I need help. I can't seem to kill catfish before cleaning them.
Catfish are just super tough I guess, because they just won't die.
I've tried cutting their gill apparatus, sticking a knife in their head and cutting all the way to their lips, and neither worked.
I'm surely going to hell for peeling these fish while they are still breathing, not to mention I feel horrible about it.

I clean the fish before bring them home, and I don't have any ice.

What is the most effective way to actually kill them before cleaning?

Any advice greatly appreciated.

I don't know about large cats. On avg.size channels ,there is a soft spot on the head that you can knick with a knife and stick a fairly stiff small diameter wire int their brain.They will quiver a little bit , but die instantly.

I just talk to them and they die of boredom. If they don't then I whack'em on the head with a hammer.

Ice them down before you clean them and they will die if it's an issue with you.

cut their gills and throw them on ice or in the ice chest.
they will bleed out and be dead as they can get by the time you get home to clean them.

Ditto, or in your live well and let them bleed out. Might be a little easier to clean up, just drain the water out and rinse. I've just iced them down before and they were still alive 3-4 hours later .

I sure would hate to see ya go to hell, just send them on down to me and I will roll the dice with the lake of fire

You could fish like these guys and then it would'nt be a problem about them being dead when you cleaned them.
Enjoy


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kg4bcaIXKHU

when you cut the gills you have to put them back into the water else cutting the gills won't do anything ... when you put them back into the water their hearts will pump all the blood out of their bodies and they'll be dead within 15 minutes in water that's 60 degrees or above ... if the water is colder than 45 degrees then it takes about an hour for them to die. the way you should do it in mid winter when water is 45 degrees or colder just cut the gills when you throw them in the livewell ... that's the way I do it and by the time I get back to the boat ramp they're all dead and blood free. when the water is 60 degrees or around there I'll take all the fish out of the livewell right before I head back to the boat ramp and slit their gills and put them back into the livewell as I cut them so that they're bled out by the time I get to the ramp and most of them will be dead or almost dead ... this does a couple of things ... it bleeds them so that clean-up is a lot easier ... it kills them so they don't beat you to death while trying to fillet them so it's less dangerous to your fingers but it's absolutely necessary to put them back in the water after cutting the gills so that they're in zero gravity and the blood will flow freely ... it'll also suck water into their system too so that it kinda flushes their cardio system out so any blood left in them is diluted or almost all water. if you just cut their gills and leave them exposed to the air it won't bleed them out very good at all because the heart is like any other pump ... once you get an air bubble in the heart it'll stop pumping just like any other pump but the heart will continue to pump if the blood that's coming out is replaced by the water and will continue to flow just as long as the heart pumps which isn't long after the blood is pumped out.

Great info as usual Tiny. Thanks. Glad to see your well enough to field questions.

Tiny, do you have any pictures on the way you cut them? When you get back to the ramp, do you throw them on ice? We just always throw them on ice and clean them when we get home. All the blood goes back to the organs to help keep them warm. Don't hurt to learn new ways. Hope you are feeling better.

As stated above about the hole in thier head, catfish have a small hole between thier eyes, you can find it with your finger nail after you get the hang of it, untill then, just take your pocket knife and slice open a small mount of the skin there , you will see it or feel it, then take a small welding rod or such and run it thru the hole, about 6 or 8 inches, he;s deaddddddd then, happy fishing & cleaning,

This is from a previous post and Tiny's website. If anyone hasnt been to his site it is a must see.

http://www.catfishin.net/videos/gillcutting.wmv

Thanks for all you do Tiny

good info here.....

hows it going mike good to see you post ken