Bleeding Fish

[thedude1534]

As much as many anglers want not to hurt fish, I'm sure many of you have encountered bleeding fish when removing the hook. I use barbless hooks, which I think helps a great deal, but it still happens from time to time. Usually its if I happen to foul-hook them in the gillplate or body, but other times it happens on a normal hook-up deeper in the mouth (like if a fish takes a dry really hard). I was wondering from the fish experts out there if this is a certain death sentance, or if there are any steps you can take when releasing them which can aid their survival.

I would assume that since they are small and cold blooded, they don't have much blood to let out, and any bleeding would be critical. However, I'm not a biologist, so I really have no idea.....

 

[Maurice]

thedude1534 wrote:
..... However, I'm not a biologist, so I really have no idea.....

Well that never stopped me in the past. My understanding goes something like this. If they are hooked on the tongue pad or gills and bleed profusely, they will die because the bleeding won't stop. that said, I will still let them go unless they are steelhead or am planning to take fish home anyway. Or if I have a use for them like a firend or neighbor who will eat them. To me it is a nusiance to deal with them after deciding to keep them.

Maurice

 

[JackM]

Like Maurice, I will release fish no matter how damaged. They are just as dead in the freezer as they are in the creek. Racoons and herrons have to eat, too. My understanding is that bleeding is not necessarily a death sentence, but the prognosis is not good. I have caught some spunky fish with evidence of previous significant injury.

 

[Fredrick]

I get really upset when I gut hook a fish it makes me almost want to stop fishing and go home. It really hasn't happen to me to much with trout but alot more with smallies. :-(

 

[Chaz]

Recently I hooked and release a fish that didn't bleed and I got it off the hook quickly and into the 60 degree water but it still died. I saw a few minutes later baring moving and laying on its back, it happens you feel bad but there's nothing you can do.
I don't all bleeding fish die, I've released quite a few over the years and they simply swim off witht the same energy as fish that aren't bleeding. I try to use a little more care on bleeding fish that's about all.
How do you gut hook a fish using flies?

 

[Fredrick]

I consider anything thats hooked past the mouth a gut hook or a bad hook set (sorry next time I will be more descriptive) . Alot times they hit it with such force that they swalow the hole thing in a instance leading to a bad hook set :-(

 

[Padraic]

I've had that happen.

What I do is clip the fly off, even it if is a barbless hook. Then I release the fish. The fish may not have a great chance of surviving, but it does have a chance.

 

[SlumpBuster]

There is nothing you can really do if it is hooked in the gills. They'll probably die. But I was involved in a study where it was shown that all artifical lures have low mortality rates. It is only with bait that the mortality rate jumps to a much higher rate. So as far as I know spin fisherman kill just as few fish as fly fisherman as long as they don;t use bait.

 

[Chaz]

Fred,
I was wondering because the only times I deep hook trout with a dry fly is when I'm fishing ants on a brookie stream. So I don't use them there. I tend to use bigger flies then most anglers on brookie streams that way I avoid small fish, because they can't swallow the fly. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I never fished for trout with anything but flies.

 

[jazz]

I have been fishing for 60+ years,in that time I have used many methods but now I am mostly a fly guy.
If a fish is hooked in the gills it is going to die 90% of the time.Also,if you fight a trout in warm water too long,it will most likely die even if it swims off like nothing happened.So try not to fish over stressed fish and wait for cooler water.
As far as gut hooked fish,those that are down in the gullet,I can't tell you how many times in past years I caught fish with a leader hanging out of its mouth.If you cut your line and don't try to remove the hook they can survive to fight another day.