Live-Bait

[Michael]

Fashion, morality, call it what you like. I use livebaits, as carefully as I can and in accordance with local rules, and should the day come when I find myself unable to square it with my conscience, I'll pack the rods away for good. I make no pretence to preach as this is purely a personal opinion, but I cannot see how it is acceptable to hook a fish intentionally through the lip in order to catch it, but it's not acceptable to do exactly that in order to catch another. I don't mind being regarded as cruel or immoral, but I won't be a hypocrite.

I totally agree, we tend to ram steel into a fish's mouth and then lay it on a mat - then return them so that we can do it all over again. I have, as previously stated, used live baits since the '50's. I have no issues with livebaiting at all so long as it's carried out as per the above post..

I agree with you Gloucester/Jerry.......

[Loop Erimder]

So many different styles so many different baits, old tackle, new tackle, camo, bivvies, bite alarms, etc etc etc . If you wanna use live bait then use it, until its banned you fish how you wanna fish and use what bait you like. Each to their own!!

[Kevanf1]

I remember my local tackle shop (no longer there sadly) used to sell goldfish for livebaiting purposes. This was back in the early to mid 1970's when I first took up fishing pre-teens. It was in the 1980's that livebaiting started to become 'distasteful' and some waters started to ban it altogether.

[JerryC]

Quote from the Angling Trust :-
Fish consume other animals as part, even all, of their diet. In seeking to offer baits which look and behave naturally, anglers may consider the use of live grubs, worms, crustacean or fish as bait. The use of live fish as bait is an established, legal and effective angling method in freshwater and the sea.

There is no difference between using live fish and any other type of live bait, bearing in mind that there is no definitive scientific evidence to support the assertion that fish feel pain in the same way as warm-blooded animals. However, to avoid possible conflict with those who may not share this view it is important that when live baiting, anglers should do so in a responsible manner, both in terms of obeying the law and in terms of conservation.
The Angling Trust believes that the use of live fish as bait is a legitimate and traditional sporting method for catching various predatory species. The decision to employ this method or not is a matter of personal choice.

Banning the use of live bait as a means of stopping the illegal transfer of fish is ill conceived. Live bait should be, and in most cases is, carried out using fish caught from the water being fished. This should create no risk to the health and welfare of the fish present in that water. Therefore, the question of whether or not to allow fishing with live bait should be an issue determined by the riparian owner or the tenant club.

[Gary Bills]

I have nothing against others live baiting I just choose not to do it.

I'm with you on this, J.T; I have used live-baits, for pike - but I do regret it now. Old piking pals, however, have never had any qualms about using live fish, and that is their choice.
I will say, however, that a small live roach is a thing of beauty, and something to be appreciated.

I to used to live bait,used to go to great lengths to collect and keep them and then break your back carrying them to where ever i was fishing, a few things happened to change my mind. I was standing on a bridge and looked down on my patenostered little roach and it would strugle to the surface and flutter back down again,getting weaker all the time until it was dead, then you would go piking sometimes and see live baits hanging from trees where someone had miscast,I saw some one use a pound roach once ,in 10 casts he had 10 runs all from pike to small to take the bait properly,that roach was ripped to bits in the end. Its not like it used to be round here in the lea valley when there was massive shoals of roach etc,how can it be right for someone to turn up with a bucket of roach pretending he just caught them when there is a bloke sitting there all day using maggots and not had a bite

Yes Mick, I remember lugging buckets of roach and dace along the banks of the Severn, - seeing the float twitch and jerk away as the "bait" realised that a predator was closing in; - seeing that same "bait" still alive but badly shredded after a jack attack... Pretty is is not. We love fish, we admire fish, don't we? We do not judge coarse fish by their size, do we?
I don't have the same feelings about worms and maggots: but I do love fish.
My piking friends managed fish to 26lb and 27lb (on lives); my best on deads was a little over 20lbs (deadbait); - but I've no regrets that I switched over.

The only place where i didnt do to well on deads was the trout ressies, dont fish them anymore, no regrets,surprised your mates have done better than you,perhaps they do a lot more piking than you,?

On still waters, I more than held my own. On the Severn, where their biggest fish came from, it was clear that live-baits gave them a real edge. I agree that deads are usually very effective. The largest pike I ever hooked (the hooks fell out), was on an Irish loch, at range - and it fancied a huge herring.
I terms of Severn piking, Mike, - yes, I started to avoid that, and my friends did not. But in fact, I was get some reasonable fish on deads from still waters, with the chance of larger fish, and that satisfied me.. Here are a few I did catch...

apike1.JPG

aapike.JPG

[St.John]

Cracking crocks there mate! Not being much of a pred angler I have never used live baits.... But would/will do this winter. I've always done ok on dead baits, but at the same time have never caught a proper pike!

[Gary Bills]

Cracking crocks there mate! Not being much of a pred angler I have never used live baits.... But would/will do this winter. I've always done ok on dead baits, but at the same time have never caught a proper pike!

I would gladly fling a dead with you, St John! :sun: I understand the town water at Hereford has some massive crocs...

[St.John]

As does the bit I bailiff.....Elliot my bother-in law with a 28/4 from the bottom of the garden on boxing day. His weighed pb, although the year before he had a larger one but had no scales! I saw this fish a fortnight layer in exactly the same spot. It took a dead perch.

[St.John]

For some reason the photo didn't work.... Here goes again.

[Gary Bills]

For some reason the photo didn't work.... Here goes again.

A stunning croc! Fancy having that at the bottom of your garden!