[Roadkill]

I have been invited to a private hunting area where deer hunters have repeatedly reported seeing either a very large bobcat or a mountain lion (yeah, right), anway, its killing deer and has been seen by several hunters.
I've been asked because of my coyote hunting experience to call it in and kill it cause its causing problems with hunters who pay a lot to hunt there and some of them are just plain scared of it. Saying it is a "larger" cat, what would be the best recommendation for a gun? My options are my Marlin 336 30-30 that is deadly cause I can hit what I aim at, (150g sp with 29g IMR 4895), AR15 with 62g soft points, either a 20x scope on a match grade Colt flattop HB or a Colt 4x on a Govt Series A3, or a Garand using open sights ad 150g softpoints. I also have a few 12 gauges, ect ect. I'm inclined toward the 30-30 with a Beretta .40 as backup. Most likely will use a tree stand but am also comfortable with ghillie suit stalking/ambush also. Suggestions?

rk

[osteodoc08]

Go with the 30-30 as it seems that is what you are most comfortable/capable with.

[Preacherman]

Another vote for the .30-30. It should take even the largest puma with relative ease, and if you're "deadly" with it, your aim is likely to be better than with another gun that isn't so comfortable in your hands. Just remember that larger cats can be tough customers, and it might need more than one round to convince it that it's dead.

[TexAg]

.30-30 if thats what you're most comfy with. Cats aren't hard to kill. If it is a Mt. Lion..and it could be...you probably won't be able to call it in, dogs are the best way to hunt them, otherwise its pretty much luck.

[1911 guy]

I'd like to correct (in my opinion) the statement by Texag. Not all cats are hard to kill, some are $#@* cats from Krypton. I'd go with the 30-30 because you're good and confident with it and it's edequate for North American cats. Just be very prepared to shoot more than once. This cat may prove to be an easy kill, he may prove to be a story you'll be telling ten years from now.

[TexAg]

If its your opinion then please offer it, but do not "correct" me.
Many Mountain Lions are killed with .22s when treed by dogs. I've also seen it done with a bow. Yes you may need to take more than one shot, but given good placement, most N. American Cats are fairly thin skinned and not very heavy animals. I would not recommend a single shot anything when hunting a Mt. Lion, nor would I personally attempt it with a bow or a .22 unless I had someone backing me up. People shoot Grizzley's with a bow, I wouldn't, but a cat is not a "tough" animal in the thick-boned and thick-skinned sense.

[kudu]

Beware state hunting regulations. Many states large cats are endagered and killing one on purpose can be a LARGE fine. Whether or not it is on private property is beside the point.

[Bigreno]

+1 for the 30-30.

You might want to look for some LeverEvolution 30-30 from Hornady. Might take a miracle to find though. I would go with that or even the Garand if your a good shot with the open sights. Because if it's killing deer any larger than a fawn it's not likely a bobcat. We have both bobcats and mt lions here in Texas and I don't see a 30lb cat taking on a full grown deer unless it is sick or injured. I'm sure it has happened, but would have to be an extreme case.

[pauli]

i'm with kudu. check that it's legal first.

personally, i'm not too thrilled with the idea of interfering with an inedible native apex predator without a damn good reason, but i'm certainly no expert and it's something that your friendly wardens are in a better position to speak to than i, so that's all i'll say.

[Lupinus]

check legals.

If all is good go with the 30-30. Not the most powerful in the world but a great one none the less.

[Manedwolf]

i'm with kudu. check that it's legal first.

personally, i'm not too thrilled with the idea of interfering with an inedible native apex predator without a damn good reason, but i'm certainly no expert and it's something that your friendly wardens are in a better position to speak to than i, so that's all i'll say.

+1

Predators like that prey only on the sick and weak prey animals, which means better trophies for the hunters through natural selection.

Unless it's endangering PEOPLE in the park...but whatever the wardens know.

[TexAg]

+1 for the 30-30.

You might want to look for some LeverEvolution 30-30 from Hornady. Might take a miracle to find though. I would go with that or even the Garand if your a good shot with the open sights. Because if it's killing deer any larger than a fawn it's not likely a bobcat. We have both bobcats and mt lions here in Texas and I don't see a 30lb cat taking on a full grown deer unless it is sick or injured. I'm sure it has happened, but would have to be an extreme case.

I was thinking the same thing, would be rare for a bobcat to take a full grown deer.

And yes, definitely check with the game laws, in TX, if I remember correctly, you can shoot them, but you just have to report it after the fact to the game wardens.

[1911 guy]

My apologies to TexAg. I didn't mean to come across as cantankerous or argumentative, just trying to put another opinion out there. I know you're right about cats being killed with small calibers. I just chimed in with the thought that calling it in from the ground may change the scenario and need a very fast stop. Again, wasn't trying to pick a fight, just didn't pick my words well.

[JShirley]

I don't see any bad choice, there, roadkill, unless you tried to use a shotgun with buck on a long shot.

I'll be the lone voice that says an AR-15 w/ good softpoints and the 4x scope should work great. You should have plenty of power for what you're trying to do, flat shooting with an accurate platform, and quick follow-up. What TexAg says is pretty much spot on for everything I've heard.

I do agree with thinking carefully before taking big cats here in the States, unless in an underhunted, overpopulated area.

John

[Roadkill]

Thank you all, very good advice. I really don't think its a mountain lion, this is in southern Al and it just doesn't hapen. Its a very restricted private hunting club that would never let the likes of me in except to clean up or something like that, professional types with tons of money go there to hunt once a year and get a trophy, also take their spoiled kids and that type of stuff. Its been heard many times but only seen late evening and the people reporting it are not the best sources. I'd want them for a laywer or to fix my hemmorhoids but not as a hunting guide. Reference the legalities, I am very aware of them. Most likely won't get anything but a large bobcat and maybe a couple of good coyotes. My plan is to get the viscera from a couple of deer, put them in a couple of five gallon buckets, add water, get to a good area, drill holes in the buckets, drag them around behind the four wheeler starting at about 100yds from tree stand circling in, then dump the mess out on the ground about 50 yds from stand depending on wind direction. Then I'll use a fawn distress call. I'll have someone take me out so they will hear the four wheeler leave. If I set up in a tree I'll use the 30-30, on ground will use the AR15 with 4x scope.


rk

[JShirley]

rk,

Actually, I'd reverse your choices.

On the ground, I'd want the heavier bullet just in case you somehow have found the elusive Alabama cougar. :D

From a tree, I'd want the flat-shooting accuracy of the AR.

YMMV.

John

[22-rimfire]

First thing I'd do is call a game protector and get an opinion on the legality of killing a "large cat" in your state. At the same time, I 'd review the game laws for my "second opinion". If okay, I would use the tried and true 30-30. Confidence is everything. Me, I would use a 270 for the same reasons you want to use the 30-30; because I have one and have confidence in my shooting abilities.

[pauli]

ok, a little research shows that bobcats are huntable and not threatened in any way. however, should you actually encounter any sort of mountain lion, cougar, puma, or florida panther (or any feline bigger than a bobcat, really) in the state of alabama, please keep in mind that it is an endangered species, so shooting it is... not wise. especially for money.

[HD]

don'/t shoot the poor puddycat , just drag along a couple of treehugging libtards to feed it and make friends with it ... :p :D

[el44vaquero]

Hiking around in a ghillie suit for a large, and probably angry cat. The 30-30 would do the job. Hope you don't end up on the evening news.

[TexAg]

1911guy: no worries, and thank you.

Roadkill: sounds like a good plan! I would be in a stand for sure though. Good luck with the hunt and let us know how it turns out.

[georgeduz]

i live in nj. in my town we have some bobcats ,i never seen one,and they are very hard to track.but i often get complants about them.

[Art Eatman]

To add to the bait: Go to your friendly grocery, to the pet section, and get some bulk catnip. Dump a handful on the ground alongside the other bait.

Art

[Bigreno]

...and a squeaky mouse toy. :rolleyes:

[Hobie]

Hunters are scared of the cat?

[mec]

Puddy tats of that type were long considered harmless to adult humans. Now that the California joggers have invaded their territory, it becomes evident that they have developed quite a taste for spandex.

The 30-30 should be idea. For something so sedate on paper, those rn soft points blow a hugh hole through light game. The Cats tend to circle quite a bit when they respond to a dying rabbit call. We got one within 30-50 feet one night before he figured out he had been fooled. He was not a bit happy. Starting this loud rumbling growl and kept it up as he stalked away into the distance.

Not to worry too much about the balance of nature. That situation seldom exists on commercial hunting operations.

[Art Eatman]

Hobie, folks can be spooked by what they don't understand. Cougars, most folks know little about.

And it IS a bit spooky when one follows you along--out of curiosity, I guess. You hear some occasional soft sound behind you, but you don't see anything. So, you turn around and walk back twenty or thirty feet, and see the grass springing back up in a BIG paddy-paw track. :)

Makes goose-bumps...

Art

[Gordon]

"Predators like that prey only on the sick and weak prey animals"

:scrutiny:


Tell that to the BIG 6 point I came across last month! It was killed not more than a few hours before and all the good cuts and guts were stripped. The head was perfectly intact, and I cut it off in front of witnesses. The Warden /biologist we talked to the next day related as how the bucks in the area are being decimated by the protected lions. Seems a doe pursued by lion bolts at top speed,where as a buck in rut turns momentarily to face the threat:what:
and that lag time is just enough:(
Now IF it is a lion the 30-30 is wonderful with nice light 150 grain bullets. I used a 25-35 with 120 grain bullets on a ranch 30 years ago to keep the lions in check:neener:

[sturmruger]

Even to this day when I am out in the woods here in WI I always carry a sidearm or a rifle. I have heard to many stories of cats following people around the woods. People say they get bored and want to see what you are doing.

[belton-deer-hunter]

i may be the only one but i would like to see some pics on this hunt after it is done and all i an say is +1 for the marlin i have seen them take alot of stuff and keep goninbg and many animals of all sizes have died in the past years everything from rabbits to humans so one more cat is no big deal

[Art Eatman]

Watch the behavior pattern of bucks and does/yearlings.

Does/yearlings hang out in groups, and somebody's always watching out in various directions. Safety in groups. Bucks tend to be mostly solitary. They're more vulnerable to ambush.

So, cougars have more chance for success on bucks.

A hunter killed a pretty nice buck near here, some years back. Nine-point, 125 pounds, field-dressed. He walked up to it and saw big patches of bald hide, back near the flanks. He at first thought it was a disseased deer--until he saw the claw marks. The liion had hit rather far back, and missed the throat hold. From the looks of the marks, it had happened within the previous few days.

But, the buck had been driven into the ground hard enough that the gum bone had broken and the lower teeth were flopping loose. The buck would have starved to death...

Art

[JShirley]

As for edibility, Craig Boddington says the flesh of all the big cats is good for eating...

[Horsesense]

If an animal is interfering with human safety OR livelihood then it needs killing! Rosa Parks understood that reasonable people don’t obey stooped laws and I hope you do.
I would like to suggest that animals go extinct for good reasons and it is folly to interfere with nature, by protecting and or reintroducing some species.

Would you favor the reintroducing of the woolly mammoth or saber-tooth tiger? I didn’t think so. In Kentucky, back in the early eighties, they reintroduced the otter…. Today the otter population is exploding and we will soon be having trouble with fish becoming endangered. It seemed like a good idea at the time and someone had to put that glorious collage education to work, so they used tax money to introduce a time bomb.


Shoot Shovel and Shut up

[rlltdjpr]

I have a friend who hunts near Demopolis, and he and his father claim to have seen a panther--they are pretty believeable people, I don't think they made it up. By the way, what county are you hunting that thing in?

[TexAg]

Would you favor the reintroducing of the woolly mammoth or saber-tooth tiger?

If I could eventaully hunt them? YES! :D

[ScreamnEagle]

why do all of you say .30-.30......I don't believe in over kill; but i do blieve in over gun.....a 22-250 or .243 will have all the power you need. Killed many Bobcats with my usual 22-250 with 52 gr. Sierra HPBT with H380. YOu guys must not do much cat or yote hunting...never seen anyone bait out a cat or yote, call them up.

Cats usually hunt at night so unless you spotlight him you may have a hard time sighting him, try going out just befor dark or at first light. IF, you do use a 30-30..NOT HE BEST GUN FOR THE JOB...., use 30-30 accelorators*

thats just my 2 cents

[WHITEY338]

Although I don't personally know of any bobcat that has killed a deer, it is possible I guess. If it's killing deer then I would go loaded for cougar, and the 30-30 would do just fine. We used to use them almost exclusively when we ran them with dogs. The other rifle we used was the old Ruger Deerfield 44 mag. carbine produced in the 60's I think. But that was at treed distance, so take the 30-30 maybe call from a tree stand or use a remote caller. If it is a cougar then you need to take precautions as such.

[SJPrice]

Would you favor the reintroducing of the woolly mammoth or saber-tooth tiger?

Dear Santa,

I have been a good boy and my list for this year is:

1. 470 Nitro Express H&H Double Rifle
2. New walkin freezer
3. New trophy room added to my house
4. Saber-tooth tiger "predator call"
:D