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If you break off a fish is it a death sentence?

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  • Author
Just now, Choporoz said:

Misdemeanor at most....were you arrested?

lol what ? i'm talking about for the fish >.>

  • Super User

only for the fisherman. 

Nah.  Could it happen? Sure, but most times I'm gonna say they throw the lure.  If the fish fully engulfs the lure then you break off, yeah they dead.

 

No way to know for sure.  

I've caught a few fish with lures stuck in their mouths, so not necessarily.

A couple of weeks ago I caught a river Smallie with a catfish hook in its throat and at least a foot of line hanging out of its mouth. The hook was rusty and the line was brown and green and black and all kinds of gnarly. It had been there awhile. That fish was still fat, still eating, still aggressive, and still very much alive.

They say that most hooks probably rust and fall out faster than one would think.  I'd bet a Senko in the belly is a lot worse than a hook in the lip.

 

Sometimes it's a death sentence for fish even when caught, safely handled, and released.

  • Super User
3 minutes ago, Pickle_Power said:

They say that most hooks probably rust and fall out faster than one would think.

They don't.  Try it for yourself, put a hook in a glass of water.  Tell me how long before it dissolves.

I've caught a few that already had a hook in them, and had for some time. So some survive, but, I'm sure, not all.

  • Author
11 minutes ago, jbmaine said:

I've caught a few that already had a hook in them, and had for some time. So some survive, but, I'm sure, all.

 honestly have no idea how the thing broke me off fish started to go underneath my kayaK and i started to bring my rod to the side he was going to and just SNAP he was gone ?

Most of the time, with most lures, they're pretty dang good at throwing them.. And anyways, a few fish dying every once in a while is just part of the sport imo.

  • Super User
50 minutes ago, jbmaine said:

I've caught a few that already had a hook in them, and had for some time. So some survive, but, I'm sure, not all.

Yep!  I caught one a couple years ago that had a heavy duty worm hook jammed right in it's throat.  There was some line attached, coudn't have been much more than 4# size.  The fish was very thin, but clearly was willing to eat, just couldn't swallow food.  Removed the hook, and I'm pretty sure he recovered, based on how violently he struck my bait and how feisty it was during the fight and release.

This guy appears to have digested and almost passed this worm hook. 

 

 

C853C4BF-59A0-4EDD-B982-2889258E53DF.jpeg

  • Author
1 hour ago, IndianaFinesse said:

Most of the time, with most lures, they're pretty dang good at throwing them.. And anyways, a few fish dying every once in a while is just part of the sport imo.

i have only broke off 3 fish so far this year 2 from a snap swivel breaking then i switched to tying on lures and this weekend i broke something off but idk what it was

 

i think with me being in a very small pond that i would find the fish floating around ?

 

i have found 3 dead fish in my pond this weekend 2 perch and 1 large mouth the perch looked to have been taken out by something (snapping turtle or other fish?) and the large mouth basses mouth was wide open when i found it no bite marks or anything when i checked it out i think it was a 2-3 lber but bloated up to 4-5 lbs ? idk

3 hours ago, J Francho said:

They don't.  Try it for yourself, put a hook in a glass of water.  Tell me how long before it dissolves.

I didn't say dissolve.  My thought was it corroding enough for the fish to throw it or for it to break in two and fall out.

 

More importantly, a study I just read claims that cutting the line on deeply hooked fish(assuming it's just a hook) provides fish a much better chance of survival than removing the hook.

In most cases, not at all. 

If they're lip-hooked there is a pretty good chance they'll start jumping and spit the lure. If It's further down, they may die, or they digest the bait / hooks rust out and they live. 

Or if trebles have completely sewn their mouths shut. 

  • Super User
13 minutes ago, Pickle_Power said:

More importantly, a study I just read claims that cutting the line on deeply hooked fish(assuming it's just a hook) provides fish a much better chance of survival than removing the hook.

That's outdated.  ALWAYS remove the hook.

  • Super User

Definitely not a death sentence, over the years I have caught loads of fish still eating and attacking baits with a hook in their throat or mouth.  Most had texas rigged hooks which broke off.  I have caught a fish with chug bug in its lip, a Peacock with a rattle trap in its lip, and the best one was a fish that broke me off with a senko.  Two hours later I was back in the same area and I hooked up on this guy again.  My old EWG Gama hook with the senko was still attached.  So a hook does not mean a death sentence all the time, always remove all hooks before release.

2 hours ago, Dom Hendricks said:

This guy appears to have digested and almost passed this worm hook. 

 

 

C853C4BF-59A0-4EDD-B982-2889258E53DF.jpeg

 

 

Now that's amazing!

 

  • Global Moderator

I've removed so many old hooks and jigheads from fish's throats that were left by other fishermen. Fish are excellent at shaking the hook loose after they've broke off. I saw a study done recently with pike and even hooks placed deep in the fish's mouth were shaken loose within 48 hours. 

  • Author
27 minutes ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I've removed so many old hooks and jigheads from fish's throats that were left by other fishermen. Fish are excellent at shaking the hook loose after they've broke off. I saw a study done recently with pike and even hooks placed deep in the fish's mouth were shaken loose within 48 hours. 

even trebbles ? i hope the pickerel that broke me off shakes that trebble out eventually

  • Super User

I've broken off stuff like heavy T-rigs, Jigs, and Spinnerbaits in Bass's mouths and every time it happens they usually come up to the surface a minute or two later and start shaking to get it out. I have to imagine they have decent success doing so as long as they aren't hooked too deep. For stuff like worm hooks I think most are able to survive or pass them. And I'm sure occasionally a few may die from the difficulties that must come from digestion and eating but that's part of the sport like others said. 

  • Super User

If the hook is barbless (or de-barbed) the chances of the fish being able to get rid of it go way up.

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