hi lads

had my first( 1st ever!) eel by design last night,1.5lb-2lb lovely little predator,fascinated me!...and well confused me too!i tried the stroking the chin-belly,worked for a few seconds then he wanted a fight again!i was very confused as to how to handle these fish,i have the upmost respect for anyfish i catch,as i intend to target them somemore i thought best to seek advice on handling them,i am fine unhooking,its trying to hold one up for the camera i find hard!i had a second swallow the hook,so i cut the trace as close to hook as possible,i have read this is the best way,rather than poke around. and cause them damage.I was zandering,missed runs,wich i knew was eels, switched to a single hook n a roach head-improvisation!

i know theres some very knowledgeable eel anglers on here,help would be much appreciated.

[ 11. September 2005, 04:08 PM: Message edited by: Ratty Fitzpatrick46 ]

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What your doing is right, get fish upside down, firm strokes just under the chin down the body for about 15 seconds or so. You might only get a few seconds though to take a pic but it does work.

Had this the other week just under 6lb.

I'd love to see a double figure eel

Well done guys by the way. What did you catch that 6lber on Warren?

Very impressive fish !!

Nice fish Warren.
Ratty, You don't seem to be doing anything wrong, Some eels are just harder to calm down then others. As warren says you might only have a few seconds to photograph an eel but sometimes they will stay really calm and you will not have a problem giving you loads of time.
Stick at it.
Why don't you consider joining the National Anguilla club?.
Like minded anglers. if you want to know more email me @
aj001a5249@blueyonder.co.uk

Respect.
Tony.

I hope you save it for pike bait.

Had it on Worm along with two more 5s.

I was told that turning fish of any kind, including eels, onto their backs was dangerous to their health and possibly even lethal.
To calm an eel, I simply place a cloth over it's head and stroke its back.
This work perfectly well so I see no reason for endangering the eel's health by doing something that may or may not harm it.
Can any fish biologists out there explain why it's OK to turn an eel upside-down, when we spend so much time educating other anglers that other species remain must upright?
What makes a eel any different to other fish?
Surely all fish must be kept upright...no?

I think due to the fact that its main organs like liver, heart etc are just behind is head rather than like other fish that are very much deeper and wider with more central organs then a short time on its back should be ok. When i say short i would say no more then 15-20 seconds.