Guthooked?

I went out on the lake this morning and caught a very nice smallmouth. I always catch and release, but this one was guthooked real bad. I cut the line just above the hook and removed the weight, but couldn’t get the senko off the hook. As I was looking in the mouth, the fish actually swallowed the hook and senko even more to the point where just the ends of the senko and a small part of the hook were sticking out of it’s throat. I still released the fish with hopes of it ejecting the hook and senko or dissolving it on it’s own. Do you guys think this fish has a chance at making it or will it either choke or starve to death? I hate to see a nice fish like that not make it.

It’s hard to say, but I have caught quite a few fish with hooks in their throats and line hanging out of their mouth. If it didn’t go belly up right away, which I believe is a sign of internal bleeding, she has a fighting chance. If she swam off, I’d bet she’ll be fine and be able to swallow around it until it eventually comes out.

One thing is for sure, she has a better chance of making it being released than had you kept it.

“One thing is for sure, she has a better chance of making it being released than had you kept it.”
No question about that, all you can do is your best and it sounds like you did. “they” used to say cut the line but the hooks these days don’t rust up and dissolve like they did ten years ago. Never ideal but if every possible obstruction is removed she has a chance. Nice job and you did everything you could.