Fish welfare - or just OTT

[Sportsman]

It's obvious if we get a nice fish we might want a picture of it. I haven't got a problem with people taking pic's, i'd be a total hypocrite if I had since i've taken lots myself.

Getting back to unhooking matts...If some one wants to use an unhooking mat because the spot they're gonn'a rest the fish warrants one then fair enough but to just use them for the sake of it so as to be seen "doing the right thing" is annoying...PC coming into angling !

Tigger, I have always liked your fish photos. Just the fish laid on the grass. Rod and reel in background. No problem.

[Sportsman]

I have a friend who has a commercial carp lake here in France. Fish to over 50lb

He is so concerned about the clueless fish handling by predominately British anglers that he issues them with a walkie talkie and instructions to call him immediately, 24 hrs a day, if they hook a good fish. This so that he can oversea the weighing and photographing. His stock is valuable, it is his livelihood, and his experience has shown that the majority of anglers who use his facility can't be trusted to look after his stock properly.

Most of the fishery owners I know have a fairly jaundiced view of their customer's abilities.

[gozzer]

gozzer

 

I know the point you are trying to make and in my opinion that is to belittle the angler who takes a picture of the his fish captures by pointing out the dangers that might occur, but for the majority never have, due to the care they take in photographing the fish.

I

 

Sorry mate your argument about the weighing and photographing of fish has little to do with the issue of Fish Welfare.

 

Bob

 

If it's your opinion that I'm trying to "belittle" any angler, and that my concern has nothing to do with "fish welfare" then you still haven't understood what I'm on about Bob.

I'm not going to repeat it all, because I can't think of another way to put it, also I'm tired, and just chilling out with a glass of wine after saying goodnight to the last of the crowd we had here for our bonfire.

So I'll just wish you Goodnight too.

 

John.

[Steve Walker]

I think this has got sidetracked somewhat! The least damaging way to handle a fish is to unhook it in the net and release it without taking it out of the water. If you are going to take it out of the water, because you are going to photograph it or just want a good look, and if it's large enough that you will have to lay it on the ground, unless you are confident of having a suitable natural surface to put it on, an unhooking mat is a good idea. An unhooking mat with raised sides may reduce the risk of a very large fish getting out of your control and flipping off the mat, so I can see some advantage in that. If people want to use those, or if fishery owners with very large fish in their water want to mandate them for those fishing for such fish, that's fine by me. The issue I have is the tendency for clubs to respond to the popularity of carp fishing with blanket rules which are not necessary or appropriate for anglers fishing for other species. My club insists on an unhooking mat even if I'm fly fishing for rudd. I would not put it past them to upgrade to a cradle once that becomes the carp fishing norm. What worries me is really the same old issue, not specific to mats or cradles or carp fishing, of the dominant form of angling imposing rules consistent with their needs on everybody else. It used to be the match boys, these days it's more likely to be the carp boys, but it's the same old problem.

[gozzer]

At the risk of sliding off topic, (who me?). The point you make about carp angling dictating the rules, is a valid one Steve. You do however say that it used to be match angling. With the advent of 'carp' match fishing the lines between the two have merged, and many of the rules laid down by the carp fraternity, are now part of the match scene. Like the overstocked waters used to be classed as match waters, now they are 'pleasure' waters, and the whole thing is starting to come under the 'rules' of carp fishing. When enough people go to these waters, and have to fish under these rules, then they become 'the norm', and organisations like the ATr, start to campaign for them to become national rules, and we slowly lose any control over our fishing, it will be all written down, and we can then all 'fish by numbers'.

 

John.

[Worms]

Or, more likely John, if they get any more power crazed, it'll be "angling" for cardboard carp with a paper clip on their snout within a fold up cardboard pond using a piece of dowel with a length of string with a magnet tied to the end....

 

...with a cardboard cradle and cardboard ointment of course....

Edited November 8, 2014 by Worms

[chesters1]

I expect the dowel will have to have fox on it to be within the rules.

 

Just thought if you want the ultimate safe unhooking mat ,then buy a 10ft inflatable boat fill it with water and plonk the fish in there

[Mat Hillman]

Mat

 

The pictures below are off my Fox Easy Mat and because it's soft and foldable I'm sure it could be used for Pike, I'm of the opinion that most Crip/Cradles would not be suitable for Pike as they are off the ground.

 

But if a Club or Commercial fishery decide that a cradle is needed, the Fox or Chub are I believe the ones to look at.

 

Or of course you could as others have suggested, not fish those venues, which seems a shame to me if you like the venue ?

 

Bob

 

 

£60 for a bit of plastic and foam, when I already have a perfectly adequate mat that cost me a quarter of that!

 

Sod em, they've lost the day ticket money I was planning to spend there this Winter. One thing my part of the country isn't short on is gravel pits to fish!

 

Mat

[Tigger]

£60 for a bit of plastic and foam, when I already have a perfectly adequate mat that cost me a quarter of that!

 

Sod em, they've lost the day ticket money I was planning to spend there this Winter. One thing my part of the country isn't short on is gravel pits to fish!

 

Mat

 

As you say Mat " £60 for a freekin mat".... that's just teckin' the michael !

 

It makes the price of a high end centrepin seem cheap !

[lutra]

One think that I can never understand when looking at pictures of other anglers fish on mats is the number of them that have no net under them. When ever I use a mat the fish is still in/on the net on the mat. Isn't it hard work and a load of needless messing about for them and the fish getting them out of the net?

 

Also if you keep them in the net and have the handle going out over your groin your standard mat has sides. If the fish decides to go mad you can just lift the net more with no need to pounce on the fish. No?