what is an old cat?

[wwy]

Shoot4fur, you are right on the money. Additionally, I wish I had a nickel for every houndsman that talks up how they only take old mature toms while they are actually shooting about everything they tree or letting friends do the deed.

[larry]

Larry, thanks I guess for your input, but I think their ageing is ok, at least with bears. I have shot a lot of bears, and they seem to age them at what i would guess. so if they are as close on cats I do not doubt them. I am also sure my cat weighed more than 130lbs, I lift a lot of weights, and work hard for a living and he was more than 130. It seems you are kind of a negative nancy but i guesss you can post what ever you want, what ever makes you happy. I am not saying my cat was at all huge, though he seemed nice to me, but it just seems as if you dont like to see a guy happy. My buddy treed a cat that whent 173 on fwps scale last year, thats a nice cat around here, but their scare was probably off

So you weighed the cat by guesstimation? After some more input on here you still think F&G age accurately? 173lbs, out of the bridgers? That what yer telling me? Depending on who claims that, (there are only a couple guys in that area that aren't kill happy and always getting 160+ lber's), I would be willing to bet more than a few dollars the cat was never weighed by F&G. 173 is nice around there? Super tag cats are lucky to be 173! If a cat that big walked through the bridgers, he was lost! Not a negative nancy, just have a sensitive BS meter.

[dwalton]

I have seen 12 and a 14 year lion aged back in the '80 '90 when we had a season. A 164lbs and 193lbs I hunted the big one 7 years, seen his track twice in that time before I had a client to take him. It was by far the biggest lion that I saw treed in the 5 states that I have hunted them in. Dewey

[shoot4fur]

larry, no that 173 did not come from the bridgers. and it was not the cat i shot, you miss understood what I said. I forgot you like to pick post apart. I just like to hunt, and talk to good hunters, gain knowledge when i lack it, and give when i have it. I am not going to go back and forth with you. and the supper tag holder only gets a good cat when he is in good enough shape or lucky enough to find an easy one. I found that out not to long ago yes i am guessing on my cat, but not saying he was huge, just saying i think he weighed more than 130, enough to be posotive he weighed more than 130. Not at all saying he was 160. I take it bad when i am accused of B.S, I do not B.S, and only talk when I have a good idea what i am talking about. If I am wrong, i will admit it. Not knowing what my cat weighed with in 5lbs is the reasone I am getting a scale. I did not know that teeth aging was not accurate in cat, that is why I am on this site. But in montana, that is how it is done. Who is a guy to trust? Not questioning the fwp is not always right. back to topic, i am enjoying it.

[houndnem]

I don't think that it's too far out of line to suggest that a 6.5 year old cat weighed 160. I have packed quite a few lions out whole for the purpose of learning how to estimate weight on the ones we skinn. nobody will ever be able to estimate within pounds and will probably aways err on the big side. too many variables to consider, like a full stomach that could add 20lbs. but one of the cats I caught for the sportsmans tag was collared. he was collared when he was a spotted little fella and tracked and logged every year until we harvested him. he was 6 years old, 186lbs, 7'11'' nose to tail and a frog hair under 16" skoal. to date still by far the biggest cat I have ever seen. I think that 6 years old and eating healthy would be prime time for a cat to weigh 160+. but I also caught a estimated age 4 cat that was 7'6" and 169lbs. he was a book cat and just had great genetics. the reason people (including myself) are so skeptical about weight is that alot of guys every cat the kill is 8 feet long and 200 lbs. fact of the matter is they exist, but are rarely found. sure is a chore packin out one of those brutes whole. we have tried everything from a pole with two guys to draggin em in the snow. most cats that size don't come from the desert dry ground hunts or we would just load em on the ponies. I am pretty much ramblin on and on about nothing, but the moral of the story is a 130 lb cat is a big cat, but I belive him when he says this one was bigger than that.

[larry]

a 130 lb cat is a big cat, but I belive him when he says this one was bigger than that.

C'mon now! 130 is a big cat? the majority of toms that get whacked are 130 or smaller, but thats just cause there's a tag that needs to be filled, not because its a big cat, anyone that owns dogs, hunts lions regularly and shoots anything less than a booner, well, thats just a guy that likes to kill everything he catches. Whats the point in shooting a sub when you can do it every other day? You a little trigger happy houndnem? need to justify shooting dinks by claiming they are big?

[M Evertsen]

Nevada has their's broken into 4 categories for ages.

0-1.5 (kitten)
2-4 (dispersal)
5-7 (prime)
8 + (older adult)

NDOW aged my cat (estimate) at 5-6 years old. I have a hard time believing that, along with a lot of people I have shown that skull to.

When I killed that cat, I guessed it to be 120 lbs. It weighed 123 on their scale. It was 85" Judging by it's canines, and the fact that the teeth are all still intact, I am guessing it is probably more like 3-4 years old.

Last year I caught one that DWARFED that cat. I hope I can see him in a tree again, because he will hit the ground. I am guessing he will be in the 7+ range by now, and should be in the 150-160 range for sure. Only one way to find that out I guess, but he is a VERY nice cat.

Later,

Marcial

[brandon]

I agree with houndnem in that most so called big cats weigh 120-130 lbs but not that there aren't bigger cats out there. I've been told by both outfitters/guides and top of the line hounddawgers that they are the only ones that should take females or small toms because they "have" to produce but guys like me "fun runners" shouldn't kill anything but book toms cause we don't have to produce like the outfitters. I personally won't knock one out of tree unless its big or if the dogs catch it in a rock pile and are getting worked over!! But if a relative or good friend wants a cat then game on and I know that is how everyone else works most of the time!! And that is why most cats don't live to be 5 or 6+ yrs old because of all of us BAD guys that are out there enjoying the mountains and hunting our dogs and letting people that don't own dogs shoot mountain lions. Let the outfitters bitch the private guy that does it for fun and completely out of his own pocket pays more than him anyways and any cat the dogs catch is a good time so take some pics and if someone wants a "trophy" take one home!!

[houndnem]

Hell Larry, Ide love to compare b&c cats with you some time. haven't seen you postin many pics of ever catching anything, but here's a few of mine.

[larry]

a couple of those are real nice cats! All of my pics they are still alive, so hard to get a size gauge to the untrained eye, but you are right, I don't have many pics of dead ones.

[shoot4fur]

Hey larry would love to see pics of live cats as well, and love to have you give a guess on what you think they might weigh, and witch ones are mature. I might learn from it, every little bit helps. I know its hard to tell in a picture, but you were there when they were taken, so you probably have an Idea. thanks

[houndnem]

a couple of those are real nice cats! All of my pics they are still alive, so hard to get a size gauge to the untrained eye, but you are right, I don't have many pics of dead ones.

well that is cool I guess. Let's see the live pics then. It can be argued that by removing a mature tom you actually conserve lions. big toms will make the rounds killing kittens and subadult cats. how many will a big tom kill in a year? even if it's a few then look how many lions you saved by killing one big tom. I enjoy your digs and your twisted sense of humor most of the time, but every once and a while you ought to try to bring something to the forum besides critisysm and negativity. so let's see all these cats your catchin.

[sheimer]

Hell Larry, Ide love to compare b&c cats with you some time. haven't seen you postin many pics of ever catching anything, but here's a few of mine.

[larry]

IDK how big they are, two were guessed between 160-180 at the tree, two for sure are all that, the smallest two ended up dead.

[sheimer]

nice pictures Larry.

Scott