How To Pick Up A Catfish

Be careful sticking your hand in the mouth of a big catfish their mouths are much more dangerous than their fins.

How to pick up a catfish. If you have a flat surface or the catfish is small enough to fit in your hand you can run your hand along the fish to flatten the dorsal fin and keep the side fins down. Just keep a good firm grip on the fish and if you feel the need put a towel over your hand. This information applies to flathead bullhead and channel catfish. Trying to pick up a catfish can be a painful experience if you dont know what youre doing.

In this video eldon explains his method of handling catfish. If you are after big channel catfish then there are better options but most people who target channel catfish are not in it for trophies myself included. Find great cove adventure films on facebook. Scoop them up with a dip net and use lip grips to handle them during landing photographs and the live release please practice catch and release of larger catfish.

Some anglers pick the catfish up by the bottom lip and hold it with one hand while they work on the fish with the other. There may be other species that require different methods. Call them stink baits if you want. Use this information at your own risk.

How to pick up a channel catfish without getting stung or jabbed by the sharp spines.