Last moments of a trophy northern

While up a Rainy last week I watched a very happy angler showing off this prize northern. It was a beast of a fish: fat, long and very heavy. The angler took many pictures with himself and the fish, with family members and the fish. He then laid the fish on the dock and measured length and width. He mentioned that it was the biggest northern he had ever caught and he intended to have it mounted- not a replica. Though it was fun to watch his excitement and even nicer to have this memory shared with grandchildren and family members the whole thing felt wrong to me and I felt a little sad. Though personally I don’t agree with keeping fish for taxidermy when replicas serve the same purpose this is not what bothered me the most. What troubled me was that the fish was still alive. Being handed around, measured layer on a dock, etc just felt disrespectful to the last moments of this trophy. I just felt like the fish was “suffering” more then necessary. Which leads me to my question: if you decide to keep a trophy fish what is the best way to handle the fish? Do anglers have a ethical responsibility when keeping fish like this.

I don’t know about you, but when I fish, usually there is a steel hook, sometimes rather large, that I plan on intending to bury in their mouth/face. And then proceed to drag them, with resistance, to my boat/shore.

Ethics in regards to what? Keeping the fish? Putting it out of its misery? Should we take it out for a nice dinner first, maybe a movie, then later in the night have that awkward look into each others eyes and the fish knows its time ?….

fred bartling wrote:

Though personally I don’t agree with keeping fish for taxidermy when replicas serve the same purpose this is not what bothered me the most.

Regarding the quote above, I’m curious why you even ask the question if you don’t plan to keep one.

Thank you for your thoughtful response. Think I’ll head to Red Lobster- ask for a tissue and order lobster. We practice thoughtful ethics when practicing catch and release. I don’t know if this situation is similar but something about watching this fish flop on the dock longer then needed bothered me.

Why don’t we eat horses?

Man they look tasty. Like a giant Deer!

When i see a horse i see an overgrown deer and wonder why we don’t slaughter these hay burners for burgers.

Society (In america at least) has deemed the horse a family member.
You’d be shunned for eating horse…But i bet they are very edible.

There have not been enough Nemo movies for us to feel the same way about fish.

I do dispatch deer asap or any other animal i am hunting, but i guess fish just get tossed in a cooler full of ice to die a slow death… Kind of a double standard i suppose.

I do get your sentement though Fred. To me it is as close to wanton waste as you can legally get to mount a trophy fish. But on the same token how many pounds of fish do i let die a slow death each year just so i can catch and release a trophy!

You may have your opinion about what he did with the fish but as Long as what he did was legal there’s nothing wrong with it at all. If he wanted to keep the fish that’s his decision and right to do so. Sounds like this fish brought a lot of joy to him and his family which is one of the great things about fishing!

Obviously, If your intent is to release the fish you’d like to leave it in the water as long as possible and minimize handling it. Get your pictures and get it back into the water.

As far as keeping the largest fish… One of the arguments is these fish are towards the tail end (no pun intended) of their life span. Plus, they likely dont represent a very high percentage of the population. Harvesting a trophy may not have the impact as keeping a limit of fish during their prime years. These days fishing regs tend to protect those fish thru slot limits but allowing you to keep a trophy if you catch one.

Idk how you could possibly kill a fish and not mess it up for the taxidermist. And I totally agree with the above statements. He was 100% legal so what’s your beef?

In my personal opinion when you catch a big trophy fish and its legal to keep. There is no harm in keeping that fish. You can ask you taxidermist for the meat so you can still eat it and use it. I kept a 11.5 inch gill for mounting. To me some of the replicas look to fake. Some are awesome but its like the argument with my buddy he says if he caught a state or world record walleye he wouldn’t keep it. If he doesn’t keep it he doesn’t get the record. That fish to me would deserve to be showcased to the world. I would keep that fish and cherish every minute of it. You don’t let monster bucks walk do ya. As long as you respect the fish it is not an issue. Just throw it in a livewell/stringer then when you can wrap it in a wet towel and put it in the freezer. If you keep just regular fish to eat you don’t really give them special dieing treatment. And I think whacking them on the head is very unnecessary.

Cecil the Fish Feels no Pain

FishBlood&RiverMud wrote:

You’d be shunned for eating horse…But i bet they are very edible.

In the 70’s you could buy horse meat at the supermarket. Can’t remember what it was called, but yes, it was good meat.

-J.

Allan Davis wrote:

he says if he caught a state or world record walleye he wouldn’t keep it. If he doesn’t keep it he doesn’t get the record.

And that my friend is why the state record sturgeon and musky are caught each year and still swimming.

mplspug wrote:

Cecil the Fish Feels no Pain

FishBlood&RiverMud wrote:

And that my friend is why the state record sturgeon and musky are caught each year and still swimming.

Ditto

Fred, I’m kinda in your corner here its just our nature I guess. Respect and ethics is in the eye of the beholder that might have been best left out, I think you might be chased around the block a couple of times just dont let it get to you.

No more ethical responsibility than a limit of keepers imo. Also, skin mounts are significantly less expensive than a replica, especially on a large fish. My avatar was a 56″ Mille Lacs muskie, that in retrospect I should have kept to mount. Instead it will be about $400-500 more to get a replica done, which is why I haven’t…yet.

Guess I’ll buck the trend here but I wouldn’t keep any fish for mount, only smaller ones to eat. The carbon replicas are every bit as good – take a picture, a couple measurements and back in the water…

I think what I am really asking is if you decide to keep a trophy fish how do you kill it quickly.

fred bartling wrote:

I think what I am really asking is if you decide to keep a trophy fish how do you kill it quickly.

I’ve heard the ethical way to kill a lobster is to put it on ice. That’s assuming the lobster actuall feels pain.

I’m as ethical as you are, but I don’t think it’s something to worry about. Take a trip back 40 years and decide what was ethical in the fishing community then.

fred bartling wrote:

I think what I am really asking is if you decide to keep a trophy fish how do you kill it quickly.

Carry a small bat and rap it on the head. Keep in mind it’s a fish, do you know there wouldn’t have been half the outrage over killing the Lion if it didn’t have a name.

fred bartling wrote:

I think what I am really asking is if you decide to keep a trophy fish how do you kill it quickly.

Do you feel the same remorse when you poke a hook through a minnows head, trying hard not to kill him or threading a hook through a crawler from his brain to his arse? Knowing eventually the minnow/crawler will die a slow painful death.

Dutchboys right, A lion with a name is twice the outrage. I see guys riding bikes with stringers of sunnies over there shoulder, no one thinks twice but if they have a 30 lb northern on a stringer its suffering

And nobody here filets live fish..

fred bartling wrote:

I think what I am really asking is if you decide to keep a trophy fish how do you kill it quickly.

have it sit down and talk with my sister in law…

belletaine wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>fred bartling wrote:</div>
I think what I am really asking is if you decide to keep a trophy fish how do you kill it quickly.

have it sit down and talk with my sister in law…

Lolllolololol that’s the hardest I’ve laughed in a while. Is it really that bad?

crappie55369 wrote:

Is it really that bad?

Buy a diamond ring and find out.

suzuki wrote:

And nobody here filets live fish..

Yep and it still freeks me out when the head gasps for air laying on the ground.
Yous got a problem with that? You did not see it but I just threw down what I had in my hand and now I have fisticuffs waving at you.

Fred a healthy wack behind the eyes put them to sleep most of the times. Honestly putting fish down early prevents lactic acid build up in the meat so they taste better in the end.

You beat me to it G. Classic…
DT

FishBlood&RiverMud wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Allan Davis wrote:</div>
he says if he caught a state or world record walleye he wouldn’t keep it. If he doesn’t keep it he doesn’t get the record.

And that my friend is why the state record sturgeon and musky are caught each year and still swimming.

And I understand that. However I think that Musky and Sturgeon are held to a little different light. I know that is a little contradicting, but I truely believe they are a little different. I hold true to throwing back the upper middle fish like 20 to 28 inch walleyes for example but a 30 plus or a 40 inch pike I feel there is no shame in keeping it. Ya if its out of a little pothole lake and all that maybe I would feel a little different but out of lake of the woods or rainy those are the lakes that wont get effected to much about loosing one big fish. I have no problem if you want to release a big fish or keep one just stay out of the 20-28 inch eyes and that equivalent for other species. However there are exceptions to that as well. Lets say you take your aunt or who ever out and they hardly fish and they catch a 26 inch walleye and you know that they go out maybe once every 5 years or so and that is the biggest fish they will probably ever catch that could be a fish that I wouldn’t feel to bad about either. Also just because we kill that fish for a mount doesn’t mean that we don’t respect that fish. I know this always gets into a bit of heated debate and everyone makes good points but I think that everyone has a point of view that is valid and I am with BigWerm on they are very expensive some fish like gills it may not be a big difference but when your talking about 56″ (which is hell of a fish BTW congrats) That adds up. good conversation everyone and Alsaken Bush People SUCKS lol