That redfish have teeth?!?!?!?! For years I've seen guys holding them by the lip just like you would a LMB so when we got the first 40" red in the boat I grabbed it by the lower jaw to remove the hook .... that doggone fish spun around with my thumb & forefinger in its mouth!! My fishing partner said that I screamed like a little girl & I don't recall exactly what I said ...

The laughing may now commence ...

No worries, believe me your not the first. I can tell you from expierence, you won't do it to many more times!

lol, same thing happened to me

Right now if I could land a 40" bull red, I would let him bite me.

Not that I am desperate or anything.

Before we cast the fist line, we holler "we do catch and release"............can't hurt to have some good karma on our side.

that fish looks cok-eyed

Just remember most of the fish in the Ocean have teeth.

I did the same thing with the first sea trout I caught minus the finger thing...but I didn't have pliers so it was pretty interesting getting the hook out...

just always think there is nothing out there that will not bite you -Sting You-Scrape you--i use a boga grip 90 percent of the time

not to digress, but my first toothy-fish interlude was
with a Pacific bonito about 5# on my first ocean trip
when I was 13. 4 cute little punctures across the top
of my thumb. bled like hell & Dad laughed.

I think years ago there was a thread on here "reds have teeth"
or something, but it ended up going south w/ a lot of ego, if you get my drift....

But yeah, HAHA on you. don't lip a big red

Just remember to keep a little bottle of super glue handy for cuts.

It cleans and disinfects and seals the would right up fast so you can get back to fishing. Even deep cuts that would need stitches. Just let it bleed a little and soak the blood up with a napkin or towel or whatever for a few minutes.

BUT BEWARE !! Before you apply the super glue to your cut it will sting !! So you kinda have to man up and bite the bullet a few seconds when you apply the super glue to your wound, but it will clean and seal the wound right up nice. Even deep cuts that would require stitches. Just super glue it right up and you are good to go !! Always good to have a little bottle of super glue handy.

AJ, that is a good idea, but just BE SURE that it is clean first...glue is a sealant, and if anything gets sealed up in there...it could mean a nasty infection!!!! I recommend letting it bleed for a few seconds, then washing it with soapy water for a minute or two, then just pressure over it with a clean rag or something until it stops. Put a nice bandage over it and then keep on fishing!!! Take a small first aid kit...put it in your tackle box. I don't know about this super glue stuff on deep wounds, but little ones are OK. I work in the ER and have seen a lot of nasty infections that I would not wish upon my worst enemy!!

Oh...by the way...Nice lesson there for you, huh Zeek!!

Redfish also have tremendous crushing power, they can bend a quarter in half, so bottom line - keep your fingers outta their mouth !!

Psst....they arent holdng them by the lip. They are holding them by the gills or have their hand UNDER the jaw, Zeek. They say a black drum can crush an oyster shell.....dont know if it's true....not anxious to find out.


Oh...and specks have fangs. ( just trying to warn ya. )

lol @ zeek & old frog

this reminds me of the time my husband decided to see how sharp a shark tooth was. so he ran his finger over one that he caught. needless to say it cut it. you would have thought that he would have learned his lesson but oh no not my husband. he then decided to see how sharp a spanish mackerals tooth was and same results. this reminds of the old saying tell a man that there are a million stars and he will believe you. tell a man that the bench has wet paint on it and he will touch it to see if wet.

Yeah, I'm familiar with most of the toothy critters, but I'd assumed that redfish were similar to hybrids or LMB in the teeth department ... and I didn't learn this with a box-sized fish, it was a 40 inch long, 20 lb 8 oz biggun with my hand in its mouth!

At least you'll remember the lesson, huh ?

BTW...get a new box, too. ( I have it on good authority that only a single 34+ inch bull red and a few small specks will fit in a 70 qt igloo....tail severely curled.)

We had TWO big redifhs tagged that wouldn't quite fit in the 100qt cooler ... along with gafftop cats, sandtrout and a flounder. Good thing we had to release the other big reds or the boat might've been overloaded lol

After years of coastal fishing I've learned that you dont sitck you finger in any saltwater fishes mouth.

You can lip a snook.


MO

Yeah, They'll do a number on you!

Hint:


See that thingy in his right hand... great investment

It may not look like it, but yes... they gots teeth! Often times when you see somebody "lipping" a Red, it's been in the cooler for a while chillin out...

i lip slot reds all the time...i guess i'm jus special

yea i learn my lesson from the big reds long ago but i will always get cuts by accident from specks and flounders.

during the flounder run one yr i caught a nice big mama, she was a feisty one. as i was trying to put the mouth opener on her to get the hook out she decided to do one last jump and her sharp teeth sliced my finder up really deep. it hurt so bad i was yelling (screaming, haha) like there was no one next to me. i was bleeding so bad i had to stop fishing for good 15 mins. ever since then i make sure i handle them with care.

Been there.

By the way, what part of the coast were you fishing? Nothing specific, just general area please.