If you gut hook a fish is it best to

A. cut the line leave it too rust out

B.Try to remove it

C. Keep it, it would die anyway

Depends...is it bleeding heavily? If so and it is a keeper.....save it for the table.;) If no blood and a tough job of removing the hook lies ahead.....cut the line as close to the hook as possible and release.:D Between the saltwater and the digestive enzimes in the fish....the hook will come out in no time!:happy:

I was told cut it, & it will rust out.

IMHO I really don't think so. I have had fish gut hooked. I'll chalk it up & keep it, clean the fish and repo the hook. I'll put the hook in my hook binder for a couple of days & when I go to retrieve it it'll show little rust or minimal corrosion.

So that leads me to believe that the hooks I use need more than just salt water to rot out. I think that it oxidizing will help in the break down of the metal.
I don't think that it is that cut & dry for a hook to break down in the throat of a fish, not to mention that how thick the diameter of the hook is it it'll take longer to break down.
The fish has got to eat & if it's got a hook lodged in it's hatch it's gotta be friggin tender there & how much do you think it's gonna eat?????My bet it'll be next to nada So no food for what ever time frame it takes for that hook to burn out. & don't forget it's on an empty stomach.....Man that's gotta suck.
No Im not a tree hugger but come on & think about it.it's a pice of hight grade steel.

Hey how many licks does it take to get to the center of a totsee pop? I'll bet the same time it takes to burn through a 5/0 Gamakatsu!

5/0

use circle hooks and you wont have that problem when the fish takes you bait let them run to the count of 10 and start reeling 99% of the time the hooks right in the corner of the mouth. in a study circle hooks caught more fish than standard J hooks

Did you ever notice your hooks only really start rusting heavily once you have had a fish on them?:confused: That is the digestive enzimes from the fish going to work on those hooks....so imagine how quicly a hook will rust out after it has been submerged in saltwater and enzimes for an extended period!:huh: I am not saying that all fished hooked and released in such a way will survive, and I do agree with you....might as well keep a fish that is hooked in such a way!;) I do however believe you need to use common sense in such a situation. It does not happen to me that often but when it does, I would like to give that fish every opportunity to survive and thrive....and if I believe that that fish will not make it...into the freezer he goes as I hate waste more than anything!:D

I have caught many fish with the remains of a hook stuck in their gut and from what I have seen they will break down over time. I tie my own and one nite I lost a fish, 30min later hooked up and landed a keeper with my hook in its mouth, What are the odds of that???

I cut the leader as close as I can and turn them loose unless the are in bad shape.

KL

Its best to cut the line and let the fish go. I've seen fish trailing 3 ft of mono encrusted with weed and barnacles. The fish were otherwise fine. I've gut hooked fish with circle hooks as well. I prefer a standard octopus hook myself.

my schoolie yesterday managed to swing the treble hook so that one point went in the eye socket right beside the eye. the second point was through his face and the third was in the mouth and through the cheek

all that on one treble hook!!

I almost took him home the damn hook was so well lodged.
I ended up crushing the barbs on two points. And once he calmed down (would you have calmed down?) I was able to manipulate the hook so that the point at his eye could come out. I then slid the other two out.

he was so over joyed that he came back to life (more like last gasp starting to suffocate) I helped him into the water and he went got his "breath" and then headed back down into the depths of the canal.


- talking to my son on the drive home about keeper size limits and such I got to thinking some more.

0) taking of largest fish has been proven to effect the overall size that the population will grow/mature at.
1) there are thousands of eggs released by one female.
2) There are proportionately less fish of a given size as they get older/larger
3) the mortality rate of a larger fish is less than a small fish.

Given the 2 fish creel limit, Wouldnt it make more sense to have a maximum size and not a minimum size?

Circle hooks are no good with eels though , no?

I did well with circles and eels all year long till this past weekend. Dropped 5 fish at the dish. I was so pissed, i would have put a J hook on if i had one. Only had one gut hooked striper all year on a circle, i just cut it close, im sure the fish is fine now. It was weird, she was 27 inches but didnt fight at all, i am thinkin she didnt fight because it was pulling her innards out.

the problem with some guys is it takes them awhile get used to letting the fish run to the count of 10 and start reeling so they write off circle hooks as no good

Kl the odd of catching that fish twice are staggering. Not as much as the Space Shuttle landing in my driveway but pretty damm close:shocked: Not to mention I have never caught a bass with a hook or lure in it's mouth,other than my hook that is.Example:(someone eles hook/lure)
IM sure it's not uncommon to have these findings.

About the gut hook thing, there's gotta be a case study some where. Come on, some University must have spent our well earned tax millions on an important study such as this. No?

5/0

Originally posted by CANAL RAT
the problem with some guys is it takes them awhile get used to letting the fish run to the count of 10 and start reeling so they write off circle hooks as no good


I disagree RAT....the problem with some guys is that they don't mind if the fish catches itself.....I want to be the one driving that hook into it's jaw. What's the fun in "letting the fish run.....and then start reeling" ???....:rolleyes:

To each their own -

I distrust circles... too often they just lodge in the back of the throat, then when they open the mouth... bye bye bassyy... 7/0 or 8/0 Gami Octopus works great....
B