Leaving hooks in fish

After Saturday night I left a large hook in a large walleye because I did not think I could remove it without major damage. I have read the articles about the fish being fine after a few days, but have always had second thoughts.

What do you think? Will the fish be alright in a few days, or is it a goner?

Thanks in advance,
Brent

I usualy leave hooks in if needed. I do however carry a wire cutter and clip out whatever I can.

I’ve always thought it better to leave a hook, then mess up a fish badly trying to take it out.

GREAT point Chris. Many people dont think of the side cutter to snip the hook if needed.

Sometimes you have to leave the hook in them.

I struggle with the idea that hook dissolves and falls out though.
I could maybe see in salt water environment the hook rusting or dissolving but as far as fresh water I don’t see it happening very quickly like I’ve heard in the past.

I usually take the hook out if I can see it, unless I think its too deep. I take the pliers and go carefully in form under the gills and grab the hook and just twist it like I was trying to turn it up side down. Always seems to work quick and easy. If the hook shows any signs of pulling the throwt out with it I just cut the hook off. I am just not real convinced on leaving the hook in there.
wallster ><((((>

I am from Washington state our regs now require us to fish barbless part of the time , sure makes it harder but the barbs can tear up a fish like no other …Out here in the salt they say the hooks start to fall apart pretty quick when left in ..he should be good to go

In the case of a badly hooked fish, I only see 3 real options.

1 – Include the fish in your bag limit (doesn’t work well if the fish isn’t legal to keep, otherwise this is my first choice)

2 – Release the fish with as little damage as possible while removing as much of the hook as possible, and hope the fish survives. (Between the odds survival of “Slim” & “None”, “Slim” seems easily the better choice.)

3 – Pull the hook out, and toss the dead/dying fish back in the lake. (Has to be a pretty expensive hook, or a fish that is already in pretty bad shape before I use this option.)

I used to leave the hook in them… But I found the fish would starve to death soon afterward. Seems that the noise that the jointed rattle rap was making would tip off bait fish and took away that night time advantage the eyes had. Every time the eyes would sneak up… the bait fish would scatter. So much for stealth, huh?

I am only kidding y’all. Geesh… tought crowd.

Hooks used to disolve better several years back. Now they make a lot of them with different coatings that prevent rust and help make them sharper. All you can do is give the fish a chance to live. If you keep the fish it has NO chance of making it. If you cut off the majority of the hook with side cutters you are giving it a decent chance of surviving. Myself, I leave a lot of hooks in if they are deeply hooked. I’ve had some big fish that I caught in the early AM at tourneys that were hooked deep and they were as lively as could be at the weigh in. If they end up starving there’s a chance they will make a great meal for a larger predator fish.
Just my $0.02.

Hooks In or Out?
by Ralph Manns
Getting the word out on hook removal. Those of us who try to share the findings of scientific study with non-scientists are often frustrated. It seems very difficult to get the word out. We write about some important discovery, but find anglers, particularly the influential professional bass anglers, either don’t read the new information or dismiss the new scientific insights because they conflict with beliefs the anglers already hold.
Professional and TV anglers aren’t the only ones to be slow in learning and applying the latest “word” from scientists. Biologists, particularly state fisheries workers are too busy with their own assigned tasks to read all of the literature produced by other scientists. They continue to advise anglers to handle fish using outmoded procedures.

The recommendation that anglers cut the leader close to the hook when bass are “deep-hooked” is a good example. It is hard to find a publication on catch-and-release (C&R) techniques that doesn’t pass on this poor advice. Yet, recent research on release techniques strongly suggests there is a better way.

Some years ago, Doug Hannon noted that most magazine articles and state publications recommend leaving hooks in bass and other fish to “rust” out. He claimed that hooks don’t rust fast enough, even in salt water; and suggested that the shank of a hook pointing up the throat of a bass acts like a lever or trap door that prevents swallowing. Bass can die of starvation while waiting for normal body processes to eject the hook. Food coming down a bass’ throat will bypass a hook-shank, IF the shank lies tightly against the side of the throat where the barb is lodged. However, if the shank protrudes into the throat, food coming down can push the shank across the esophagus, blocking it. Deep-hooked bass may even feel pain as the food rotates the barb and regurgitate the food. Recently, Hannon’s observations have been scientifically verified. John Foster, Recreational Fisheries Coordinator for the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, studied striped bass at Chesapeake Bay. His researchers held throat-hooked stripers between 16- and 28-inches long for observation in half-strength seawater so that hooks had ample opportunity to rust away. Size 1/0 and 2/0 stainless steel, bronzed, nickel, tin and tin-cadmium hooks were hooked in the top of each fish’s esophagus, with an 18-inch length of line connected to the hook.

After four months, 78 percent of the hooks were still imbedded. Cadmium coated hooks poisoned 20 percent of the fish, and production of these hooks has been stopped. Bronzed hooks were less likely (70%) to be retained than tin-cadmium (80%), nickel (83%), or stainless steel (100%) hooks.

In a second test, the line was clipped at the eye of the hook, as advised by most existing C&R guides. One-hundred percent of the stainless hooks were again retained, while 56 percent of tin, 76 percent of bronze, 84 percent of tin-cadmium, and 88 percent of nickel hooks remained. Fish mortality was greater when all line was trimmed. Foster theorized that the lengths of line hanging from a fish’s mouth kept the hook-shank flat against the side of the esophagus and allowed food to pass. Without the line, food could move the hook and close the throat.

Hooks rusted slowly in stages, and the bend and barb became smaller very gradually. Stripers formed scar tissue around imbedded hook points, a typical reaction of body tissue to foreign matter. Foster noted, however, that once the tough scar tissue formed, hooks became more, not less, difficult to remove. Months after fish were hooked, infections sometimes developed around points, causing some deaths.

Based on his research, Foster recommended anglers carefully remove even deeply imbedded hooks. If the hook can not be removed, then it seems better to leave about 18 inches of line attached. Perhaps, someday, these findings will reach C&R anglers, the biologists who are researching C&R and publish C&R guidelines, and TV anglers who teach by their example.

Another good idea is to carry strong wire-cutting pliers. Cur off protruding barbs in the throat and the hook shank falls free easily.

Texas researchers recently compared the mortality of largemouth bass hooked with live bait and artificial lures. Their main finding: “there is no biological justification to regulate use of live bait to catch bass” has been widely publicized. Other findings may help anglers make appropriate adjustments in technique.

In two separate tests, largemouth bass in a private water were landed by TPWD anglers using Carolina-rigged scented plastic worms, crankbaits with multiple treble hooks, and live carp fished with either a Carolina rig or a float. To simulate normal fishing conditions, anglers with different levels of expertise were used.

While fishing with floats, anglers were instructed to delay hooksets until floats went completely under, simulating the way typical amateur anglers fish with unattended rods. Under all other conditions, anglers were to strike immediately upon feeling a hit. Captured bass were immediately examined to identify hook-related injuries. When bass were hooked deep in the throat, the line was cut and hook left in place. (TPWD did not identify whether the cut was made in the traditional way near the hook, or with line remaining outside the fish’s mouth.) Bass were then kept in a large holding net over a 72-hour observation period to determine short-term mortality rates. Sixty bass were taken using each method. Tests were made in August, when water was warm and stress and mortality are normally high.

The average mortality under these worst-case conditions was 22 percent. Carolina rigs with scented worms caused the highest mortality, followed by live carp used under floats, crankbaits, and Carolina-rigged carp minnows.

TPWD biologists concluded that the timing of the hookset appeared more critical than the type of bait used in the determination of short-term death rates. The data show bass hooked in the throat had poor survival odds. Evidently, largemouth bass took both lures and live bait fully into their mouths almost immediately. The bass pros’ advice to strike without delay is important to reduce fish mortality. Angling techniques that delay hooksets should be avoided.

Carolina-rig and worm combos likely killed more fish because the loose-floating leader prevented immediate detection of some strikes and flavored worms are easily swallowed or held in the back of a bass’ mouth. Eighteen percent of bass taken on rigs with worms were throat-hooked.

In contrast, Carolina rigs with live bait and live baits under floats caused less mortality, likely because live preyfish are often held in a bass’ mouth for a few seconds, killed, and turned to be swallowed headfirst. This gives anglers a few seconds more to detect hits before baits are ingested. The decision to delay hits when live baits were used with floats and to strike immediately with Carolina-rigged baits likely caused the different mortality rates of these two techniques. Nevertheless, 10 percent of bass hooked on Carolina-rigged live baits were hooked in the esophagus.

It is no surprise that crankbaits are less likely to be swallowed, as their artificial nature is immediately detectable to fish. When fisheries are managed primarily for C&R or trophy bass production, it may be appropriate to ban use of multiple rods to reduce delayed hooksets, or to limit lures to items unlikely to be swallowed. In any case, C&R sportsmen will want to avoid techniques that delay hooksets, like fishing with unattended rods.

The TPWD study showed that bass hooked in the tongue and esophagus had about a 50 percent chance of dying, while bass hooked in the lips mouth, jaw, roof of mouth had 25 percent or less mortality. Interestingly, only 12.5 percent of gill hooked fish died. This finding suggests anglers who kill and eat or mount gill-damaged bass because “they are unlikely to live” are in error.

TPWD also compared the survival of bass when they were bleeding and when leaders were cut and hooks left in the fish. Removing hooks improved bass survival when bass were not bleeding. But there was little difference in mortality when bass were bleeding or hooks were left in the fish.

Anglers practicing C&R rather than to eat bass might note these findings. Fish caught with only superficial wounds are likely to survive release. Small, deeply-hooked and bleeding bass likely should be eaten, rather than released to die later. But lunker bass are so valuable that they should be immediately released, even if they are bleeding or deeply-hooked. Remove the hook if posible. Leave an 18-inch leader if you can not remove the hook.

Here’s an awsome tip I learned from a buddy, and I saw it in a publication a few years after he showed it to me, I just couldn’t find it on the net. If I can find a picture I’ll post it later. I’ve only used it on bass but I bet it will work for any fish:

When the fish is gut hooked, thread your line through the fish’s gills from the inside of the mouth. Have a friend apply steady tension on the line pulling towards the rear of the fish, trying not to damage the gills. (If you are alone, pull enough line through to step on, then gently lift the fish to create the tension).

The hook will turn downwards exposing the bend. With a needle nose pliers or something else suitable, grab the middle of the bend and pull the hook out.

It’s amazing how well this works…give it a try!

Thanks for the article NSD, Very interesting

I try to get the hooks out that I think I can. If they are burried then I cut out as much of the hook as I can with a pair of wire snips and pray for the best. The esophagus(sp) of a fish is strong and I can’t help but think that the fish will eventually be able to work the remainder of the hook loose.

I’ve caught’em before with the hook hanging outta the poop shoot and some of the line still inside.

I too like to get out the hooks that I can (if they won’t damage the fish) but if it is too deep, I think there isn’t alternative on a deeply imbedded hook.

With bass, as long as I can see any part of the hook, the through the gills method has worked…