So..you have your monster next to shore or next to the boat…now what? Just reach in a grab him by the mouth or use the net?
The net damages the slim layer but gives the fish support. Lipping them doesn’t bother the slim…as long as the fish stays off the floor, but what about all the weight hanging off the jaw?
Don’t know the answer…
i dunno about u brian, but after i lip em, I always cradle them, supporting their weight with my forarm while keeping my hand in the mouth for control. Now that i think of it, I am also removing some slime coating. but if your gonna catch photo release I just dont see the purpose of the net, just adds a extra step and keeps the fish out of the water longer. quick grab, hold and smile for the pic, little kiss on the forehead and let them go. kinda why i got kicked out of disney land once 
CA
I do not target flatheads but I do seem to catch several nice ones every year when walleye fishing. I have caught several larger fish on deep diving crankbaits so I use the net instead of trying to lip them with treble hooks in their mouth. Plus when I catch a nice flathead he stays in the livewell because flatheads are a real treat to eat. I caught a large flat several years ago that went over 25 Lbs and he bent my old net. I know of a couple guys that go noodlin for flats every year on the lower Yellow River in NE Iowa. I don’t have a problem with lipping a catfish but I’m not so sure I’d enjoy noodlin.
As with any fish I intend to release I try my best to handle the fish as little as possible. Lipping a fish would probably be the preferred method if you can keep the fish from touching anything with it’s body. Sometimes touching a fish is unavoidable which is something walleye fishermen know too-well because you just don’t lip a toothy-mouthed critter like a walleye. Disturbing the slime coating can hurt all kinds of fish so when you are measuring those walleyes make sure you dip your measuring board in the water before getting the fish on it.
Eyehunter
Quote:
Lipping a fish would probably be the preferred method if you can keep the fish from touching anything with it’s body.
What about all the weight being put on the cats back bone and jaw joints? Say I was pushing 300 lbs…lifting me by the head…might hurt my neck!
I’ve done both. Just wondering which one is “best” for release.
Either way works just fine. These are tough tough fish. They are nothing like a trout losing it’s slime and dying on the spot. They can live for hours out of the water if they are kept damp like say in a gunny sack. I saw a thing one time on the Sarhengetti or somewhere in Africa where the cats sleep under the baked mud for 9 months and come out in the rainy season no worse for wear. Get them on board any way you can snap a picture and let them go.
A lot of times I fish by myself. Fishing alone some of my fish have just been too much of a hassle to try and handle the net plus the rod so I have lipped them. I have dragged them into the back of the boat and on to the floor. I have to tell you that their slime coat was the last thing on my mind. Once I got my hands on that lip there was no way that fish was getting away. The excitement meter is usually pegged about that time.
This year I am going to keep my musky cradle in the boat and try that and see how cats handle with a cradle. I plan on testing my cradle technique out on channels first – if I find I can handle it then I will try a flathead. Hopefully the cradle will reduce the chance of injury to the fish.
Net all the way. I know some of the fish we catch every year we have caught before… so catch and release is working.
I have had the lower jaw break on flatheads before 
It can hapen when they thrash too hard and you have good hold of the lower jaw.
On the other hand.. I really dont like sticking my hand in their mouth when I cant see the hook. When a fish is near the shore/boat and ready to be landed.. I would rather just scoop it up than sit and mess around trying to locate the hook before grabbing it.
If your worried about your net doing damage to the fish, pick up a better net that is more release friendly.. cost more, but easier on the fish.
I have always used a net thinking of my safety. Like Comanchero15 said, “The excitement meter is pegged” 
Having a big Flathead boat side in the net gives me time to collect myself, get my pliers ready, take a pic and release the fish. I almost broke a wrist once thinking I was just going to drag a pig into the boat 
lost the fish and almost lost the rod too 
Never again!
I prefer the net but do lip them on occasion.
THe reason I prefer the net is because I don’t like to play them completely out, and they can be a bit difficult to lip when they are still green.
I also think that their weight should be supported as much as possible. Their weight is supported by water all the time. You can do damage to thier spine if their body is not supported out of the water or while your wrestling with the beast over the side of the boat.
Just my thoughts…
When I first asked this question, I was thinking “what is best for the fish?” I forgot about the hooks piece.
I know last year after netting a flatty (that was the only way to get the fish in) I took out my hook and was getting ready for a photo…and at that time I notice a rusty # 2 hook in the lower lip on the right side.
Whiskerkev, made good point that I didn’t think about either. In nesting..and they have those open wounds..I’m thinking the damage to the slime coat is minamal to a “non factor”.
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