I'm going to stock a pond out at our ranch and i would like to hire someone, b ut i can't find anyone to do it. My last resort will be to go and catch fish and transfer them. Any help?

its illegal to take fish from public water i believe. but i would first just buy a cast net and get a bunch of shad and drop em in the pond. then catch some bass from other ponds and transfer them. youll save alot of money and youll have big fish from the start not little fingerlings.

No, it is not illegal to take fish from public waters and move them to private waters. You can do whatever you want with the fish that you catch.

Depending on where the pond is located there are a few places you can use.

West of gainesville is pondking.com
Near Buffalo is www.overtonfisheries.com

These are just a few that I know of offhand. You can go to pondboss.com and ask for help. There are people all around Texas that can help you find somebody to stock you pond. Good Luck.

fisherdude-i would catch shad and transfer them, but all of the articles that i have read said not to stock shad unless your pond is over 3 acres and mine is only 1/2 an acre.

Slymer-i have already contacted those companies and they have denied shipping the fish becasue i won't be ordering enough money.

then the best thing you can do is transfer fish yourself, have your buddies help. just make sure you do it legally

forget shad, try shiners, they are much more durable and good baitfish

Where is the ranch, how big is the pond and what are your goals? There are lots of fish guys around but location makes a difference. You may be running out of time. When this cooler weather ends, the water is going to get a little hot for fish transfer.

Forget the shad. If you cast net them, I doubt that they would survive netting, transfer, and introduction into a pond. They also don't tolerate winter weather very well unless you have a really deep water hole. The basis of the forage is the bluegill but there are several considerations there also. For success, you need to manage a predator/prey relationship.

Have you tested the Ph and alkilinity?

Bill Wingo sells fish and is in Coppell. Ask for his opinions. I don't know him on a personal basis but have bought fish from him. He will likely ask the same questions that I laid out above. 972 724 0071

The pond is in Cisco Texas about 2 hours west of DFW. its about 1/2 and acre and extremly muddy. its deepest point is 16 ft averaging about 6-7 ft. I haven't tested the pond but i have tested in the general area. I think it was 6.4 pH. Are you talking about magnolia fisheries? If they are, where are they located in coppell. I have never been able to fisnd it.

Yep, Magnolia Fisheries. Don't know where he is now. I used to buy from him in Lewisville. Give him a call.

Does it stay extremely muddy all the time? If so, you might not get very good results.

Without sunlight penetration, you don't get much phytoplankton creation. They feed the zooplankton which is fed on by tiny bugs and so on up to the top of the food chain. You might be able to clear it with gypsum or alum. Any cows to keep it continually muddy or?

You can do a jar test. Get a couple of jars of the water and put them on the shelf. If they settle and clear then you know your problem is external. This includes cows, runoff, wind, etc. Stop whatever is causing the problem. If they don't settle then you have positive and negative ions bouncing off each other and thus staying suspended. Alum and gypsum cause them to adhere and sink.

BTW, I know of ponds that have resisted all professional efforts to clear.

Yeah, Shad die before you can even get them out of the cast net lol.

We don't have cows and it is muddy year round. i have read about the gypsym or alum test. I will have to try it and see if it works. its about 1/2 full in the picture:

Bluegill/crawfish/flathead minnows first. wait till bluegill spawn 1 time then add bass/catfish. TPWD has free info on small lake/pond management (I have a copy). One thing that will almost always clear the water is aquatic grass but this can be a two edged sword. Also check with your local Ag. Ext. office, that is what we pay them for. Good luck

Go and scoop up some Hydrilla/milfoil from a local lake, put it in a baggie, and move it to your pond. That might help with the water clarity, but you really need to consider redigging that pond.

Are all ponds in the area perenially muddy? I see some of your problem and it is tough to whip. You have some exposed dirt on the sides. As the summer comes and evaporation occurs, the water hole shrinks. Then rain comes in and washes more dirt in. I would try to get some common bermuda growing on and around it. Also, take a look at the watershed and see if you can plant or encourage native grasses to catch the bulk of the suspended sand/clay.

On vegetation, about 20% is about right.

On stocking, make sure you really know the pond size. It's hard to tell from the pic. An acre is roughly the size of a football field. A 1/2 acre pond that shrinks to 1/4 acre is actually, for fish purposes, a 1/4 acre pond. Bass are tough to control in anything less than an acre. For anything less I like catfish. Start with Bluegill. I generally tell people that before you stock bass, make sure that they can go to sleep with their mouth open and wake up with a full belly.

If you want to know more, go to www.pondboss.com. That's where the pond junkies hang out.

word up on the pondboss!!!

Your tanks to small for shad and I would seek a pro's advise before I tried to change the water clarity.