How to make wild caught fish survive?

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A

Andrew1002

Plecostomus
MFK Member
Feb 29, 2012
3,352
5
53
New jersey
I want to know how to make some different types of American natives survive? I put a couple longear sunfish with some bluegill after I caught them. They were in a 3 gallon bucket with a bunch of plants. They died. Will air pumps help them survive? How can I make them survive for up to 16 hours? Any advice? Could I string them up over night? Or would the turtles and big fish eat them?

I'M ANDREW AND I'M A FISHAHOLIC
-Andrew
 
Get a large cooler and battery powered airstone
 
Get a battery powered aerator and a cooler or even a bucket. I've found the most important thing is to keep the temperature stable in the bucket. A cooler helps with this but it isn't even that difficult in a bucket. Just means monitoring the temperature and changing the water out with the lake water regularly.

I always change the water in the bucket right before I leave wherever I caught the fish. Then once I get home, I start a slow drip from the tank they're going to stay in, to the bucket they're currently in. I give that a few hours (still with an aerator attached to the bucket) before I introduce the fish to the tank.

I never take fish if I don't plan on going directly home to the tank they're going to live in. If you have to wait 16 hours, I'd reconsider and try to find fish closer to where my tank is located. Not that it isnt possible to keep the fish alive for over 16 hours in transport, it's just very difficult and if you're just transporting local panfish, I'd just catch them closer to home.


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Ya that's a long trip. Drive fast. Use a Cooler to keep temps better. Battery air stone. Keep cooler out of the sun. It's better to net fish than hook them also less stress.

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ShipOfFools37 said:
Get a battery powered aerator and a cooler or even a bucket. I've found the most important thing is to keep the temperature stable in the bucket. A cooler helps with this but it isn't even that difficult in a bucket. Just means monitoring the temperature and changing the water out with the lake water regularly.

I always change the water in the bucket right before I leave wherever I caught the fish. Then once I get home, I start a slow drip from the tank they're going to stay in, to the bucket they're currently in. I give that a few hours (still with an aerator attached to the bucket) before I introduce the fish to the tank.

I never take fish if I don't plan on going directly home to the tank they're going to live in. If you have to wait 16 hours, I'd reconsider and try to find fish closer to where my tank is located. Not that it isnt possible to keep the fish alive for over 16 hours in transport, it's just very difficult and if you're just transporting local panfish, I'd just catch them closer to home.


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And I was just guna be a smart guy and say stick them in water
 
when I go collecting I make sure to have a cycled bio filter running off a battery powered air pump. do not let the bucket sit in the sun. filled with plants doesn't matter if they aren't getting sunlight and sunlight will overheat the water and kill the fish. just keep a lid on your bucket to keep them dark. make sure air can escape so you don't pressurized your container.
a string? seriously? do you think running metal through your nose and out your mouth will help you survive anything? the point is to reduce stress, not cause as a much as possible.
 
the oxygen is the big thing. It is easy to find battery operated aerators. Also, I like using hydrogen peroxide if my bubbler isnt readily available. We kept four dozen minnows alive for three days in a bucket using only hydrogen peroxide. I dont recommend keeping them alive this way, but if you have to it will quickly add oxygen back into the water and save the fish
 
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