Fish That "fin" You The Most

[Crestliner2008]

I bleed most often when landing lake trout. They are constantly squirming and moving and slippery. More cuts from the gill plates than any other species.

[cyclops2]

 I WANT the cat to extend the bony fins .  I simply  slide my index finger  & the one next to it,   up each side of the belly. They stop when they  reach the extended side fins.  I then pinch down my thumb.  Completely held with the back spine always away from me.  

 

I now just use barbless hooks on everything .  Long pliers done.  Bass included.      Even all the bass lures are crushed barbs.   Kids love pulling the hook out by themselves.

 

As we get older. We are supposed to solve more problems easier & safer.

[Chris S]

White Bass!!!!! Not to mention that when they flop like crazy, you usually happen to have treble hooks hanging out of their mouth.

Like this? LOL! Boca grips from now on!!!

[Thornback]

Believe it or not about three weeks back I got finned by a wild golden shiner. I guess I have handled thousands of them and their fins are soft. I got stuck in the tip of my index finger and it went in about 1/8" and hurt like heck. For the next two weeks I couldn't stand to put pressure on that finger tip. Today there is still a tiny spot on the skin that is hard, like a callouse.

[cbass12]

Like this? LOL! Boca grips from now on!!!

You are correct. Luckily I've avoided that. I usually don't even touch them anymore, just use pliers and shake them off over the side of the boat.

[scaleface]

I caught a small channel "fiddlers we call them" . I was barefoot. It flipped off the hook and impaled my middle toe. It thrashed about stuck on that toe. I dont have to tell you what that felt like .

[Texican]

I have been finned by a lot of different fish but the most painful has to be the hardhead catfish.  My buddy dropped one on my foot once and my foot swelled up like a basketball.

[Hyrule Bass]

Where do you catch yellow perch? I have fished for them a bunch but never got on a consistent bite

Smith Mountain Lake has some nice yellow perch in it if you can find them. i usually tend to catch them in the september and early fall.

 

 

 

for me, it has to be white perch. white perch are fiesty and constantly wanting to jump around. they love to flare out their gill plates and cut you, and they have a real spiny back too. when i grab them i use my fingers to push down the gill plates and the inside of my hand pushing down the back fin...

[Ratherbfishing]

The modest little bluegill is the most likely culprit for me.  It's hard to hold them without something pointy getting me.  Next would be catfish-although not so much anymore:

 

When I'm handling smallish channel cats and bullheads, I learned a method where, from underneath, you can place your thumb firmly against one pectoral fin and then surround the other fin with the next two fingers (index and middle). It works under the principle of keeping your friends close and your enemies even closer.  It works wonders but you have to be careful when you release the fish that it still doesn't get you.  You kind've have to "toss" the fish away.  And don't attempt this with really large or small catfish-unless you have an absoute death grip on them, the small ones still seem to wiggle their fin enough to stick you in your palm.