just thinking that if he does, I want to know what he's running to be able to correct him if need arises.

I appreciate all the help.

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Mathew Osborne
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Registered: Jul 2011
Location: tennessee
Posts: 2444

aint no telling how many ive ran over the years,ive had some trashy dogs i reckon.the way they run here is the dogs will burn them up for a while then tree then the bobcat will jump and the dogs will run it again then tree,ive had this go on for hours.usually i will head the dog off and let him know we are coon hunting no running cats.ive tried to creap in with my light off when the dogs treed a bobcat,but when ever i get bout 50 yards the thing will bail out.i have treed them and saw them at night a few times,but i thought the dogs had treed a coon and came in with my light on and looked up and there was the cat.ive heard the reason that bobcats will go up a tree is that they cant run long distance like a dog can so they get tired and have to go up,but they can blow and go on a short distance run.dont know for sure but it seems like that.

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