Bobcat and Kitten Wednesday

Shyla and I have been enjoying our hikes in the autumn colors and cooler air.

Shyla's training is going stunningly well. We practice her everyday cues during our hikes. Here, she is doing a down-stay on top of Hug Hill. She is so "zen" about "stays" that she's already letting me go out of sight.

On our hikes, I have certain places where I take dogs and certain places where I don't due to wildlife presence. I don't take them to the area where the bears and mountain lions abound for everyone's safety. I must admit that my friends chuckle at the notion that I go to those places by myself but never take my dogs. I am very careful when I'm alone there... and I trust that the animals don't want to come near me. But, I don't trust that my dogs won't sniff out the animals, thereby getting us all in trouble - so that's my reason for not taking my dogs with me.

In that area, mountain lions seem to be multiplying! I have lots of photos but here's just one (wearing a radio collar for a study in our area).

In the same spot where this mountain lion stood, I've captured many photos of an adult bobcat who I believed was raising a kitten over the summer. I think that the mountain lions have caused her and her kitten to move to a different area, where I also have trail cameras. I captured photos of the two of them for the first time the other night.

The mother bobcat walked into the clearing, sniffed around, and then sat still for almost 2 minutes waiting for her kitten to catch up. Here is the first appearance of the kitten.

The kitten was very curious. Look at mom's eyes glowing in the background.

Full view of kitten's face.

Mom decided that it was time for the kitten to move on and walked toward the kitten. You can see the back of the kitten's black and white striped ears as s/he looked to mom.

The kitten bowed down to mom and then the two interacted for a bit.

The best portrait of the two of them...

Then, the kitten exited to the left, and mom peered up into the tree canopy above my camera.

I'm fairly certain that she climbed the tree based on the next sketchy photo.

Then, a while later, she walked in front of the camera carrying a tree squirrel who must have been sleeping up in the tree. I had no idea that bobcats would hunt down animals high in the tree branches.

I think that mom was heading off to share the meal with her kitten.

Believe it or not, shortly after I checked this camera, I saw a bobcat in person a few miles away. I believe that it was a male, based on his size. He was as interested in me as I was in him so I captured a whole series of photos of him. Here is one. I'll share more in the coming days.

These mountains are an incredible place to live for someone who loves wildlife.