Humane way to keep your catch

[jethro]

This is how it's done.

That actually did look very quick. The fish didn't even move afterwards.

[bigredonice]

Not really sure why there's people making a mockery out of this thread... I also feel bad leaving a fish to slowly die on the ice. Do as others have suggested and bleed them out, or practice swift catch and release.  Most people on this site are also hunters, so tell me... Don't responsible hunters take the quickest, most ethical shots to ensure a kill and that the animal doesn't suffer more than necessary? It all boils down to respect for your quarry. InB4 PETA. Comments...

unfortunately that doesn't apply here at all.   Like not even close.  A hunter/bow fisher/spear fisher captures his quarry with a KILL shot.  End of story.   

You however, are capturing the quarry by tricking it into biting a sharp metal object that then pierces the fish's mouth, and you then pull the fish's entire body weight against said hook.    You then pull that fish out of the water, slowly suffocating it.    That would be like a hunter catching deer with apples...baited with a treble hook...or better yet, imagine the comparison to using minnows.   It would be like using a bear cub struggling against a hook through its face to try and entice a bigger bear to eat it.  That is real life.  That is what we are doing. It doesn't bother me in the slightest.  I'm a predator.  I accept it. 

[TheThinIce]

This is how it's done.

Good video, wonder how difficult that might be on a fish much larger than that one?

[husb0023]

We are talking about fish here, FISH!  It is my opinion they are vaguely even aware that they are on the ice.   I wonder how the fish in a pike's belly "feels" as they are slowly dissolved alive by stomach acids.   I wonder how all the fisherman from the beginning of the oceans until the modern era felt about fish "feelings".  Can you picture some 18th century Norwegian fisherman standing on the bow of a boat and bludgeoning every lingcod to death before putting it in the hold.

By all means, bang that fish head on the ice after you catch it.  Don't get offended as I laugh at you.

[Idahogator]

   Are you up to a bit of science ?     Never go past a word misunderstood, look it up and get it defined.

Neuroanatomy

Nociception is the unconscious detection by the nervous system that damage is occurring somewhere. Nociceptors are sensory receptors that respond to potentially damaging stimuli by sending nerve signals to the spinal cord and brain. In 2003 Lynne Sneddon was able to demonstrate the presence of nociceptors on the face and snout of the trout.[30] The receptors responded to touch, heat and chemical stimulation by sending an electrical signal through the trigeminal nerve to the brain.[31] However, Rose et al. (2013) [20] point out that a typical human cutaneous nerve contains 83% C type trauma receptors (the type responsible for excruciating pain in humans), but the same nerves in people with congenital insensitivity to pain only have 24-28% C type fibres. Sneddon showed that rainbow trout on the other hand have only around 5% C type fibres, while sharks and rays have 0% [32] The absence of C type fibres indicates that signalling leading to pain perception is likely to be impossible for sharks and rays, and the low numbers (5% C fibres) suggest this is also highly unlikely for fish (Rose et al. 2013). From this, Rose et al (2013) concluded there is scant evidence that sharks and rays possess the nociceptors required to initiate pain detection in the brain, and fish are evolutionarily little more advanced than sharks in this respect. Rose et al (2013) concluded that sharks and bony fish have survived well in an evolutionary sense without the full range of nociception typical of humans or other mammals, probably because it would otherwise be disadvantageous to their survival in the aquatic environment.[20]


 Ref. link :  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pain_in_fish

[Spider1]

idahogator, I read something like that several years ago. Basically, it means mammals feel pain and fish don't. They can tell that somethings wrong but it doesn't feel like pain. It makes them try to get away, that's all. And it's an instinctive reaction, they aren't scared. their central nervous system is too rudimentary for that kind of understanding. They just know they need to get away with what it is that is pulling on there face. They aren't deer. They aren't rabbits. They are fish. The only reason I whack them out is cuz it bothers me when they flop around on the ice.

[rgfixit]

This separates us from the other species in this world. It's as unique to humankind as self awareness. A sense of self and the accompanying "feelings" of pain, joy, horror, anger. love etc. are HUMAN attributes. Those who apply human attributes to other species are mislead at best. Empathy too, is part of our psyche. We "feel' for the perceived suffering of other species because we are human. Therefore, do what you think is best for you!

RG

[1moslab]

guys I was just down checking on my bait before going out tomorrow and I had a few floaters.i would like everyone to join me in a moment of silence to grieve please.if you would like to say a few kind words that would be appreciated,thank you

[kylerprochaska]

On the ice when I keep... Im not worried about what my food thinks of me

[Idahogator]

   From reply 16:

                                        This can now be called a joke thread.       

A bit slow to catch on, but, gaining acceptance.     

[Rather-B-Fishin]

 

[Creek Chub]

"unfortunately that doesn't apply here at all.   Like not even close.  A hunter/bow fisher/spear fisher captures his quarry with a KILL shot.  End of story.   

You however, are capturing the quarry by tricking it into biting a sharp metal object that then pierces the fish's mouth, and you then pull the fish's entire body weight against said hook.    You then pull that fish out of the water, slowly suffocating it.    That would be like a hunter catching deer with apples...baited with a treble hook...or better yet, imagine the comparison to using minnows.   It would be like using a bear cub struggling against a hook through its face to try and entice a bigger bear to eat it.  That is real life.  That is what we are doing. It doesn't bother me in the slightest.  I'm a predator.  I accept it"

How does it not apply? Of course hunting/spearfishing and ice fishing are different... Last time I checked you can't shoot a fish through the ice. The manner of catching through the ice involves what you suggested, but I see no good reason to let a caught fish, intended to be kept for consumption, to be left flopping on the ice for hours. You can nitpick this all day if it makes you happy. The question presented was "is there a more humane way to do this", and there is. Whether or not you think it's necessary or choose to do it however is up to you.

[FishADK]

Saw some brand new axes at the hardware store today....Hmmm....

I really could care less about leaving fish to suffocate. But people are what you need to worry about. Ever notice how people look  when they see you with a few fish on the ice? For a few seconds they might have full adoration for you. Then they go right back to thinking and next thing you know your favorite secret spot has been turned into the newest party spot! I always keep my fish hidden from the prying eyes.

[JOHN044]

REALLLLLY.. I just saw this thread...Ive thrown fish back after freezing them to see if they soften up and swim
away. THEY DO! if they are perch.  If it truly bothers you to see the fish on the ice to the point that you feel it
necessary to speak your mind to change others behaviors I have to ask...Are you by any chance a Cuomo??

[JiggerMan]

" aint that the truth lol

or a trapper 

[fishville]

Dispatch them quickly if you are keeping fish. The longer they suffer the more Lactic Acid builds up affecting the taste. I can't understand why anyone would choose to make another living creature suffer needlessly.

[bullpine]

I like to AIR BOARD my fish as a means of finding out all I can about the school.  You need to put their heads back into the hole and then pull them out again repeatedly while you interrogate them by asking question about the school> like how many, how big, what do they like to eat and where do they like to hang out.  It helps to have an underwater camera for reading the fishes lips as he answers your questions in the hole.  If the fish answer all your questions truthfully then you can quickly dispatch the fish for dinner later in the day or release him or her unharmed but wiser back into the wild. 

[bigal409]

We make a sort of livewell by drilling a series of holes but not completely thru the ice. Just enough to puncture a hole so that it fills with water and the fish can't escape. 

[Rebelfisher]

We are talking about fish here, FISH!  It is my opinion they are vaguely even aware that they are on the ice.   I wonder how the fish in a pike's belly "feels" as they are slowly dissolved alive by stomach acids.   I wonder how all the fisherman from the beginning of the oceans until the modern era felt about fish "feelings".  Can you picture some 18th century Norwegian fisherman standing on the bow of a boat and bludgeoning every lingcod to death before putting it in the hold.

By all means, bang that fish head on the ice after you catch it.  Don't get offended as I laugh at you.

Exactly!

Wow...do you cry at night after a day of tip up fishing after you insert that laser sharp treble hook into an unsuspected minnows dorsal fin? Sometimes I can't believe some of the comments guys make...next we'll be talking about hurting the fish's feelings or offending it. Holy crap!!!

[Spider1]

REALLLLLY.. I just saw this thread...Ive thrown fish back after freezing them to see if they soften up and swim away. THEY DO! if they are perch.

 

You do know that just because a fish swims away doesn't mean it will survive. Especially if it's been on the ice a long time. If you throw a frozen or partially frozen fish back in the water, it will most likely just finish dying. Seems pretty wasteful to me. I would rather see a fish flop around on the ice for 5 hours than to throw fish back in that has been on the ice long enough to freeze. jmho

[Super-ice-bird]

Exactly!

Wow...do you cry at night after a day of tip up fishing after you insert that laser sharp treble hook into an unsuspected minnows dorsal fin? Sometimes I can't believe some of the comments guys make...next we'll be talking about hurting the fish's feelings or offending it. Holy crap!!!

bahahaha

[DFresh75]

I was taught to pinch barbs down too, I suppose that means I'm a true member of PETA?  I won't ever apologize for what I was taught by the only mans opinion that mattered to me which was my dad.  Plain and simple.

[ineptflux]

I was taught to pinch barbs down too, I suppose that means I'm a true member of PETA?  I won't ever apologize for what I was taught by the only mans opinion that mattered to me which was my dad.  Plain and simple.

Barbs are just a tool for people who don't keep their lines tight, lol! 

[DFresh75]

Oh I've drank my fair share of Mr Jack Daniels for not keeping my lines tight...

[salmonrebel]

WOW?!!!... ...What truely amazes me these days, is that...
so many people in this country are drinking the cult kool-aid!
Wake up, people! An come back to reality!...
Go fishing and hunting. ...Kill it!...and Grill it! ...Mankind's been doing it for as long as
we've been in existance. Doesn't get more... HUMANe!, than that!

WHACK 'EM!!!...AN...STACK 'EM!!!