Thread: How to deal with the bait stealers

Originally Posted by Canvasback

Every time I fish from the pier I have problems with the little bait stealing fish nibbling my shrimp off. How do y'all deal with these little jokers? I like to fish the bottom with shrimp.

That is one of the reasons I like salting shrimp. It makes them tuff enough to stay on the hook long enough to get the hook in him. Then he is going to see the business end of a 9/0 and at least part of him is heading out yonder for a big'un.

If you are catching a lot of catfish in the surf, try finding clearer water or fish closer to the surf line. Whiting will usually be right in the surf.
If they are sailcats, fill the cooler. They are good eats.

Originally Posted by CarlF

If they are sailcats, fill the cooler. They are good eats.

I actually think hardheads taste better. They just tend to be smaller and a good percentage of its meat is under their skull.

Yeah, I tried a sailcat once. That was the one and only time I will ever eat one. And that is saying a lot. I eat alomst everything that swims.

Well, I have heard just the opposite: That Sailcats taste better than hardheads.
Go figure???

To avoid confusion, I don't eat either one of them, problem solved!
Happy Happy Happy

Originally Posted by DANtheJDMan

That is one of the reasons I like salting shrimp. It makes them tuff enough to stay on the hook long enough to get the hook in him. Then he is going to see the business end of a 9/0 and at least part of him is heading out yonder for a big'un.

I found this thread http://www.gulfshorespierfishing.com...d-shrimp-6592/ on salting bait, but I am always open to new suggestions and tricks.

Do any of you guys fish freshwater and know what channel cat are? If so, are the saltwater cats much different to eat?

Originally Posted by Kevin E.

Do any of you guys fish freshwater and know what channel cat are? If so, are the saltwater cats much different to eat?

Found this about the hardheads and sailcats
Filet of Hardhead - Saltwater Catfish
“Would you like that hardhead broiled, or blackened, sir?” I wonder how long it will be until we hear those words coming from a waiter in a nice restaurant. Hardhead is the name used for saltwater catfish from Texas to the Florida panhandle. Most of us consider them to be a real pain to deal with. And that pain is meant to be both the aggravation of catching them and real pain you feel if one ever fins you.
These catfish are found from Texas to Virginia and even further north on almost any kind of inland water, even in offshore water in depths up to about thirty feet. They are exactly like their freshwater cousins. In fact, if they are lying side by side, it is virtually impossible to distinguish one from the other.
There is one difference that anyone who has handled them can tell you about. The saltwater variety has some powerful pain associated with its fins. Even a small prick by one of them can cause some real discomfort. And a full-fledged stick in the hand can cause swelling, pain, and even nausea in some people.
I am sure that there are some of you out there that do eat them, but most people throw them back. The Gaff Topsail version of this fish is said to be very tasty, but I have never attempted to eat even that one.”

If a freshwater catfish evers 'horns' you, it won't soon be forgotten either. I remember as a kid getting a side fin spine completely buried in the soft flesh between my thumb and index finger. Thought I was going to black out. Had to go lay down in the back seat of the car for a while.
The reason I asked about eating them, the only time I have ever fished in salt water was from an island just off the coast near Buloxi. Caught several catfish there, and as your article stated, they looked just like freshwater channel cat. Channel cat can be very good eating if they come out of good water and are not too large.
I would not be afraid to fry or grill a saltwater cat for testing!