Cougar calling Sequence?

[dtrkyman]

roosiebull has me thinking about calling lions now! I was seeing fresh cats track consistently earlier this fall while bear hunting.

 

[sportsmans challenge]

Just got this Thursday, thinking about heading back in to see what else is around.

 

[TheGDog]

Cougar calling sequence?

1. Getchu some fly threads.
2. Goto one of the various Newport Beach or Newport Coast hangouts they go to.
3. Strike up conversation with some other dude at the place, and BS out-loud with some kinda status-name-drop in the conversation such as some BS story that makes it sound like you've got Bank. Like such-and-such other big corporation is about to buy your company and you're soo excited to be able to retire soon!

 

[ndbuck09]

Hey Roosiebull, can you talk about where you like to put trail cams?

 

[Outlaw2007]

Roosiebull, perfect advice. I have called in quite a few here in western WA, only 3 that I can prove. 1 was out of season while calling coyotes and i had to let it go. One I tracked in the snow and called it in to 16 yards and got him. The other I got on cellular trail cam, went out and called him in to 35 yards. Both big toms. I was just curious as to where the western WA guys are at. I'm in grays harbor.
I see you have rainshadows calls. The distress sequences are not extremely important but the cougar vocals are. When I know I'm close to a cat (200 yards or less) I will throw a very short rabbit distress sequence. Just a couple screams. I'll wait 10-15 seconds and do it again. Then I wait 30 seconds or so and start whistles. If nothing happens in 3 or 4 minutes I'll throw another distress scream then back to vocals. I have witnessed the vocals changing their demeanor. The first cat came in to ranting Redbird only as I was coyote hunting. The cougar slipped in between me and my call in a 2 or 3 year old cut. I never saw him until he was 25 yards away. He disappeared but was still there somewhere. I switched to vocals and after a minute I looked to my left and he was ontop of a stump looking around. He wandered around the call and eventually started whistling back. I took some videos and pics and after 45 minutes he wandered far enough to where I grabbed my call and slipped out hoping he didn't notice. I have 3 stories on the rainshadow site so you can read the rest there. It's good to see more guys doing this. Our state needs some serious predator management.

 

[ndbuck09]

What caller system are you guys' using? What should a first time predator hunter look for in a calling system? I don't know anything about this stuff so thanks for all the info! Would love to call in a couger here in Idaho.

 

[sportsmans challenge]

What caller system are you guys' using? What should a first time predator hunter look for in a calling system? I don't know anything about this stuff so thanks for all the info! Would love to call in a couger here in Idaho.

I started with hand calls years ago and then moved into electronic. Recently been thinking of going back to hand calls or mixing, because you can make a call very different, volume, intensity, different animals, ect with just how you use the call. You can find lots of custo. As well as mass produced that are targeting specific animals, so many times you can get specific information and instructions from a guy who makes and uses a call for cougar or whichever animal.

E call is some times easy, but lots and lots of people have them with the same sounds. And it isn't about hit a go button and they just come running with the perfect call sequence. You may want to invest in a call that can play 2 sounds at once to make a stand more dynamic or you may also want to spend money for sound files from people like Tony tebbe, mfk, many others.

Are you north or south idaho?

 

[Hnthrdr]

I have killed 4 lions calling, and I put in a lot of effort. I’m confident if a lion is within earshot, chances are good, I feel like they are easy to call in, but it’s extremely difficult to be within earshot of a lion while calling.

I don’t do much cold calling anymore, because it’s been fruitless, I cover ground looking for fresh sign rather than using that time cold calling, makes more sense to me

My calling sequence has been pretty much the same on each successful call in, a couple minutes of distress and then lion vocals, and I don’t pause much in calling, I don’t think they are call shy… I treat it like calling roosies, loud and proud

I have only had one sneak in with lion vocals, I caught it sneaking away at 37yds and whacked it

It’s certainly the hardest tag to fill on purpose, it’s not for the easily discouraged, but it can be done.

They always want to approach from above, so take that into account when setting up, it’s important and makes it harder to find good setups. I recently got a couple tree stands that will solve that issue and make hunting them on NF land possible… hunting on the ground in big second growth is pretty much pointless, you’ll never see one you call in between the ferns, salmonberry, huckleberry and vine maple… a tree stand makes it possible, and as a bonus gets your movement off the ground where they will see you if you move at all… they spot movement for a living.

I love hunting lions, and it’s so insanely satisfying when it works out because of the difficulty. There is nothing more exciting than watching a lion appear out of nowhere at 30yds… it’s surreal.

If you are dedicated, it’s doable to kill one a year if you have some time to try. I don’t change my general sequence any time of year, I keep the strategy the same but mix it up with actual sounds, but with lion vocals, I don’t think they hang up and become educated very often, they are a bold animal and a territorial animal so I don’t worry about educating them like coyotes… lions seem to come in decisively when they do.

You also can have an impact in a small region, i have killed 3 in one area and then for awhile, i wasn’t seeing cat sign and started getting deer pics on my cam I had out to for lions. It’s getting back to bad now, but i plan on beating it up this winter, i know the country well and know how lions use it

That brings me to another important aspect, the rest of the year when not chasing cats, pay attention to sign and where you see it, and how often

I have a pretty good list of places to check for fresh sign, and that’s helpful to race into an area and check for fresh sign.

Understand that it takes a lot of effort and it’s not an instant gratification activity, but it’s doable if you are dedicated enough to go try when you can

This is awesome! Are you using hand calls or an e-caller? I had a lion hand call and lost it… I need to see if rainshadow is still making them

 

[mtnrunner260]

Roosiebull, perfect advice. I have called in quite a few here in western WA, only 3 that I can prove. 1 was out of season while calling coyotes and i had to let it go. One I tracked in the snow and called it in to 16 yards and got him. The other I got on cellular trail cam, went out and called him in to 35 yards. Both big toms. I was just curious as to where the western WA guys are at. I'm in grays harbor.
I see you have rainshadows calls. The distress sequences are not extremely important but the cougar vocals are. When I know I'm close to a cat (200 yards or less) I will throw a very short rabbit distress sequence. Just a couple screams. I'll wait 10-15 seconds and do it again. Then I wait 30 seconds or so and start whistles. If nothing happens in 3 or 4 minutes I'll throw another distress scream then back to vocals. I have witnessed the vocals changing their demeanor. The first cat came in to ranting Redbird only as I was coyote hunting. The cougar slipped in between me and my call in a 2 or 3 year old cut. I never saw him until he was 25 yards away. He disappeared but was still there somewhere. I switched to vocals and after a minute I looked to my left and he was ontop of a stump looking around. He wandered around the call and eventually started whistling back. I took some videos and pics and after 45 minutes he wandered far enough to where I grabbed my call and slipped out hoping he didn't notice. I have 3 stories on the rainshadow site so you can read the rest there. It's good to see more guys doing this. Our state needs some serious predator management.

What is the frequency of the whistles? On my foxpro it is every 2 seconds.
Will a cat do that for 4-5 minutes?

 

[sportsmans challenge]

This is awesome! Are you using hand calls or an e-caller? I had a lion hand call and lost it… I need to see if rainshadow is still making them

He is

I use both, just depends on what we have going on. Rainshadow has e sounds too

 

[Outlaw2007]

Roosiebull, perfect advice. I have called in quite a few here in western WA, only 3 that I can prove. 1 was out of season while calling coyotes and i had to let it go. One I tracked in the snow and called it in to 16 yards and got him. The other I got on cellular trail cam, went out and called him in to 35 yards. Both big toms. I was just curious as to where the western WA guys are at. I'm in grays harbor.
I see you have rainshadows calls. The distress sequences are not extremely important but the cougar vocals are. When I know I'm close to a cat (200 yards or less) I will throw a very short rabbit distress sequence. Just a couple screams. I'll wait 10-15 seconds and do it again. Then I wait 30 seconds or so and start whistles. If nothing happens in 3 or 4 minutes I'll throw another distress scream then back to vocals. I have witnessed the vocals changing their demeanor. The first cat came in to ranting Redbird only as I was coyote hunting. The cougar slipped in between me and my call in a 2 or 3 year old cut. I never saw him until he was 25 yards away. He disappeared but was still there somewhere. I switched to vocals and after a minute I looked to my left and he was ontop of a stump looking around. He wandered around the call and eventually started whistling back. I took some videos and pics and after 45 minutes he wandered far enough to where I grabbed my call and slipped out hoping he didn't notice. It was I have 3 stories on the rainshadow site so you can read the rest there. It's good to see more guys doing this. Our state needs some serious predator management.

What is the frequency of the whistles? On my foxpro it is every 2 seconds.
Will a cat do that for 4-5 minutes?

I use a foxpro firestorm. It's an older call but still working great. The frequency is pretty crazy. It sounds excessive but it works. I also have the foxpro cougar vocals. The foxpro whistles sound great, but I only use them for a couple whistles off and on. I feel that they're just too repetitive. The whistles and fem call are the only foxpro sounds I use and I use them minimally. RS sounds are the ticket. I also have a hand call whistler that I use occasionally but when they come in it's usually already a close enough encounter. I also don't like directing sound to where I'm sitting. When I see a cat come in, they are 100% focused on where the sound is, regardless of their current attitude. This last cat I called in stepped out at 35 yards with it's body frontal to me, but looking left at the caller. I slowly turned my rifle towards the cat. When I did that he saw the movement in his peripheral and looked directly at me for a fraction of a second and went back to staring toward the call. His focus was absolutely dialed on the sound. So having the sound coming from yourself or too close to yourself would make things a little trickier.

 

[mtnrunner260]

I use a foxpro firestorm. It's an older call but still working great. The frequency is pretty crazy. It sounds excessive but it works. I also have the foxpro cougar vocals. The foxpro whistles sound great, but I only use them for a couple whistles off and on. I feel that they're just too repetitive. The whistles and fem call are the only foxpro sounds I use and I use them minimally. RS sounds are the ticket. I also have a hand call whistler that I use occasionally but when they come in it's usually already a close enough encounter. I also don't like directing sound to where I'm sitting. When I see a cat come in, they are 100% focused on where the sound is, regardless of their current attitude. This last cat I called in stepped out at 35 yards with it's body frontal to me, but looking left at the caller. I slowly turned my rifle towards the cat. When I did that he saw the movement in his peripheral and looked directly at me for a fraction of a second and went back to staring toward the call. His focus was absolutely dialed on the sound. So having the sound coming from yourself or too close to yourself would make things a little trickier.

Thanks.
I like the idea of on and off for the whistles.
I've also started listening to the Rain Shadow tutorial.

 

[Outlaw2007]

Thanks.
I like the idea of on and off for the whistles.
I've also started listening to the Rain Shadow tutorial.

I should've been a little more clear. What I meant was the foxpro sounds are too repetitive so I only use them for short stretches. The rainshadow sounds, however, I use them loud and frequent. Almost nonstop. Ill take short pauses to see if anything replies. The first cat I called in I shut the call off after I thought he left. After about 10 minutes he started whistling back, so I like to listen for a while after I end a stand just in case something got hung up.

 

[roosiebull]

roosiebull has me thinking about calling lions now! I was seeing fresh cats track consistently earlier this fall while bear hunting.

Do it!

I guarantee that when it happens the first time, you will start doing it a lot… no hunting scenario in America that is more addictive, it’s surreal when all of a sudden there is a lion standing there 30yds that materialize out of nowhere, and nothing tops the satisfaction of a successful call in… it’s not an activity for the easily discouraged, but it’s a legit hunting opportunity, if you put in time, you have a good chance of being successful

After late archery season is wrapped up, I will be craving those calm frosty mornings to chase cats.

The other night (like 10 days ago) I went outside around 7 to get something out of my pickup and there was a female lion going crazy right behind my house, for about a half hour… the bummer about that is it was during rifle elk season so I couldn’t hunt it in the morning, unless you have a valid tag, you cannot hunt bear or lions during rifle elk season… that was a pretty good opportunity to kill that cat

A couple days later I was up there and could follow her path a long way… walked up the main ridge, then dropped down by my house, and then dropped down to the NE and crossed the road.

I have heard (quite a bit) that only tom lions scrape, but that is not true, female lions scrape too, I think just as much. Staying on that lions track, she scraped probably 15 spots that I saw in probably just over a mile total

Pay attention to track and scrapes, keep track of those spots, then go walk them out looking for sign to call on… I have a bunch of spots that I will go check, and might not find “right now” sign, but I’ll find sign, and that sign depending on the age will give me an idea where to try to cut that track that’s fresh

It’s a lot different style of hunting than everything else, but it’s fun, and a good excuse to hang out in the mountains

 

[roosiebull]

Hey Roosiebull, can you talk about where you like to put trail cams?

Just places I see sign on a regular basis, but if I’m setting a cam blind, it will be in a big game trail on top of a ridge. They use the big beat down trails a lot, and they like walking ridge tops

Lions are very habitual in traveling, if you see lion sign somewhere, you will get pictures of them most likely, they seem to have pretty distinct paths, using the same trails every time they travel through… more so than any other animal i can think of.

Look for scrapes in the timber, that’s the easiest way to find their trails they use. If there timing was as predictable as their paths, they would be easy to kill hunting them like whitetail, but sometimes they come back through in 2 days or 15 days.

If there are some cats around, they are pretty easy to get on camera, and you will be really surprised how many are around. I have more lion pics on trail cams than any other critters… I am targeting them, but still.

That will make it seem more realistic to kill one too when you start getting them on camera. I think they would be pretty easy to kill with cell cams, but I’m conflicted on doing that… I’ll just keep hunting sign, but if someone was inclined and lived close to their hunting areas…

 

[dtrkyman]

That area where I was seeing fresh sign I have caught two on a trail cam I had out for bears!

I really only bowhunt so that would add even more to the hunt, I may have to try it sometime!

I got into calling Coyotes briefly, while it was fun I am just not into killing them just to kill them.

 

[roosiebull]

That area where I was seeing fresh sign I have caught two on a trail cam I had out for bears!

I really only bowhunt so that would add even more to the hunt, I may have to try it sometime!

I got into calling Coyotes briefly, while it was fun I am just not into killing them just to kill them.

Lions are excellent eating

I recently got a couple tree stands for hunting NF, so I can get above the brush and ferns so I can see, and I think with a stand, it’s very possible to get a shot at a called in cat

Get your movement off the ground. On the ground I don’t know how you could get a bow drawn, they spot movement for a living… a tree stand makes it realistic

 

[dtrkyman]

I agree with the stand in the sense of getting a better view of them approaching, however from seeing a lot of bobcats and even feral house cats they pic you off in a tree just as quick!

Unless you are tucked into a fir with tons of cover of course.

I have heard Lion meat is excellent from others as well.

 

[wcasey755]

Anyone have any suggestions for cold calling? What kind of terrain should I be looking for on a cold call set?

 

[wcasey755]

Obviously sign is preferred but in a case where I can’t locate sign.