What made this track?

big dog or a wolf???

My guess is a lynx. And not the basketball player.

One big canine!

my guess is a big cat could have been a cougar if you look at it closly the toes are close together and snow is pushed in with fur im guess big cat the thing to the left is deffinately a sasquatch i saw it on the internet and you know the internet dont lie

Len, I would almost be willing to bet my entire trapping ensemble that it is a wolf track. 4 toes and the triangular pad. It is VERY common to see a trotting track look distorted as if it had 5-6 toes. Even more exaggerated when the snow melts a little.

On an adult wolf, front paw width is about 2-1/2″ +/- with spacing when walking is about 9-12″ span and over-all front paw to most rear paw print can be near 4 feet.

In comparison, a coyote track appears more pointed and about 1/2 the size and a cat track is usually more round in appearance

Cat tracks won’t have claws visible as they are retracted while walking. I can’t tell from the picture of there are claw indents. If there is, you’re looking at a wolf.

Hunting posture as it walking. rear paw is placed on the front paw track as it is stepping forward. Very slow/quite steps.
Were you off of HWY 80, norht of town? There is a wold pack now established south of my farm and just a few miles form one of the stretches of stream you fish. I’ve called in a couple of them now over the last 3 years while predator hunting. I believe one of them may be collared and studied by the DNR. They frequent an area south of me with the radio equipment. The guy i spoke to said they were tracking the turkeys, but I believe otherwise. Too much DNR activity around there during breeding season???????

Quote:

---

Hunting posture as it walking. rear paw is placed on the front paw track as it is stepping forward. Very slow/quite steps.
Were you off of HWY 80, norht of town? There is a wold pack now established south of my farm and just a few miles form one of the stretches of stream you fish. I’ve called in a couple of them now over the last 3 years while predator hunting. I believe one of them may be collared and studied by the DNR. They frequent an area south of me with the radio equipment. The guy i spoke to said they were tracking the turkeys, but I believe otherwise. Too much DNR activity around there during breeding season???????

---

near Gilligham

I say canine. But size cannot be known from it, the rain and moist conditions made it BIGGER… look how big the little weeds footprint is

Not an unreasonable range for wolves in that country. The X’s represent approximate locations I had a wolf come into a set-up while coyote calling. Gilli is a few miles S/W of where I hunt over there

two things you now need to carry when hiking in that area
one is a sidearm (solely for self protection of course)

BK after bar time ?

It looks like there are small indents for claws at the tip of a couple of those pads. Which would mean it cannot be a cat. Way too big for a coyote so its either someones huge dog or a timber wolf.

They look to be almost single file..

I say Ware Wolf

And by the looks of your hand… better get your where abouts nailed down for last night

Quote:

---

I say canine. But size cannot be known from it, the rain and moist conditions made it BIGGER… look how big the little weeds footprint is

---

Give that man a cigar

Mature Wolf for sure.

My ex wife.

As others have mentioned, when there is brighter sun and freeze/thaw cycles, tracks tend to get bigger because the imprint creates a vertical “wall” that catches the sun in the same way a south-facing slope does.

It’s almost certainly a wolf, although there would be no way to eliminate a large dog from being at least possible. If you look at the pad shape and the angle of the V shape, ti’s pretty clear to me that it’s most likely a wolf.

Grouse

Definitely canine, cats do not walk with their claws out. The weeds have melted more because of their dark color absorbs heat. These tracks are slightly enlarged by warm temps but not much. If they were melted out a large amount you would not see the detail that remains from the claws or the pads. That is most likely one big bad wolf.

I have see fresh tracks that size in eastern WI near my fathers house.

My guess is a big dog.

mule deer for sure

Green Sunfish? Oh wait… are we done with that joke now?