Mel Hershberger's (sp) book, he always used drags...but if you wanted to stake, is it possible?

I learned much from Mel and yes a drag works well but a steel hook is not the total answer in every terrain.
Trappers seem to forget that limbs and flat rocks can be wired onto chain to slow animals down or used as the drag themselves!

You have to be careful what you use for a drag because cats will head straight up a tree the first chance they get. I had to cut down two separate trees this year to recover two bobcats that managed to shinny up the poles of pine trees. Once they hit the canopy, they tangled the chains around limbs, but each of the cats was at least 15' up in the air, maybe more. It pays to use a stout limb that has some weight to it so that the cat can't climb easily.

some fo my cat traps have two drags attatched. 1 at 6feet and another at 8 feet. I dont like retreaving cats from tree tops

Yep. The desert doen't have many trees that are climbable but in the hardwoods or pine forest... yes, that is real good advice.

These rocky outcrops wil hold a lot of wildlife.
Ground squirrels, cottontails, packrats, Gambels Quail, just to name a few.
'Cats will hunt these as ambush sites.
You will note the holes and crevis in these rock formations.
Those are will your traps will have the best success.



Here is a close up of a packrat den in the rocks. These sites are littered with rat droppings and are 'cat magnets as well as grey fox and coyotes
Trap goes where the smoothed out area is. You can use a few sticks as guides, I wouldn't here, but you could.
Also you'd want a heavier pan tention so you're not removing half eaten rats out of your traps every morning.

LT, where is that? Definitly doesn't look like Ohio. Is that a den that goes into the rocks?

Really, that doesn't look like Ohio?





Nothin' gets past these guys....

Here is some information that you may or may not use to your advantage...your choice!

Urine usage:
Goverment studies have shown that, except for breeding season, bobcats were as much (and at times more) attracted to coyote urine than urine of their own kind.

With 'cat urine prices considerably higher, it's something to think about when making your purchases this season!

Your just given out all the secretes.

no kidding... and fox pee is even cheaper!

One of the things that will help you choose locations to trap 'cats is find the rabbits!
'Cats do feed on other food sourses but overall rabbits will in many areas be the stable food sourse.
Broken rocky outcrops, brushy draws, overgrown creek banks, cut banks in dry washes, all these will have a good many places for rabbits, chipmunks and other small rodents to hide in.
Many of these places will also be where you will set your traps.

Slim Pedersen said it best, when he said,
"To trap 'cats, think 'cats!"
You start looking at areas as if you were a 'cat yourself and you will see things in a whole different light!

I always like to use whatever is natural in the area to make your set. The desert areas always have a lot of brush and old dead cati that make excellent blocking material and backings for 'cat sets.
Even rocks can be used as natural trap guides.



Im areas such as these, keep your traps away from the trails, unless you are behind locked gates.
Sure 'cats will travel them, but so does everything else from bands of havalinas to human traffic. Your best choice is the rocky outcrops with suttle flagging and plenty of skunky call lure. The 'cats will find them because that's where their prey will be.

nice info Lt, thank you!

Flags

I haven't read too much on here about "flagging", so I'll throw a few thoughts out there on the subject.

Two rules on flags that I tend to stick with.
The first is a gawdy flag that one can see for a country mile.
The other is a more suttle approch with a much lower profile.

Each of course will have it's place in cat trapping, both for obvious reasons.

Clint Locklear recently came up with his "ghost" ,(a 2 liter bottle wrapped up inside a white plastic bag. Hung from the top, the eccess bag not surrounding the bottle is cut in strips and waves in the wind, which can be spotted from a great distance.)

Unfortunetly, you'll want to be around some honest competition, because it will draw some unwanted attention.

Flags of course can be made from most anything.
Strips of tanned, even faux fur, work real well.
My favorite is tanned skunk or black fake fur with white paint added, for contract.
Chrismas tinsel as other shinney objects will often work.
Feathers are also a favorite, mine being turkey wing feathers attached to a fishing swivel.
This allow for greater movement with less effort.

Strips of rabbit fur are also good but don't hold up well in wet weather.
Even cotton strips or sheep wool stuck up high will work well.
I even knew a trapper who hung a Pepsi can from a string with a trap underneath.
Unconventional, but it worked.
Milar flagging strips could also be used but can also catch the eye of every passing huuman, as the sun will reflect off of it and can be seen at great distance.
Charlie Dobbins once spoke of using old casette tape, which was hung from limbs nearby the set.
Unusual once again, but also effective.

These are things one uses when natural animal parts are illegal to use.

I have had the best luck with cutting an aluminum pie tin into pie slice pieces and hanging it with very light wire. It catches the sun well and will bring them in from a long distance. But of course it draws the attention of humans too. It also rattles on the wire to get their attention.

thin strips of wal mart sacks work great...

Paper or plastic?

how bout woody terrain for bobcats...how bout some info on that?

plastic...lol

good one LT.