Does anyone have any stats about how well gut hooked bass do when released? I have landed fish with hooks in their mouth but never a hook in their gut.

Thanks KL

I don't know what the stats are but when I have a gut hooked fish I cut the hook at the end of the leader, I don't try to get it out because I don't want to causeany more damage then nessacery. I always have a hundred hooks on hand. And then again I've never caught many fish with somebody's hook in it.

cut it and hope for the best...:( I dont know of any stats.....but I would like to think there is a chance....

I cut the leader at the mouth and put em back unless its a fish Im going to keep. I have been wondering about this for years and have never found an answer, well I gut hooked one the other night and reminded my self and figured Id ask. Thanks KL

Try using circle hooks, it's a little different hook set but effective with a lot less gut hooked fish. If you gut hook a keeper then you should keep it, thats the price you pay for bait fishing with regular hooks, give it away to someone who will eat it. If you gut hook a short fish you should cut the leader off inside the mouth so it does'nt get hung up. If your'e not in it for the meat but for the sport then try fooling them by plugging or jigging it's the sporting way to catch fish and minimal gut hooked fish to boot. I have never gut hooked a fish with a plug or a jig. just my .02 worth. I believe you had in your thread that this fish was not even gut hooked but hooked deep inside its mouth. Whats up with that?

The best thing is to cut the leader next to the hook the hook will desolve in a few weekes the bass will kick up acid some how and the hook will get eaton away from the acid in a few weekes thats why you should never use stainless hooks

I caught a 20lb 36" fish when I was cleaning it,, I opened the stomac to my surprize was a hook! the hook was incased with layers and layers of a film!!!!! like a cotton candy machine put it on!!,,natures way of protected it's stomac ?thats all I could think of, the only way I could tell it was a hook, I seen a small pice of monofiliment line about 1/2" long coming from the mass,when I unravaled the finding it was a gold color hook, it was at least size 1 odd xlg gap and was never going to pass,,, what ever nature provided for protection was amazing, to me,,, after seing that I have no problem cuting the line of a gut hooked fish

Many bass can survive getting hook in the gut. In any event they have a better shot in the water than in a cooler.

But if it's gill hooked and bleeding like a pig, and it's a legal fish, keep it. Otherwise, it's crab chow.

I caught my first fish (actually my daughter caught it) on a herring this weekend and it was gut hooked.

I was using circles and I've been using circles for eels the past two years with mixed results. I just ordered a different brand and style to see if it makes a difference.

I've heard so many reliable sources swear be circles, but I haven't seen the results.

Do the circle users out there let the fish run at all, or not. I'm livelining a herring or eels in a rod holder while fishing plastic in the rocks. I use the clicker or light drag to allow the fish to pick up the bait with no tension. Should I just leave the reel in gear?

When fishing eels from shore, I generally bow the rod then just reel... I gut hooked 2 of 3 hooked fish a night last fall.

We'll see how the new ones work.

There was a study in MD that showed 9.1% of hooked bass died with 3 days using a J hook (most of these were gut hooked)...

to me that means more then 90% survived.

It was a J vs Circle hook comparison study...0.8% of the bass died within 3 days after being released with a circle.

Most circles don't gut hook. I only use them now and then...I know some guys who love them and some who hate them. I need to try them more often with eels.

I usually examine the stomach contents, when cleaning a fish, to see what they've been ordering off the menu. I have found hooks half a dozen times, usually encrusted as decribed above. Once there was a 6" piece of mono hanging out that the fish had been trying to pass. If gut hookedand bleeding, I keep it. That goes for the extremely rare schoolie too, like it or not, IF the fish isn't going to make it, due to excess bleeding, I will make sure it goes on someone's dinner table. Don't want to do it, but it does happen if you fish enough. (Bet that'll get set someone off)