OTR366 Posted June 4, 2015 Posted June 4, 2015 I was watching a show recently in which the host was reviewing the Rapala Shadow Rap (three treble hooks). They where catching small mouth and on one fish landing the center treble hooks where clearly hooked deep in the eye of the fish. The host was talking and IMO not paying attention to a careful removal of the lure. No question from my point of view the fish's eye had to have been permanently injured. In a case like that I'm not sure its ethical to release a fish with an injury like that. If I ever get around to using a Shadow Rap I would likely remove the belly hooks. Please tell me your thoughts.
Super User flyfisher Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 It happens and if it went right into the fish's eye, would careful hook removing prevent any problems? I am guessing it wouldn't. As far as keeping fish goes, i have caught plenty of fish with one eye over the years so to release it at least gives it a chance to survive. 4
Super User BassinLou Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 Unfortunately harm and sometimes death may occur to fish when its caught. As far as an eye of a fish being hooked, it is close to impossible to remove a hook that has penetrated right through the middle of the jelly, without losing the eye. Again, unfortunate, however the fish will survive and possibly live a full life. I have caught very nice bass where one of their eyes have been missing for quite some time. 3
Super User K_Mac Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 If you fish very long or very much you will injure fish. A fish with a damaged eye may live long and prosper. One kept and eaten, no chance. I agree that care should be taken when releasing fish, but I am not going to remove hooks in an attempt to eliminate injury. Fishing is a blood sport... 3
Super User J Francho Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 No fish can see well through hot oil! Release gives better odds of living than keeping. 3
ColdSVT Posted June 4, 2015 Posted June 4, 2015 Worry about your own ethics You cant control other people's standards, morals or values 6
Super User gardnerjigman Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 If it's not a keeper fish then it's going back regardless of the injury. A fish losing an eye doesn't guarantee death, but as JF said, hot grease certainly does. 1
CeeJay Posted June 4, 2015 Posted June 4, 2015 Like others here I've caught a surprising amount of fish with an eye missing, so it doesn't necessarily mean death for the fish. However I'm not crazy about multi-treble hooked lures. I always bend down the barbs and sometimes I'll just replace the trebles with doubles or singles. No need for an entire lure to be covered with hook points. Most of my inline spinners now sport a single hook in place of a treble after a rather gruesome (and bloody) incident when a Crappie engulfed a spinner. 4
OTR366 Posted June 4, 2015 Author Posted June 4, 2015 Worry about your own ethics I take great pride in my ethics, integrity and morals!! Simply curious is the reason I posed the question.
ColdSVT Posted June 4, 2015 Posted June 4, 2015 I take great pride in my ethics, integrity and morals!! Simply curious is the reason I posed the question. As you should just dont expect others to share them with you Ive never kept a bass in my life but i dont expect other to follow my example 2
Super User scaleface Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 Better keep it , or it will have 1 eyed babies and mess up the gene pool . 2
Super User WRB Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 Bass are a renewable resource, keeping a serverly injured bass isn't going to harm the fishery. I can count on 1 hand the number of 1 eyed fish I have caught over my lifetime, very few. Yes, they can survive if desease doesn't get to them or some other predator. It would have been better PR to edite that video! Catch & release has become a cult with some anglers, it's good to practice within reason. Tom 2
cdunlapb12 Posted June 4, 2015 Posted June 4, 2015 I basically don't fish treble hooks or crankbaits at all anymore because of that very problem. It really takes the fun out of fishing when you have to seriously injure a fish for sport. Plus it's not fun to have trebles stuck in the end of your finger. 5
Super User MIbassyaker Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 Most ethicists consider Ethics to be a matter of degree, comparison, and calculation. All else equal, it's more ethical to not injure a fish's eye than to injure it. It's more ethical to kill a dying fish quickly than to let it suffer. If the fish is not dying (or likely to die from injury), and you aren't harvesting for food (in which case the use of the fish as food balances the cost of its death, weighed against the effect of the loss of the fish to the fishery), it's more ethical to release it and let it live. Again, all else being equal. If you're concerned about ethics, weight the costs of each option (to all involved, including the fish) against the benefits of each option (again, to all involved, including the fish), and compare the net balance of the two. 2
OTR366 Posted June 4, 2015 Author Posted June 4, 2015 Most ethicists consider Ethics to be a matter of degree, comparison, and calculation. All else equal, it's more ethical to not injure a fish's eye than to injure it. It's more ethical to kill a dying fish quickly than to let it suffer. If the fish is not dying, and you aren't harvesting for food (in which case the use of the fish as food balances the cost of its death, weighed against the effect of the loss of the fish to the fishery), it's more ethical to release it and let it live. Again, all else being equal. If you're concerned about ethics, weight the costs of each option (to all involved, including the fish) against the benefits of each option (again, to all involved, including the fish), and compare the net balance of the two. Well said...Thank you!! Like I said, after watching the show where the eye injury occurred I got to thinking how I would handle the same situation. I'd probably have fish for dinner so he or she would not get bullied is schools for being different....LOL. I've yet to put a hook through the eye of a fish so ethical conundrum has been avoided to date.
CeeJay Posted June 4, 2015 Posted June 4, 2015 I basically don't fish treble hooks or crankbaits at all anymore because of that very problem. It really takes the fun out of fishing when you have to seriously injure a fish for sport. Plus it's not fun to have trebles stuck in the end of your finger. Yeah of all my lures, I toss cranks the least. For me as well, few things can ruin a peaceful morning of angling on the water than a fish bleeding out all over my hand due to treble hooks lodged in a fish's throat. Not much fun at all. 1
Catch 22 Posted June 4, 2015 Posted June 4, 2015 Bass with only one eye are more likely to be" blind sided" I avoid lures with three trebs and /or will remove one of them.It is easier on me too. C22 1
OTR366 Posted June 4, 2015 Author Posted June 4, 2015 Yeah of all my lures, I toss cranks the least. For me as well, few things can ruin a peaceful morning of angling on the water than a fish bleeding out all over my hand due to treble hooks lodged in a fish's throat. Not much fun at all. Last time I used a multi treble hook crankbait I was the one bleeding before I even got the stupid thing in the water. Upper set of hooks got hung on the webbing of my pack a during removal the lower set of hooks went thru my thumb.....LOL. Not fun at all is RIGHT! 1
Super User OkobojiEagle Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 Actually bass with damaged eyes are an evolutionary god-send as they are the ones who most willingly spawn with the ugly bass. oe 5
C0lt Posted June 4, 2015 Posted June 4, 2015 Ive said it in other threads, but I feel like a lot of people don't give bass enough credit. They are extremely hardy species. I have caught several fish missing an eye, and I have caught many fish that still have shards of hook (or even whole hooks) embedded in various places in their mouth and throat, and they had healed up just find, and obviously has not kept the fish from going about its business.
Super User tomustang Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 If a human lost his/her eye in an accident would you exterminate them? 3
Super User HoosierHawgs Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 I basically don't fish treble hooks or crankbaits at all anymore because of that very problem. It really takes the fun out of fishing when you have to seriously injure a fish for sport. Plus it's not fun to have trebles stuck in the end of your finger.Go barbless. 2
Turtle135 Posted June 4, 2015 Posted June 4, 2015 The largest bass I caught this past Saturday was blind in one eye. The injury had happened some time ago as it was completely healed over. The bass was in great shape physically so that one seemed to be making do just fine. I would release a bass with that type of injury and not give it a second thought. I do tend to avoid treble hooked lures. One thing I like about being largely a jig fisherman is the one hook point and that for whatever reason largemouth usually do not get hooked deeply on a jig. Plastic worms often get vacuumed straight to the gullet so I go barbless with that presentation. 2
Super User roadwarrior Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 Fishing is a blood sport... If you consider the fish to have a mortal injury it should be kept, eaten or given away to someone that will. 2
Super User Dwight Hottle Posted June 4, 2015 Super User Posted June 4, 2015 I have probably caught between 75-100 smallies that were blind in one eye. The loss of one eye does not keep them from eating. 3
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