Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[LP89CG]

Im wondering if its better to "Bonk" or bleed by ripping the gills out. I've just ripped the gills out and bled the fish upside down, but it seems mot people bonk. not sure if its an ethics issue or a preference issue. ?

[Shmoke Shaman]

I believe bonking is so that the fish does not suffer when you bleed it out.

[Nicolas The Fisherman]

I bonk my fish once or twice and then I cut the gills and bleed em out. The heart will pump out blood for a couple of minutes after bonking so that is an ample amount of time. I think it's more ethical than just ripping the gills. It's more of an ethics issue IMO. It looks a bit gruesome otherwise and there really is no need for it.

[BCfisherman97]

Rip through all the kills and snap the neck back, takes 2 seconds and is painless.

[Nicolas The Fisherman]

Rip through all the kills and snap the neck back, takes 2 seconds and is painless.

That may work for smaller fish like coho or pinks, but I don't think you could do that on a 25+ pound spring.

[LP89CG]

I bonk my fish once or twice and then I cut the gills and bleed em out. The heart will pump out blood for a couple of minutes after bonking so that is an ample amount of time. I think it's more ethical than just ripping the gills. It's more of an ethics issue IMO. It looks a bit gruesome otherwise and there really is no need for it.

Thanks

[BCfisherman97]

That may work for smaller fish like coho or pinks, but I don't think you could do that on a 25+ pound spring.

Works fine for fish of all sizes if you're strong enough

[Noahs Arc]

Rip through all the kills and snap the neck back, takes 2 seconds and is painless.

My only issue with that, although effective, is it makes for a sloppy carry back to the truck.

[BCfisherman97]

Bleed them out fully, clean them on the river, drop them in some heavy duty garbage bags and carry them back.

[Rodney]

Don't pack your fish in garbage bags. They are often treated with chemicals and the last thing you want is to mix what you want to eat with it. I usually carry my fish as they are to the vehicle, and transfer them directly into a ice-filled cooler. This way no plastic bags are wasted, no worries about leakage, the fish are well stored and remain ice cold on the way home.

[Noahs Arc]

Besides that, call me what you will but for me it's a pride thing. Not for showing my kill off to passers by (who don't give a crap anyway) but I feel like I'm hiding something if they're in a bag. The fish bleeds out plenty after it's been cracked over the head and then bled.

[Fish Assassin]

Don't do what the guy on Alaska Bush People did - kill the fish by bashing it with your fist.

[Rodney]

Besides that, call me what you will but for me it's a pride thing. Not for showing my kill off to passers by (who don't give a crap anyway)......

I'm all about the showing off part, especially when everyone else caught nothing.

[RalphH]

Don't pack your fish in garbage bags.

If it's made in North America, all that sort of stuff is inert and is tested to be sure it can be eaten by toddlers with no harm. Non-food plastic films may impact some off flavours to food stuffs but I don't think a raw fish is volatile enough to pick much if any up. Anyway this is what I learned working in a plastic bag factory

[CHaddon]

I've seen some guys do some pretty horrific things for "field dressing" their fish.

Personally, I picked up a medium-sized locking, folding hunting knife with a thick blade that I keep in my belt and a smaller top-handle cooler that I put half a bag of ice in.

If I catch something I want to retain, I use the BACK side of the blade as a swift bludgeon to the fish's forehead. This will render them unconscious with a single tap(it really doesn't take much). You don't need to smash their head with a rock or bat, they have small brains that are very close to the surface of their head and you only need them unconscious for the next 10-15 seconds. Once that's done, I use the knife to cut ALL of the gills completely through and bleed the fish out upside down  with it'd head under moving water. You want to swish it back and forth to keep the blood from clotting so you get a full bleed.

Once you cut the gills, the blood pressure in the fish's brain will plummet and it will stay unconscious. Any movement is purely reflexive at this point so don't worry if you drop it, it won't swim away. 

Once the water is clear around the fish where you're swishing, flip it over and do the rest of your field dressing. There might be a bit more blood at this point but once you've gutted it, rinse it off thoroughly and put it in the cooler.

Usually, no more blood should show up, the cooler should stay clean and usable for the whole day and the fish temperature should stay low enough to prevent any "stink" forming.