Do You Handle Bass (or other species) That You've Caught....?

[Crow Horse]

Like the title says, do you handle the fish you've caught?

 

I don't. I net (rubberized) them and then secure them with a fish grip and they remain in the water while unhooking. My reasoning is that I want to avoid disturbing or compromising it's mucous or slime coat. The slime coat is their first line of defense against infections and parasites. The slime coat has a difficult job considering they live in a bath of fungi, bacteria, parasites, and viruses. Once unhooked they are released. It might sound like it's a bit over the top, but factor in the stress of the fight and it becomes something to consider.

 

[GreenPig]

I handle every fish gently and I've never witnessed any ill effects anywhere including my pond fish.

[BigAngus752]

I understand your logic and applaud your care and consideration, but you are aware that we  can kill and eat them?  Not trying to be a smart-aleck, but if I choose to lip a bass and keep it out of the water for 90 seconds to weigh and take a selfie, it's got a hella better chance than any walleye I catch. 

 

I'm not knocking what you choose to do in any way, I'm merely responding to your question.  And as for the "bath of fungi, bacteria, parasites, and viruses" they are living in the same water that I ski, swim, and drink and they are much better suited to surviving it than I am.  I guess what I'm saying is I just don't feel it's quite a dangerous for them as you feel it is.  God made us a hardy lot and he is infallible. 

 

Again, you are living your life according to your beliefs and I support it.  My wife loves it when I send her the big fish selfies.  She keeps a slideshow of them running on her work computer.  I'll be sending more.  

[Jar11591]

I try to be as delicate as possible, and always wet my hands before handling them. I have my camera set up and ready to go to only need a single button push to take a picture when I want one. I keep the process of unhooking and releasing as streamlined as possible. 

[Crow Horse]

From a NYS DEC fisheries biologist that I'm in communication with.....

 

".........any fish that loses its slime layer (for whatever reason) it is susceptible to infection."

[WRB]

Can’t land, weigh or measure any fish without “handling” it in some manner.

Mishandling a bass is letting the fish get over stressed by keeping it out of the water longer than a minute, letting the bass contact dry surfaces like boat carpet and nylon nets, putting the bass in a livewell etc.

Tom

[F14A-B]

I’ve caught fish that seemed to pour off “slime” and others that exhibited very little, it’s not really your talking point, but I always wondered why that was. 

[A-Jay]

Not judging how other bassheads do it,

I 'handle' the bass I catch but with as much care as I can.

Using a net, boga grip and a silicone mat to protect the fish (and my boat carpet) best I can. 

And despite my best efforts, I'd be foolish to think that all of them live through that deal.

Truth is, some die. 

But that's just part of it.

A-Jay

 

[Harold H]

You'll do way more damage cranking on their jaws imo. I love some Bill Dance but good Lord no telling how many bass jaws he's crippled the way he handles them. Smaller fish it's okay, but once they get over 3 lbs it's best to try and lift them straightup and not jack the jaw open. Once the jaw is injured it becomes difficult to feed. I've caught the same bass 3 times out of a pond so I know c&r works if done properly

[OkobojiEagle]

1 hour ago, Crow Horse said:

Like the title says, do you handle the fish you've caught?

of course...

[Crow Horse]

4 minutes ago, F14A-B said:

I’ve caught fish that seemed to pour off “slime” and others that exhibited very little, it’s not really your talking point, but I always wondered why that was. 

It might be something similar to slime coat syndrome, but I'm not sure how that would apply to LMB.

[Crow Horse]

2 hours ago, BigAngus752 said:

And as for the "bath of fungi, bacteria, parasites, and viruses" they are living in the same water that I ski, swim, and drink and they are much better suited to surviving it than I am. 

I don't believe that is a valid comparison. We don't ski and swim in the water 24/7 and certainly don't drink from it untreated. Our skin is the first line of defense and that can be compared to a fish's slime coat. If we had a wound in our skin and stayed in the water 24/7, there's a very good chance that the could become infected. I believe that the same possibility exists for fish with damaged slime coats.

To be clear, my method of handling fish is not practical to do from a boat. I'm in a yak and much closer to the water than one in a boat.

[Kev-mo]

I handle them as little as possible. Unfortunately for the fish, I sometimes need to handle them more than I like.

[MonsterZero]

3 hours ago, BigAngus752 said:

I understand your logic and applaud your care and consideration, but you are aware that we  can kill and eat them?  Not trying to be a smart-aleck, but if I choose to lip a bass and keep it out of the water for 90 seconds to weigh and take a selfie, it's got a hella better chance than any walleye I catch. 

 

I'm not knocking what you choose to do in any way, I'm merely responding to your question.  And as for the "bath of fungi, bacteria, parasites, and viruses" they are living in the same water that I ski, swim, and drink and they are much better suited to surviving it than I am.  I guess what I'm saying is I just don't feel it's quite a dangerous for them as you feel it is.  God made us a hardy lot and he is infallible. 

 

Again, you are living your life according to your beliefs and I support it.  My wife loves it when I send her the big fish selfies.  She keeps a slideshow of them running on her work computer.  I'll be sending more.  

That slime coat is part of what allows the fish to survive so well in such a hostile environment. If we remove that through careless handling, we are directly and considerably reducing that fish's chances of survival. This is documented and proven scientific fact that has been discussed to death.

 

Also, pretty sure religious stuff is specifically against forum rules, no? Plenty of other places for that sort of thing, let us keep it out of fishing.

 

OT: I handle them as little as possible. In a lot of places that I fish, handling them as you do would result in them banging against rocks, sand, dirt, etc. I get them unhooked quickly, a 'Thanks for playing,' and get them right back in the water. I do not even photograph my fish unless there is something special or unique about them.

[LootyDjibouti]

Going above and beyond what’s necessary imo but I’m sure those bass fight another day. 
 

- Rubberized net

- Wet ketch board before measuring

- Never place a bass on the ground

- Supporting bass’s weight if handling

- Release back in water asap

- Not letting bass “slide” through your hands on release (I have no data on this but I see it a lot and it seems like it could lead to a slime coat issue) 

 

I follow the above and I’d be surprised if these bass have a significant delayed mortality rate. 

[Pat Brown]

Only when I am able to land them successfully 🥹😂🤦🏼‍♂️

[GaryH]

After years of reading on this forum I have no doubt that the members handle and treat their catches in a professional and safest ways they can. And I do appreciate the extra effort that the op takes in his care of our resource.

[Lottabass]

Poor handling of fish is mistreatment.  I don't mistreat my dog and I don't mistreat my kids.  I have no problem killing and eating fish but if they are to be released do it the right way.

[Pat Brown]

5 minutes ago, Lottabass said:

Poor handling of fish is mistreatment.  I don't mistreat my dog and I don't mistreat my kids.  I have no problem killing and eating fish but if they are to be released do it the right way.

 

 

I mostly verbally abuse the fish I catch.  I call em small.  I tell em they are slow.  Tell em they need to get back out there and grow or they're toast etc.  Sometimes I say something unsavory about their family etc.  I'm not sure they speak English or not but I'm very hard on them emotionally.  Unless they're big girls - big girls get compliments.

[Crow Horse]

18 minutes ago, Pat Brown said:

 

 

I mostly verbally abuse the fish I catch.  I call em small.  I tell em they are slow.  Tell em they need to get back out there and grow or they're toast etc.  Sometimes I say something unsavory about their family etc.  I'm not sure they speak English or not but I'm very hard on them emotionally.  Unless they're big girls - big girls get compliments.

Dr. Emoto might disagree with your approach......😁

 

[BigAngus752]

10 hours ago, Crow Horse said:

I don't believe that is a valid comparison. We don't ski and swim in the water 24/7 and certainly don't drink from it untreated. Our skin is the first line of defense and that can be compared to a fish's slime coat. If we had a wound in our skin and stayed in the water 24/7, there's a very good chance that the could become infected. I believe that the same possibility exists for fish with damaged slime coats.

To be clear, my method of handling fish is not practical to do from a boat. I'm in a yak and much closer to the water than one in a boat.

 

8 hours ago, MonsterZero said:

That slime coat is part of what allows the fish to survive so well in such a hostile environment. If we remove that through careless handling, we are directly and considerably reducing that fish's chances of survival. This is documented and proven scientific fact that has been discussed to death.

 

Also, pretty sure religious stuff is specifically against forum rules, no? Plenty of other places for that sort of thing, let us keep it out of fishing.

 

OT: I handle them as little as possible. In a lot of places that I fish, handling them as you do would result in them banging against rocks, sand, dirt, etc. I get them unhooked quickly, a 'Thanks for playing,' and get them right back in the water. I do not even photograph my fish unless there is something special or unique about them.

Rereading everything I can see that it could be interpreted that I was downplaying the slime coat, which was not my intent.  My comment was merely on the quality of the water.  It's my opinion that when I touch the fish only in the mouth and only with one hand I am handling the fish more safely than anyone who uses any kind of net and I believe "science" supports this opinion, but I understand if you disagree.  Regardless, I am proud to know both of you and support your opinions.  The fact of the matter is that we are granted dominion over all manner of beasts and that is the law in every state of the Union.  Unfortunately, I see a significant percentage of fisherman who abuse that legal right and act without respect for fish, other fishermen, or the earth.  I hope you can understand that we (you, I, and everyone that has responded, I think) share the same principles and I hope you'll try to understand and respect the fact that we approach those ideologies differently.  We can't force others to practice catch and release because killing and eating these fish is both legally and morally acceptable.  Catch and release is not a higher moral ground.  It's only a personal opinion.  

[TnRiver46]

They regenerate their slime coat constantly 

[BigAngus752]

33 minutes ago, Pat Brown said:

 

 

I mostly verbally abuse the fish I catch.  I call em small.  I tell em they are slow.  Tell em they need to get back out there and grow or they're toast etc.  Sometimes I say something unsavory about their family etc.  I'm not sure they speak English or not but I'm very hard on them emotionally.  Unless they're big girls - big girls get compliments.

I reserve this only for catfish that make be believe for 3 seconds that I've caught my PB bass.  

2 minutes ago, TnRiver46 said:

They regenerate their slime coat constantly 

I know some people that do this.  

[ike8120]

I net when needed, must fish I handle with care for catch and release.

[DaubsNU1]

With LMB and SMB's, I generally "lip" them to get in the boat, and hold vertically while removing the hook. Try not to lay them in my boat on the carpet, and try not to touch too much. I do support under the belly and hold horizontally for a quick picture.

 

When I'm fishing locally, I generally do not have my net ready (it's a Frabill Hiber-net). 

 

If I hook in to a small-ish Pike or Walleye, I grab them behind the gills to land.

Or use the fish grip if needed.

 

Note: posted picture below on a FB Musky page, and got absolutely blasted for 1.) holding fish vertically, 2.) using the grip. ** the small Musky was released unharmed...and was quite grouchy on it's return to the water : ) **