Bigcat and I release Big Cats all the time with the circle hooks going thru the eye. I was wondering how many fish have you guys caught with only one eye?

About 5 or 6 a year.

yeah i catch several a year with only one eye ... i'm the last one to catch those though

I like it!!!

I do want to start releasing some big fish but not all of them.....I just like that sound they make too much.

You know.....sssshhhhhhhh......when the oil is at 350!

None over this way....haven't been catfishing any of the lakes around Austin or Taylor. Don't ever catch any big fish anyway...I guess someone needs to show me how to catch them.

My opinion on this is: If your just the average Joe who fishes once in a while, and can count on one hand the number of big cats over 10# that you have caught in the last few years, go ahead and keep that big cat and eat it.

On the other hand if your the guy on the lake every day or at least three times a week, or have lost count of all the big cats you catch on a regular basis, and have friends that do the same, both you and your friends need to be more conservation minded, and practice catch and release more than the average Joe!

Let the flames begin!

Scooter, u funny.
I just knew you were gonna say something about that croaking noise, like a frog, they make when you begin the head removal. Or that hisssssss, like air out of a tire, they make when you begin to gut.

This thread was not to debate catch and release. Sorry if it turns into that FishTex1. It was simply to find out how many cats have one eye. This would/should give an indication that catch and release works.

So Albertking, your welcome. I do not mind letting you keep the ones I throw back. If you catch several per year with one eye then how many other fish are you catching that were CPR'ed once or twice already? Only 1 out of 20 or 30 lose an eye from hooks. So you catch around what, 100 or so that others have thrown back??

Hey Bigcat - I've caught a few nice channel cats (3#-6#) that were missing an eye, and more small channels & blues that way. Don't recall that I've caught any big blues who were missing an eye.

(Seems like smaller catfish missing an eye would be at a severe disadvantage against predators & would get picked off faster ... but once they hit a couple pounds, then their only major predator would be us.)

Anyways, simple answer to your question - in a given year, I might catch one medium/large 'one-eye' channel and half a dozen little ones. Hope this is helpful to you.

Couple years ago I caught a 6lb channel that was blind in both eyes. I figured he lost them hung up on a trotline. The eyes were well healed over so it had been this way for a long time. He was very healthy and I turned him back just cause I figured he deserved a break.

if this ain't about catch & release .........................

I have not caught any with 1 eye but I have seen one or two unfortunately dead on the shore here on Hubbard. They were only about 16 to 18 in long not very big. The size has a lot to do with it.
Hope this helps with which ones you keep and ones you let go.
John

Maybe Parks & wildlife should put a slot or only 1 over 10 LBS on cat fish. This would help save our big fish. I all was release any over 7 or 8 lbs, Just not as good as the small one.

The problem with regulations are that they hurt the honest people. People who keep every fish and do not care will keep them anyhow.

Unless they make us use tags which is going way too far.

And another big problem is that catfish vary a TON from lake to lake. Some lakes can handle people keeping every fish, some can not.

Fishermen just need to pull their heads out of their butts and quit thinking that when they throw a fish back they are looking like a bass fisherman.

But Jimbo pretty much summed it up.

[/quote]Maybe Parks & wildlife should put a slot or only 1 over 10 LBS on cat fish. This would help save our big fish. I all was release any over 7 or 8 lbs, Just not as good as the small one. [/quote]

no i don't agree with that at all ... a like you can only keep fish between 15 & 30# ... which would not be a bad idea for yellas & blues ... but you know to each his own ... BTW what makes you think big cats need savin' ... islamo-facsist prolly ain't allowed to eat'um no how