IceShanty.com's Ice Fishing Community
IceShanty Main => General Ice Fishing Chit Chat => Topic started by: _colorado on Nov 17, 2010, 05:25 PM
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Waterdogs (tiger salamanders) are a favorite of pike but they are a major pain to rig. I've just used a large treble hook in the back, maybe get two of the hooks to pierce the skin. Then I tie a stinger hook to the tail.
The problem is that waterdogs are so jello-like that the hooks come out easily and I end up almost killing them instantly.
For 2010 I'm thinking about using a #10 bait hook through the lower lip and run a stinger treble hook to the tail. It seems like they would stay alive a lot longer if I did it this way.
Any other ideas or alternate riggings? Also, is it possible to cast them in open water without killing them?
Thanks!
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Protected species in MN. ;D
Not sure about those mudpuppies though.
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new law in ny no salamanders (waterdog or mudpuppy) can be used but we used rubber bands to hold hooks on frogs and salamanders under their armpits when it was legal . my question is how much action can a waterdog muster under the ice?
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Protected in Ma. too...
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You could try a sucker harness for spearing. you would have to attach a single hook or a treble hook to it with an o ring, but I am sure it would work. Just run the pin through the skin on the back. I never tried it because it is not permitted here.
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Waterdogs swim very nicely under the ice. I've had one or two last all day (says a lot about how few pike we have in Colorado!).
I like the rubber band idea because it seems like they would swim even better without being hooked.
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They are protected here in Sask also, but I bet you could get one to stay on the hook if you put an elastic band around the middle of the waterdog and then hook your treble or single hook through the elastic band. The hook would be free to stick the fish and the waterdog would not injured and should move around for you.
That is how I attach most of my frozen smelts to the hooks. ;)
WW
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you can order them online they arent to bad a price considering a 10"+ sucker can run $1.50 or more each
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They are legal bait in Colorado and can even be used at high altitude. Colorado has restrictions on the use of live baitfish (minnows, etc) above 7000' on the eastern side of the continental divide and none at all on the western side of the continental divide. There are plenty of bait shops along the Front Range that carry waterdogs. Typically they are $2 apiece. I have some that I've kept alive for a month already just waiting for some ice to get to the pike. When they suspend about 3-4' below the hole they drive the pike nuts.