“ Stop that! You are hurting that fish”…… “ What? I just released it “….. “ Yeah…but you didn’t do it right! “

This seems to be an issue that is growing more and more recently. What people have been doing their entire lives is now in question. Really??  Why all of a sudden is the common fisherman a bad guy because of the way a fish is handled? It is getting a little out of hand, and I would like to clarify, and point out a few things.

Let’s start small….with panfish and bass for example. Ever since fishing shows have been on television,  we have been watching the pros pull a fish in, and the first thing they do is grab the fish by the lower lip in order to get a good hold on the fish. With almost all of them….especially the bass shows…they grab the lower lip and hold the fish’s mouth wide open in order to get the hooks out, and then show off the fish. Then the fish is released, or put in the livewell. Pretty simple stuff. And there was never an issue with it. Evidently, and I am not sure where it started, this has changed.

Now, according to the new ghost rules, you can still grab the fish by the lower lip…but you cannot spread the mouth open…..like they still do on every modern bass show on TV. And…you have to hold the fish with two hands, supporting the weight of the fish under the belly,…using a horizontal hold….never a vertical hold. Again …Really??   Since when have you ever seen someone pull a fish out of the water horizontally? It does not happen!  Every fish is hoisted in vertically, and the lower lip is grabbed,…and the fish is held with one hand. Only in the case of the true whoppers do you see a two handed, horizontal hold,…and that is more for showing off the fish for the cameras.

In the case of the bass, when you grab the lip and hold the mouth open, the fish almost always will quit struggling as hard, and let you get to the business at hand. It is like a partial, momentary paralysis…that seems to suit the situation well. The fish is not thrashing about, flopping out of control and out of the hand, damaging itself any further. You get the hooks taken care of and when the fish is released, it swims away with gusto! Obviously unharmed! This pretty much applies to the smaller panfish like bluegills and crappies, too.

What seems to be the issue with this new popularized thinking, is that the fish is being hurt by this hold…and the vertical hold forces gravity to pull the guts down, harming the fish. Personally…especially in the case of bass,…I have never seen evidence of this hurting the fish, …unless the fish is held like that for an extremely extended period of time. But in that case….it is worse for the fish to be out of water for that long! With bass…it is a weight issue, since bass can get to be pretty large. Again though…the fish are only held like this for a short time. In the case of bluegills and crappies…they do not have the body mass to make this an issue at all. And then….all the television shows are still doing things the same as they always have!  So what are we supposed to think??  I have seen fish dropped…flopping all over the ground until someone could grab them again…and put back in the water very much alive and well. Since when does everyone need to be a professional fish handler? What happened to going out and fishing for the fun of it…no matter what happens? It is supposed to be a fun sport and an adventure! And truthfully….I have never seen one of these “ perfect fishermen “ that seem to do nothing but  blast others on the internet. There is no such thing! There is also another good point to be made here…..

Fish do not have the same nervous systems that mammals do…and they do not feel pain on the same levels. They have limited pain sensations…and that is a blessing in their design by the Grand Maker of All Things! Fish are a food source animal, and always have been. Even biblically, you never saw references to a fish ” being hurt “…..and there are many references to fishermen and eating fish! This idea of “ hurting the fish “ is strictly modern thinking in most cases. If the fish are being harvested for food…the “ hurting “ issue becomes a dead point to make! However…fishing for sport…for larger fish that will be released…is a slightly different matter.

It is great to see a very happy fisherman showing off a picture of his proud catch to his friends,.. but with social media, that has changed, too. Now, when a happy fisherman posts a pic of a great catch, there can be some serious fall-out in the comments. People complaining that the fish is not being held properly, or it was handled too roughly, or for too long…. The list is crazy!!  And why take the joy out of the fisherman? He should by all means be able to be happy with his catch!!  I have left a few social groups on the internet because of these “ joy stealers “ trying to spoil what should be fun for all fishermen! Not because of my own pics ( we will get to that ),.. But because these comments can lead to extreme and nasty discussions on what should be a happy post. I feel bad for the people that have had to put up with the ridicule. This holds true for people with catches of all kinds…but there seems to be a particular group of fishermen that have some very outspoken views.

I have been a pike fisherman my entire life, and added muskies to that many years ago. There was a time when people ate a lot of muskies! In some places and cultures…they can still be found on the dinner table. In most cases this has changed…and the musky is regarded as a highly prized sport fish. It is one of the most difficult fish to catch here in the States. They are called the fish of 10,000 casts for a very good reason. They are an apex predator that can grow to be huge! This has made for a group of hardcore fishermen that target this amazing fish. It used to be that any musky caught was a good catch…and everyone would marvel at this awesome beast. Many would be released…but many would also be taken to be put on a wall in someone’s den. In modern times, that thinking has changed , and it is the proper thing to put them all back in the water again. If you want one on the wall…you get a replica made. There is nothing wrong with the basic thoughts here…..but it has been taken to the extremes lately, and it is getting down right silly and sad.

I see many pics of some beautiful fish caught and released ,…unharmed and healthy,…and then see the comments from others on how they are holding the fish wrong.   Yes… there is a proper way to hold a musky that is easier on the fish…but it is not always so easy to be “perfect”. A musky can be a very large fish…and when holding one…it is best for the fish to be held horizontally with one hand up into the holding spot under the gill plate, and the other hand supporting the weight of the fish under the belly or back by the anal vent. But things do not always fit that perfect mold. People get excited…things happen…and not everything can be perfect every time. Many pics are with a vertical hold, using one hand, and this is an open sore for many musky fishermen,…regardless of whether they know the circumstances or not.

Recently, I posted a pic of a musky just shy of 50 inches. Big fish! I was very happy to catch it!!  It was caught on the river, and when the fish was hooked, my net was a little too far away for me to get at it. I could have gone for the net, but would have had to let the fish fight for much longer, and the fish would have been dragged through some nasty rocks. The best choice for the fish was to land it right away, with no damage done. The fight was very short, and the fish was landed by hand within seconds. The fish was still green and very active. That is a lot of fish to try and get under control without a net!  Wanting a picture of this giant beast, I held the fish safely with one hand as I quickly took a couple pics with the other. The fish was only out of the water for a minute or two…and was released unharmed and very healthy! It was awesome!

Keep in mind that this fish was caught from shore, on the bank of a river, with no net close by. So when the pics were taken…there were a few leaves stuck to the fish. If they would have been wiped off…this would have also wiped off the slime coat of the fish…not what you want to do! When the pics were posted…there were many very nice comments about the catch,…and then the “ joy stealers “ chimed in about how the fish was covered with rocks and gravel….which was not true. Leaves!  I was not only scolded about the leaves…but also that it was landed by hand.  Seriously….the intense situation was dealt with in a very good manner, and again….the fish was released unharmed! What more could be asked for?

The main idea with these people is that any little bit of roughness will kill these fish. NOT TRUE!! These are a huge predator…and they don’t get to be over 40 pounds by being a delicate little flower of the fish world. In the river..these fish are constantly exposed to rough situations. During the spawn…they scar and tear each other up every year! Many of the fish caught have large scars on them….and guess what? They survived!! Catch and release works…and some of these fish have been caught before, and I am pretty sure, will be caught again!

With all of this being said…let’s not get too sensitive about the feelings of the fish. That will take the joy right out of the sport. If we have to worry that much about the fish…then why should we fish at all? I mean..really..we are trying to get a fish to eat an object covered with sharp hooks. That in itself is not in the best interest of the fish…is it??   Relax people!! As long as you are not deliberately trying to do damage to them… just handle them the best as you can under the circumstances…and all will be well!!  Enjoy the sport for what it is! And be free to enjoy the fish that you catch!!   Good luck on the water to everyone!!