Does Just Handling Fish Damage Them?

maceo · Oct 21, 2012

I'm not sure if I understood the Keith Arthur article in AT this week correctly or not, but he seemed to be saying that through his own experiences of catching live bait for later use, just touching a fish damages it sometimes mortally.

I don't see how you can really unhook a fish without holding it.

This can't be right can it? Surely there would have been more information about it if it were true? Why don't those carp that get caught all the time die?

Did anyone else read the article or have any more info about this?

I'd hate to think I was putting a death sentence on even a small proportion of the fish I catch.

sam vimes · Oct 21, 2012

Damage is far too strong a word for it, particularly when coupled with the word fatally. Really bad handling can certainly damage fish, sometimes fatally. However, proper handling should barely register beyond a fractional loss of mucus (slime) covering.

barbelboi · Oct 21, 2012

IMO handling a fish with wet hands does very little harm. To put it into prospective they even have scale samples taken off them after getting 3 amps up the ar$e, being netted from the water, plonked into an aerated tub, transferred from there to another tub, netted out of there and measured before being dropped into another tub and live to fight another day. Playing a fish badly can probably do far more harm to them.
Jerry

noknot · Oct 21, 2012

Wet hands, wet mat, NO dry towels, job done!

tiinker · Oct 21, 2012

It is more a case of the least handling the better and making sure your hands are wet helps. Fish can be unhooked in the net without touching them. I have seen experienced trout anglers unhook trout using the tip eye of their rod as a disgorger so that they do not touch the fish . I think in truth nobody realy knows how many fish die from carefull handling but I think it is very low if it were not there would soon not be many fish to catch and there is little doubt that bad handling will kill fish. you just have to be as carefull as you can. Just remember people like Keith Arthur are there to create controversy so take what they say with a pinch of salt.

bennygesserit · Oct 21, 2012

barbelboi said:
IMO handling a fish with wet hands does very little harm. To put it into prospective they even have scale samples taken off them after getting 3 amps up the ar$e, being netted from the water, plonked into an aerated tub, transferred from there to another tub, netted out of there and measured before being dropped into another tub and live to fight another day. Playing a fish badly can probably do far more harm to them.
Jerry

When I went mackerel fishing in Toquay the guide told us to shake them off the hook if we didn't want to keep them as even a single touch would prove fatal , not maybe right away but in a few days.

The topic of playing badly is being debated on gofishing at the mo , I assume you mean playing for too long ?

barbelboi · Oct 21, 2012

Interesting about the trout anglers using their rod tips as a disgorger tinker - If you tried that with a match rod and a lively fish you probably have a tip 4" shorter and an extra disgorger for your collection.

Jerry

tiinker · Oct 21, 2012

It can be done just as easily to a trout rod that is the reason I do not do it myself I use a american tube release to be on the safe side plus the fact it can only be done with no terminal tackle on the line possible when free lining but would not fancy it myself.

noknot · Oct 21, 2012

I think Jerry's point, is that "hard" playing of fish "Carp" come to mind, with over gunned powerful rods, and little experience causes servear mouth dammage.

barbelboi · Oct 21, 2012

noknot said:
I think Jerry's point, is that "hard" playing of fish "Carp" come to mind, with over gunned powerful rods, and little experience causes servear mouth dammage.

Thank's Kev, (just back on line and noticed the question) yes exactly that plus the ones that seem incapable of playing a fish, afraid to put a bend in a rod, and let the fish run round in circles for ages.
Jerry

tiinker · Oct 21, 2012

I think the people that underplay fish in the way you say, frightened to put a bend in the rod are as bad as the people that bully fish unnecessarly why either cannot use common sense is beyond me. both damge fish but under playing a fish can be fatal if the fish is not cared for till it fully recovers and a lot do not realise how long this can take. Up to forty five minutes in extreme cases in my own experience.

Titus · Oct 21, 2012

I must admit I too was a little surprised at Keith Arthurs comments, particularly as he comes from a match background where the same fish are caught week in week out. If his observations were true surely we should expect to see the margins of all the popular match waters thick with corpses.

Philip · Oct 21, 2012

Perhaps its best not to lose sight of the fact the only reason we anglers need to handle them in the first place is to remove the Hook we have just purposely yanked into its mouth.

If anyones that concerned about it then perhaps they should give up fishing ?

bennygesserit · Oct 21, 2012

Philip said:
Perhaps its best not to lose sight of the fact the only reason we anglers need to handle them in the first place is to remove the Hook we have just purposely yanked into its mouth.

If anyones that concerned about it then perhaps they should give up fishing ?

Yes but it doesn't hurt to be open minded and improve ones handling of live fish , also examination of these issues only serves to educate new and younger anglers.

terry m · Oct 21, 2012

Titus said:
I must admit I too was a little surprised at Keith Arthurs comments, particularly as he comes from a match background where the same fish are caught week in week out. If his observations were true surely we should expect to see the margins of all the popular match waters thick with corpses.

Completely agree.

And add to that Keith Arthur is happy to jam countless fish in a keepnet so that he can tip them all back at the end of the day tells me that he is a hypocrite.

guest61 · Oct 21, 2012

Philip said:
Perhaps its best not to lose sight of the fact the only reason we anglers need to handle them in the first place is to remove the Hook we have just purposely yanked into its mouth.

If anyones that concerned about it then perhaps they should give up fishing ?

Fair comment. I take full responsibility of my actions - but still try to handle fish as little as possible.

Philip · Oct 21, 2012

bennygesserit said:
Yes but it doesn't hurt to be open minded and improve ones handling of live fish , also examination of these issues only serves to educate new and younger anglers.

In my opinion Benny the best education we can give to young anglers coming into the sport is to stop apologizing for what we do. Of course its our duty to treat them with respect but we will never ever convince non anglers that fishing is “nice” for fish so lets stop pretending it is.

Thats the only way to really protect angling.

bennygesserit · Oct 21, 2012

Philip said:
In my opinion Benny the best education we can give to young anglers coming into the sport is to stop apologizing for what we do. Of course its our duty to treat them with respect but we will never ever convince non anglers that fishing is “nice” for fish so lets stop pretending it is.

Thats the only way to really protect angling.

I fully accept what angling is about but I have seen lots of anglers on canals holding fish in dry and dirty cloths as they believe this protects the fish , I think its "nice" to think that someone else might have a chance to catch that fish.

You are right if I was squeamish about what fishing is I wouldn't do it but its seems churlish to harm fish any more than necessary.

Philip · Oct 21, 2012

bennygesserit said:
I fully accept what angling is about but I have seen lots of anglers on canals holding fish in dry and dirty cloths as they believe this protects the fish , I think its "nice" to think that someone else might have a chance to catch that fish.

You are right if I was squeamish about what fishing is I wouldn't do it but its seems churlish to harm fish any more than necessary.

True and it is amazing some anglers cant see to get their head round the concept that a fish lives in water and therefore really should be kept wet !

chub_on_the_block · Oct 21, 2012

In general handling does little damage - unless dry rough hands/dry towel/dropping fish ..all obvious stuff. Some fish are much more sensitive to handling than others though - bleak lose scales very easily whereas tench would be at the opposite end of the scale (no pun intended). As for time out of water, most silver fish, barbel and salmonids dont like it at all, whereas tench and carp are pretty relaxed about it as long as they are kept wet. These fish are adapted to live in shallow warm water and can probably survive for days in wet mud.

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