View Full Version : What should I do when a fish is too small?
Drullexx
07-08-2013, 04:32 PM
What should I do when a fish is too small?
Hi. Myself and my group of fisher friends follow the rules and regulations of limits, times and so forth. We love fishing, don’t want to see our resources depleted and want our children to be able to fish in Alberta like we do. That said, this weekend we were pike fishing, and caught a couple that were close to the limit (63 cm) but were too small. We’re newbies and are really trying to do things properly, but, during the unhooking process, we pretty much ended up killing the fish just to get the hooks out.
What do you do in this situation? Do you toss them back? Do you take them home and attempt to clean?
Such a dilemma. :(
We learn something new every trip. We will get better with fish handling and unhooking, but, it sucks.
Thanks everyone.
pickrel pat
07-08-2013, 04:36 PM
Toss em back.... Otherwise alot of people may keep"accidentals"...... Its the law.
Some people would kill them on purpose and claim "accidental" alot..... See where im going here?
DiabeticKripple
07-08-2013, 04:38 PM
Throw em back and the birds will eat them. And if not they will as nutrients to the Eco system
Master_Baitcaster
07-08-2013, 04:39 PM
Toss em back.... Otherwise alot of people may keep"accidentals"...... Its the law.
Some people would kill them on purpose and claim "accidental" alot..... See where im going here?
X2 exactly
Flieguy
07-08-2013, 04:42 PM
if you're pike fishing, you don't need to have 3 treble hooks on a lure. do them a favor and take one off.
better yet remove trebles and replace them with large circle hooks. it'll help the fish stay on better barbless too.
not exactly an answer to what you're asking but it'll help fix the problem
Drullexx
07-08-2013, 04:47 PM
if you're pike fishing, you don't need to have 3 treble hooks on a lure. do them a favor and take one off.
better yet remove trebles and replace them with large circle hooks. it'll help the fish stay on better barbless too.
not exactly an answer to what you're asking but it'll help fix the problem
No no, that's a great suggestion. The three treble hooks were just mangling the hell out of them. Going to pick up some of those larger hooks I think. The lures worked great, but, we felt so bad for the poor fish :(
TY!
Winch101
07-08-2013, 04:47 PM
If your fishing where you know you will catch small fish ....go barbless
Pickerel rigs switch Kahle or circle hooks .should be able ease the hook out
Of the fish easily .pike .....fish glove ...hold them behind the gill. If swallowed
Use degorger to hold mouth open barbless hook should come out easily...
I take trebles off of everything. Or snip off one hook tang and pinch other
Two barbs,....
Pike you need fish glove,degorger , long needle nose pliers ,
Single barbless hook.
Do not touch the gills hold them about an inch or two ,on the body
Behind the gills
When we we are fishing hard baits put octopus hook on rear eye
Remove one hook point on middle treble and pinch barbs
Take front treble off all together
BeeGuy
07-08-2013, 04:51 PM
Do your best.
Use a net.
Have the appropriate release tools. glove, needle nose pliers...really long ones for pike. maybe jaw spreaders
keep the fish in the water.
fish mortality is an unavoidable part of fishing. even for strictly catch and release fisherfolk.
small pike have a habit of absolutely inhaling lures which can get the hooks into the gill plate/gills.
you can try using different size (big!) hooks
but always follow the reg's. not much you can do there.
Chewbacca
07-08-2013, 04:58 PM
Good for you and your friends for doing what you do. Myself I use a single hook with the barb pinched. As long as you keep a tight line they very seldom get away and if you don't want them just grab the hook with your pliers and twist your wrist and their gone. Lots of times you never have to touch them.
Good luck fishing. :)
Chewy
Lefty-Canuck
07-08-2013, 05:44 PM
First off, good for you for asking for advice and caring about the fish you try to release.
One thing is you should always have a pair of good side cutters with you so you can cut the hooks off the lure if they ever get really buried in....trying to reduce mortality of fish may require that you switch up your lure or catching techniques slightly.
LC
moosehead7
07-08-2013, 05:54 PM
Toss em back.... Otherwise alot of people may keep"accidentals"...... Its the law.
Some people would kill them on purpose and claim "accidental" alot..... See where im going here?
Yup, but what a nice law in the first place:thinking-006:
straightedge
07-08-2013, 06:13 PM
If your fishing where you know you will catch small fish ....go barbless
Pickerel rigs switch Kahle or circle hooks .should be able ease the hook out
Of the fish easily .pike .....fish glove ...hold them behind the gill. If swallowed
Use degorger to hold mouth open barbless hook should come out easily...
I take trebles off of everything. Or snip off one hook tang and pinch other
Two barbs,....
Pike you need fish glove,degorger , long needle nose pliers ,
Single barbless hook.
Do not touch the gills hold them about an inch or two ,on the body
Behind the gills
When we we are fishing hard baits put octopus hook on rear eye
Remove one hook point on middle treble and pinch barbs
Take front treble off all together
so is the old school hand over the head finger in on gill thumb in other gill bad for em? if i dont hold em like that they sqirm and flop
Bushmaster
07-08-2013, 06:19 PM
Use less hooks, go barbless, etc.....who cares if they get away !! And try to buy a pike picker.
Team Anzac
07-08-2013, 06:43 PM
What should I do when a fish is too small?
Hi. Myself and my group of fisher friends follow the rules and regulations of limits, times and so forth. We love fishing, don’t want to see our resources depleted and want our children to be able to fish in Alberta like we do. That said, this weekend we were pike fishing, and caught a couple that were close to the limit (63 cm) but were too small. We’re newbies and are really trying to do things properly, but, during the unhooking process, we pretty much ended up killing the fish just to get the hooks out.
What do you do in this situation? Do you toss them back? Do you take them home and attempt to clean?
Such a dilemma. :(
We learn something new every trip. We will get better with fish handling and unhooking, but, it sucks.
Thanks everyone.
Personally I always keep a set set of long nose pliers in my tackle box,they're great for deeply hooked fish. Another method I use for fish that are gill hooked is to remove the hook through the gill plate and not the mouth. It's a little bit tricky, your not tearing out the gills. Bacially all your doing is pulling down on the hook and taking it out through the gill plate. Stay away from those jaw spreaders, they are midevil and do more damage then good. Always go barbless, use more jigs than spoons. Set your hook earlier than later. This works good for all species.
I have a tecnique for handling walleye that pretty much puts them to sleep while removing hooks.The fin that protrudes out by there gill. Place it between your index finger and middle, the rest of your hand should support the belly. Not sure what it does but it pretty much puts them to sleep thill they hit the water again. Try it out works great. No such thing as a bad day fishing. Good luck
Team Anzac
07-08-2013, 06:51 PM
Throw em back and the birds will eat them. And if not they will as nutrients to the Eco system
moron
Team Anzac
07-08-2013, 06:56 PM
First off, good for you for asking for advice and caring about the fish you try to release.
One thing is you should always have a pair of good side cutters with you so you can cut the hooks off the lure if they ever get really buried in....trying to reduce mortality of fish may require that you switch up your lure or catching techniques slightly.
LC
i like
WayneChristie
07-08-2013, 06:57 PM
moron
since this is the exact thing the law in Alberta says you must do, how is he a moron? thinking you must be looking in the mirror
Mike_W
07-08-2013, 06:57 PM
Go barbless!!! pinch the barbs down on your hooks makes for a easier release!!
Graffy91
07-08-2013, 07:05 PM
Jaws of life. They are indeed a need when pike fishing.
Barbless always, and a pair of 8-10" needle nose pliers come in handy.
DiabeticKripple
07-08-2013, 09:56 PM
moron
Please elaborate on why I am a moron.
If a fish takes a hook in the gills and its bleeding badly, they might not make it. To stay within the regs you must throw the fish back.
BeeGuy
07-08-2013, 10:00 PM
moron
it's an epidemic of name calling!
burbotman
07-08-2013, 10:02 PM
moron
An explanation is in order as right now your post is reading more like a statement on yourself.
crosbyfan123
07-08-2013, 10:07 PM
First off, good for you for asking for advice and caring about the fish you try to release.
One thing is you should always have a pair of good side cutters with you so you can cut the hooks off the lure if they ever get really buried in....trying to reduce mortality of fish may require that you switch up your lure or catching techniques slightly.
LC
I uunderstand what your point is but no way am iI ruining a $10 rapala for a fish if it's just a jig sure but not my expensive hooks.
Lefty-Canuck
07-08-2013, 10:08 PM
I uunderstand what your point is but no way am iI ruining a $10 rapala for a fish if it's just a jig sure but not my expensive hooks.
Cut the hook of at the eye and replace it....doesn't ruin a thing.
You can replace trebles on most hooks fairly simple.
LC
evileddie713
07-08-2013, 10:14 PM
Cut the hook of at the eye and replace it....doesn't ruin a thing.
LC
X2 the second you put a lure on your line you should consider it gone. Its the cost of fishing.
Chief16
07-08-2013, 11:00 PM
X2 the second you put a lure on your line you should consider it gone. Its the cost of fishing.
X2 on that as well!
DiabeticKripple
07-08-2013, 11:02 PM
I don't consider it gone until it actually is haha. I just live with the fact I might lose a $10-$25 bill
Steven Noel
07-08-2013, 11:11 PM
Firstly, good on you for asking. It shows responsibility and initiative in caring for our resources. Secondly, do as those above have stated and you can limit the number of times you find yourself in that predicament.
Also, I'd like to vouch for (in addition to the aforementioned fish gloves and jaw spreaders) the purchase of "hookout" or similar. This particular product has done me wonders in retrieving (carefully) deeply swallowed hooks. I believe it to be one of our best pike/walleye fishing purchases.
http://www.landbigfish.com/Baker-Lures/Baker-Lures-HookOut.cfm
Steven
Pikebreath
07-09-2013, 07:28 AM
One thing that's seems to get often overlooked in fish handling / hook removal is time out of the water. Quite simply, a fish out of water cannot breath. A lot of "belly up" fish have passed out from lack of oxygen.
Do the fish a favour and leave it in the water while you gather up all the necessary tools. Then if takes longer than 30 seconds to get the hook out, give the fish a 30 second drink to allow to get its "wind back".
Try holding your breath while you work on the fish, if you need a breath, it's a pretty good possibility the fish might too!!!
iamkorean
07-09-2013, 10:22 AM
... Another method I use for fish that are gill hooked is to remove the hook through the gill plate and not the mouth. It's a little bit tricky, your not tearing out the gills. Bacially all your doing is pulling down on the hook and taking it out through the gill plate. Stay away from those jaw spreaders, they are midevil and do more damage then good. Always go barbless, use more jigs than spoons. Set your hook earlier than later. This works good for all species.
X2. It was a bit tricky at first but now, it's much easier to pull out through gill plate instead of pushing/twisting/turning around to pull.
Also, I try to work on the pike I've got on my hook so it's somewhat 'tired' before bring it into my net. makes it easier since they're not bounching and shaking head.
But like whole bunch of noble fishers' here, Not meeting the req. size even by a cm, it goes back where it belongs.
BTW '...Moran...(?)', where did that come from? you just made my day ..... :snapoutofit: somewhere here, you'll find a thread 'Poachers (smart @$$) caught' ... try it over there.
Swath
07-09-2013, 10:31 AM
One thing that's seems to get often overlooked in fish handling / hook removal is time out of the water. Quite simply, a fish out of water cannot breath. A lot of "belly up" fish have passed out from lack of oxygen.
Do the fish a favour and leave it in the water while you gather up all the necessary tools. Then if takes longer than 30 seconds to get the hook out, give the fish a 30 second drink to allow to get its "wind back".
Try holding your breath while you work on the fish, if you need a breath, it's a pretty good possibility the fish might too!!!
That's a good idea bud. Hold your breath. I like it. I generally try to unhook while they are in the water and always give them a chance to recover if things are taking too long. Hold the leader by the top swivel and get to work. Often times the fish will thrash causing some slack and the hook comes out or loosens all by itself.
DiabeticKripple
07-09-2013, 10:40 AM
I find with walleye, they shrink when you're filleting them. A 43cm legal fish becomes on 42cm illegal fish on the table. I always keep minimum 2cm above the required length.
fedfred
07-09-2013, 12:23 PM
Go barbless, if you see the fish is too small give it slack and they often get off on their own. Spreaders and long hook extractors work well. I've only hooked 2 bad enough to tear something in the last 2 years. Last one was a crazy tiny trout that bit a treble that barely fit in its mouth and hooked on all 3 sides. Sometimes you just have to toss em back and hope they feed something in the ecosystem.
Personally I always keep a set set of long nose pliers in my tackle box,they're great for deeply hooked fish. Another method I use for fish that are gill hooked is to remove the hook through the gill plate and not the mouth. It's a little bit tricky, your not tearing out the gills. Bacially all your doing is pulling down on the hook and taking it out through the gill plate. Stay away from those jaw spreaders, they are midevil and do more damage then good. Always go barbless, use more jigs than spoons. Set your hook earlier than later. This works good for all species.
X3 Though I prefer using long slightly curved haemostats for the gill plate method. http://www.in-fisherman.com/2012/07/18/through-the-gill-hook-removal-amazingly-easy-effective/
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