The signals from pulsars are very weak and difficult to detect. Everything has to be spot-on, especially for observatories with small antennas. A strong understanding and experience of low-noise receiving systems is mandatory as well as the physics involved.
It should be noted that all the successful individuals/groups listed on this website's home page who are using dishes less than 10 m in diameter, or their equivalents, have prior experience and success at Earth-Moon-Earth (EME) activities. In addition - they are all amateur radio operators.
While these two criteria do not exclude the possibility of success by those not possessing them, it nonetheless gives a strong indication that detecting pulsars is not a 'plug-and-play' activity - and is actually more difficult than EME.