# Best way to humanely kill fish?



## Just Jiggin' (Aug 30, 2010)

Recently bought a new boat with a livewell. I now use the livewell to hold my fish instead of putting them on ice. What's the best way to humanely kill the fish? As of now i'm just "billy clubbin" them. Don't know how long i'm gonna stay with this really turns into a bloody mess..


----------



## Captain Dave (Jul 19, 2006)

Packed on Ice. Ice on top and bottom. Dont let em soak either.. Best for you and the feech.


----------



## Captain Greg (Jul 19, 2007)

Filet 'em.


----------



## Blue Water Breaux (Feb 6, 2008)

shark hammer or a gun in the water


----------



## I&CGURU (Oct 20, 2010)

Ask Micheal VICK!! He's good with animals


----------



## Miles2Fish (Dec 2, 2008)

Put them on ice........if you are from California you have to sing them a lullaby! If you are a PETA freak just keep eating tofu!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


----------



## SV_DuckBuster (Sep 18, 2007)

Pull the drain plug on your livewell. 
There is no such thing as humanely killing anything. There are only degrees of suffering and messes to clean up.


----------



## monkeyman1 (Dec 30, 2007)

Just Jiggin' said:


> What's the best way to humanely kill the fish?


personally, i use sodium pentothal so that before they die, they'll tell me where their school is located.


----------



## greenhornet (Apr 21, 2010)

I just start cutting on the occasions when I'm in too big a hurry to buy ice. 

I really can't taste a difference between iced down fish or flopping around fresh but it seems others do.....


----------



## txfishon (Jul 17, 2006)

*KILL ??*

Yall kill fish ?? Why would you do such a thing ?? sad2sm

Ice that ***** and put a sharp knife on em !! :fish:

<')))>{

Freddy


----------



## frank n texas (Aug 11, 2004)

Stun gun? Don't taze me bro.....:dance:


----------



## txfishon (Jul 17, 2006)

monkeyman1 said:


> personally, i use sodium pentothal so that before they die, they'll tell me where their school is located.


LMAO !! Green to ya for the belly laugh I got !! :cheers:

<')))>{

Freddy


----------



## Bird (May 10, 2005)

Spray cheap vodka on their gills or cut the throat latch and let'em bleed out on the cleaning table. Of course if you are going to feel sorry for the fish, you might want to spray some of that cheap vodka 'on your gills' first.


----------



## Shin-Diggin (Jun 17, 2005)

I put them down for a nap on a bed of ice and close the lid.


----------



## Just Jiggin' (Aug 30, 2010)

haha crackin me up! Only reason I ask is I took the red out of the livewell bopped it on the head thought it was dead started filletin it up and it gave a hard flop nearly filleted a finger


----------



## Kenner21 (Aug 25, 2005)

I clutch them tight to my chest and tell them everything is going to be ok.


----------



## aggiemulletboy (May 31, 2006)

Putting on ice is about as good as it gets aside from beating the ever loving heck out of the thing in the head. In general (not always with reds or sheepies it seems), it will slow the fish's vitals to where they eventually just stop. Same thing we have always done with reptiles and other ectothermic critters that were dying. Put them in the freezer, heart and lungs slowly stop, pretty much just go to sleep and don't wake up.


----------



## danmanfish (Jun 17, 2010)

choot em in the head with a 45... make sure you hit the brain... and if they are still not dead club them atleast 10 times.. that will teach em fish to get on your hook..


----------



## Goags (May 28, 2004)

I've seen the guides in CRica quickly dispatch tuna using needlenose pliers jabbed thru the brain.


----------



## BustinTops (Aug 31, 2010)

I like em on ice myself.............a cold trout is alot easier to filet than a fresh one.


----------



## iridered2003 (Dec 12, 2005)

as the tip of my knife pushes through its skin. they will flop around just about as long as it takes me to filet it.


----------



## surfspeck (Jun 7, 2006)

Droppin em in hot grease is humane for my friends and family.


----------



## Salt Water Texan (Oct 1, 2009)

I always carry some laughing gas and chloroform with me. First I give them a good shot of the gas, once I'm certain they are completely happy I hit them with the chloroform. When they are at rest at Mrs. Nappys house I gut & gill the little dumplings and throw them in the ice.


----------



## Blk Jck 224 (Oct 16, 2009)

Be sure to find out if they have a peanut allergy before you kill them, you might have to use canola oil.


----------



## saltwatersensations (Aug 30, 2004)

HUH?


----------



## Bocephus (May 30, 2008)

I'm trying to figure out if the original poster was serious......


----------



## BullyARed (Jun 19, 2010)

Send all the fish to me.


----------



## SURF Buster (Feb 17, 2008)

Since I have never heard one state they were in pain or begged for their life who cares...


----------



## monkeyman1 (Dec 30, 2007)

Bocephus said:


> I'm trying to figure out if the original poster was serious......


he was i think...but i couldn't seriously think like that.


----------



## Figfarmer (Nov 25, 2007)

Miles2Fish said:


> Put them on ice........if you are from California you have to sing them a lullaby! If you are a PETA freak just keep eating tofu!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


In California, we grab the fish by the tail and wack it against the dock pilings a few times when we get back to the ramp. This tenderizes the meat and removes some of the scales. I learned this technique from Wolfgang Puck. It's the same technique I use on someone in my boat that tries to keep an illegal fish.


----------



## Barbarian (Feb 12, 2009)

Filet knife.

But sometimes................. nevermind.


----------



## Porky (Nov 1, 2006)

I drop my aquarium fish in a bowl of Club Soda for a few minutes, But that's too expensive for table fish.


----------



## BIG Flat Skiff (May 25, 2004)

If they are still floppin at the cleaning table I put my knife thru their eye and into their brain. Stops them pretty quick.


----------



## Just Jiggin' (Aug 30, 2010)

lol I was serious I should've phrased the title differently. Quickest way to kill a fish or something but at the same time these are god's creatures too WWJD haha


----------



## bluewaterrip (May 8, 2006)

This is funny:cheers:


----------



## saltwater_therapy (Oct 14, 2005)

put them on ice for a few hours before cleaning. they filet easier cold. and it will save you from having to beat them to death. lol.


----------



## alant (Dec 7, 2006)

Captain Dave said:


> Packed on Ice. Ice on top and bottom. Dont let em soak either.. Best for you and the feech.


I'm curious about this response. I've always heard it's good to have some cold water (someone on this board once called it ice slurry) because it gets inside the fish and cools it down quicker. I don't do this because I've never had a problem with ice on bottom and top, plus I'm lazy and don't want my ice chest any heavier. I clean them as soon as I get to the dock.

Does anyone else not have cold water in their ice chest? Why is this bad?


----------



## aggiemulletboy (May 31, 2006)

alant said:


> I'm curious about this response. I've always heard it's good to have some cold water (someone on this board once called it ice slurry) because it gets inside the fish and cools it down quicker. I don't do this because I've never had a problem with ice on bottom and top, plus I'm lazy and don't want my ice chest any heavier. I clean them as soon as I get to the dock.
> 
> Does anyone else not have cold water in their ice chest? Why is this bad?


I think if you want any kind of cold water, you want ice mixed with clean saltwater. Keeps everything isotonic (fish salinity=salinity of water). Cold be wrong though.


----------



## Just Jiggin' (Aug 30, 2010)

Oh geez what have I started lol


----------



## Mako232 (Sep 16, 2005)

How to Kill 'em.......I just listen to the voices in my head.....


----------



## Poon Chaser (Aug 22, 2006)

Just start filleting.


----------



## Swells (Nov 27, 2007)

Trout and Spanish macks will get horribly mushy of you put them in a cooler with freshwater. The seawater slurry method (no freshwater) is most often used for hot-blooded tuna.

To immobilize a fish Japanese style, hold firmly and stick an ice pick up its brain. That's the soft spot between and just above the eyes although hard to find on a flounder. Anyway, there's a pea size brain there and the spinal cord goes back to the tail from there. If you're into sushi, use a length of 400# mono and run it down his spine through your ice pick hole.

This does NOT kill the fish. It relaxes the muscle and he is still quite live. The ultimate in sushi eating is when the raw fish meat still twitches on the plate. Yeehaw, it is something to see, better 'n' frog's legs.


----------



## Hollywood1053 (May 15, 2009)

Swells said:


> The ultimate in sushi eating is when the raw fish meat still twitches on the plate.


Uhh...no for me


----------



## balynd (Feb 6, 2009)

Fish is the enemy!


----------



## CoastalOutfitters (Aug 20, 2004)

take up knitting


----------



## mario8402 (Apr 15, 2010)

Kenner21 said:


> I clutch them tight to my chest and tell them everything is going to be ok.


lmfao!! :idea:


----------



## mario8402 (Apr 15, 2010)

cover their mouth with one hand and cover their eyes with the other and whisper "ssshh, go to sleep" in its ear


----------



## Captain Dave (Jul 19, 2006)

*You asked.... Iky Stick*

Cleaning fish tool number two is a sharp screwdriver, knife or "Iky Stick" and is used to kill the fish immediately after capture. Fish left to die or suffocate in a sack or fish bin build up a lot of lactic acid and waste products in the flesh. The fillets from suffocated fish will have a stronger taste and be flaky or soft and mushy. To prevent this the fish is killed instantly by inserting a sharp knife or screwdriver in the spot marked X on the fish head in the fish photo below.

The blade is angled toward the brain which is in the center of the fish head at the end of the spine. The brain is in line with where the curve of the lateral line of the fish would meet a point behind the fishes eye. It is a bony structure and if the iky tool is wriggled or inserted several times the fish will arch its back momentarily, then go completely limp - never to move again. If it moves you have not hit the spot. When done properly the color floods back into the fish within seconds.

After killing the fish put it straight into the cooler or chilly bin containing the ice slurry

# 2 Some peeps were right on the mixture of salt if yo want to take it that far..

Also, as Swell says.. Trout and other soft skinned feech will mush out and it warms up faster to create the possibility of spoilage. I will also add they taste better


----------



## saggrock (Oct 15, 2008)

I use lethal injection, they never feel a thing!:spineyes:


----------



## Hooked Up (May 23, 2004)

1. Print out this thread.
2. Read it to the fish immediately after the fish is caught.
3 The fish will die all by itself.


----------



## Red3Fish (Jun 4, 2004)

*Pretty funny thread....*

I have been fishing for 60 years, and that thought never crossed my mind!!! LOL

If ya got a "green" Ling in the boat, it might have some validity!! LOL

Later
R3F


----------



## BIG Flat Skiff (May 25, 2004)

r e d r u m


----------



## RedXRunner (Dec 21, 2009)

drown them


----------



## uttcut (Jan 6, 2010)

RedXRunner said:


> drown them


x2

LMFAO


----------



## Sunbeam (Feb 24, 2009)

Isn't this covered under the Geneva Convention?


----------



## Reel_Blessed II (Jun 24, 2004)

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl: These are great





I put on some Kanye West. The fish practically jump on the nearest knife. This way they have taken their own life and I'm not hit with sudden guilt.


----------



## allend23 (Aug 26, 2009)

Captain Dave said:


> Cleaning fish tool number two is a sharp screwdriver, knife or "Iky Stick" and is used to kill the fish immediately after capture. Fish left to die or suffocate in a sack or fish bin build up a lot of lactic acid and waste products in the flesh. The fillets from suffocated fish will have a stronger taste and be flaky or soft and mushy. To prevent this the fish is killed instantly by inserting a sharp knife or screwdriver in the spot marked X on the fish head in the fish photo below.
> 
> The blade is angled toward the brain which is in the center of the fish head at the end of the spine. The brain is in line with where the curve of the lateral line of the fish would meet a point behind the fishes eye. It is a bony structure and if the iky tool is wriggled or inserted several times the fish will arch its back momentarily, then go completely limp - never to move again. If it moves you have not hit the spot. When done properly the color floods back into the fish within seconds.
> 
> ...


X2

This is how we killed juvenile redfish after our feeding trials during my internship. We would take the blood samples, euthanize the fish with the above technique, and continue with the dissection. If done quickly and properly, the fish doesnt seem to feel a thing.


----------



## great white fisherman (Jun 24, 2008)

I like to cause them much pain and discomfort. First I poke one eye out, you know the one that is looking at you, then I insert a screw driver in the anal cavity so they do not poop while cleaning, then I pull some of the tail fin off, if they continue to flop I pull off the dorsel fin, then I open there mouth and remove a tooth, if they are still flopping I stick a fish hook in there nose, if still flopping I jab them real hard in the gut with my fist. I tell them take that you b-turd. If still flopping I cut one of the gills, if still flopping, I start removing scales one at a time, now that is painful, especially when you get close to there male parts, if still flopping I lay them out in the sun and tell them to dry out. Hey pita did you read this?


----------



## guiness (May 9, 2005)

Cornmeal and hot grease


----------



## InfamousJ (May 21, 2004)

you don't have to kill them.. if you are good... simply filet them out alive at the table then release back into the water and watch them swim off, still breathing....


----------



## Salt&Sol (Aug 23, 2010)

*Best way to kill a fish you just HOOKED in the face with a hook*



Just Jiggin' said:


> Recently bought a new boat with a livewell. I now use the livewell to hold my fish instead of putting them on ice. What's the best way to humanely kill the fish? As of now i'm just "billy clubbin" them. Don't know how long i'm gonna stay with this really turns into a bloody mess..


:headknock
So after you drag a fake shrimp lure, or live one for that matter through the water and convince a fish to bite it, you rare back and yank a Hook through his face. You then pull him in against his will all the way to the boat. The poor little fish then sees the boat and you (can you imagine how scared he is?) and you grab him with a net. Then you put the fish in a livewell to give him false hope that he or she has been caught for tournament and it will be let go. Now the fish is happy as hell because he thinks he is going to be let back into the dirty water of Trinity bay.. WRONG.. he gets a billy club to the face and thinks you are Tony Montana from Scar Face.... Say hello to my little Billy club.

:fishy: Look, if you are going to release the fish, release it, if you are going to keep it, put it on ice right away!!! This causes the blood toward all major organs, thus less bleed out when you clean them. Ice is your friend plus is numbs the fish, and we are happy. I think you feel guilty about Billy Clubbing all these fish at the fish cleaning stand and now you want to make up for it. Well you cant. what is done is done. Keep hooking those fish in the face and put them on ice for their sake and your conscience sake.

Cheers,
Salt & Sol


----------



## Reel_Blessed II (Jun 24, 2004)

InfamousJ said:


> you don't have to kill them.. if you are good... simply filet them out alive at the table then release back into the water and watch them swim off, still breathing....


"Hey Fred..how ya doin'? Lookin' a little thin there" What's your secret? "

"I told him a little off the top and sides..well he went with a lot fo the sides"


----------



## CORNHUSKER (Jul 12, 2004)

Practice C&R, so that other fisher-people can enjoy the resource as well. After-all, are they really YOUR fish to do with what you want? :idea:


----------



## 007 (Mar 11, 2008)

I've always believed that if you lay them out on a concrete slab they just line themselves up and commit mass suicide. 

.


----------



## DANO (May 23, 2005)

Just Jiggin' said:


> Recently bought a new boat with a livewell. I now use the livewell to hold my fish instead of putting them on ice. What's the best way to humanely kill the fish? As of now i'm just "billy clubbin" them. Don't know how long i'm gonna stay with this really turns into a bloody mess..


There are some things that should not be asked in Texas ! 
:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:


----------



## wet dreams (May 21, 2004)

Put m in a tite group, back up about 20yrds and do a skillet shot on m with a 12ga....WW


----------



## iridered2003 (Dec 12, 2005)

Red3Fish said:


> I have been fishing for 60 years, and that thought never crossed my mind!!! LOL
> 
> If ya got a "green" Ling in the boat, it might have some validity!! LOL
> 
> ...


had a 55in 76lbs green ling losse on the back deck of a bert and that was FUN! he got the ol bat treatment.


----------



## liquidatetexas.com (Oct 24, 2005)

Just Jiggin' said:


> lol I was serious I should've phrased the title differently. Quickest way to kill a fish or something but at the same time these are god's creatures too WWJD haha


Jesus would slap the SHxx out of you

sorry been wanting to use that for years and this was the first and best opportunity..


----------



## Snapper Snatcher (Jun 2, 2010)

Take the fish home and force them to watch "Dancing with the stars"


----------



## aggiemulletboy (May 31, 2006)

CORNHUSKER said:


> Practice C&R, so that other fisher-people can enjoy the resource as well. After-all, are they really YOUR fish to do with what you want? :idea:


Yes. That is what a fishing license is for. You purchase your fish from the state.


----------



## roundman (May 21, 2004)

iridered2003 said:


> had a 55in 76lbs green ling losse on the back deck of a bert and that was FUN! he got the ol bat treatment.


 lapd style :cop: //lol


----------



## Mike.Bellamy (Aug 8, 2009)

I remember my grandfather used to stick a screw driver up the gills and poke them in the brain, seemed to put them right out.


----------



## KIKO (Oct 24, 2006)

breaking their neck by bending it up and back. This will also break the gills and make them bleed.


----------



## 3rdbarnottoodeep (May 1, 2009)

Carry an extension cord peel the ends back. When you get to the cleaning table, plug it in and electrocute them. Makes the meat taste better.


----------



## onyourlimit (Jun 30, 2006)

Just put em in a rear naked choke and wait for them to Tap out.


----------



## boom! (Jul 10, 2004)

poison


----------



## big john o (Aug 12, 2005)

you cant be serious.....


----------



## Mad Mike (Dec 28, 2005)

Firing squad. Line em up, blind fold them, and shoot!


----------



## FishSlap (Mar 20, 2009)

WASP CO2 Injection Knife










Video:


----------



## Sunbeam (Feb 24, 2009)

Did any one ever try putting them in a bath tub full of water and then drop in the hair drier set on High. It worked great on some Mobster in a movie.


----------



## bowfishrp (Apr 5, 2007)

Shooten 'em with an arrow does it for me!


----------



## My Three Sons (Mar 23, 2008)

I lay them across poles on top of my battery.


----------



## nightgigger (Oct 13, 2008)

Some of these are funny. I have and will try to kill my flounder before I start filleting.
Filleting a flopping flounder can have a bad outcome. If it is cold out you can cut yourself with a sharp knife, and not know it for several seconds. I dispatch my flounder with a cut high on the head at an angle past the rib cage, lift up on the body and push down on the head till the spine breaks. watch out for those VERY sharp teeth.


----------



## roundman (May 21, 2004)

i dont think the fish ever gave the choice to thier prey how they wanted to be snuffed out/lmao


----------



## bubbas kenner (Sep 4, 2010)

monkeyman1 said:


> personally, i use sodium pentothal so that before they die, they'll tell me where their school is located.


hehehe too funny monkeyman hehehe.


----------



## Zereaux (Jul 18, 2006)

Well, I think you certainly have enough different options to try...

One of these methods should work without offending your sensibilities.


----------



## aggiemulletboy (May 31, 2006)

Sunbeam said:


> Did any one ever try putting them in a bath tub full of water and then drop in the hair drier set on High. It worked great on some Mobster in a movie.


We wanted to kill mud minnows before feeding them to a friends aquarium fish. Put the water proof shock collar for his dog barely in the bucket, turned the dial all the way up, and hit. Sent em all belly up. Hit it again and half of came back haha


----------



## Kenner21 (Aug 25, 2005)

aggiemulletboy said:


> We wanted to kill mud minnows before feeding them to a friends aquarium fish. Put the water proof shock collar for his dog barely in the bucket, turned the dial all the way up, and hit. Sent em all belly up. Hit it again and half of came back haha


In my opinion mud minnows are the toughest SOB's to ever cut a fin in the Gulf of Mexico


----------



## fishchaser (Jul 28, 2005)

Sounds to me like we need Obama to create a new government agency to perform studies on this. Should put a couple of fools back to work.


----------



## aggiemulletboy (May 31, 2006)

Kenner21 said:


> In my opinion mud minnows are the toughest SOB's to ever cut a fin in the Gulf of Mexico


Oh yea. I read an article on keeping them on damp newspaper while fishing. As long as their gills stay moist, they don't need much oxygen.


----------



## DMC (Apr 2, 2006)

The most humane way to kill a fish is to allow it to die of old age, but then some elderly folk might tell you that's the cruelest way to do it. I think the best way is to say "hey look, is that a shrimp?" and when they turn to look, get them in the rear naked choke and ignore it if they try to tap out.


----------



## DMC (Apr 2, 2006)

Swells said:


> Trout and Spanish macks will get horribly mushy of you put them in a cooler with freshwater. The seawater slurry method (no freshwater) is most often used for hot-blooded tuna.
> 
> To immobilize a fish Japanese style, hold firmly and stick an ice pick up its brain. That's the soft spot between and just above the eyes although hard to find on a flounder. Anyway, there's a pea size brain there and the spinal cord goes back to the tail from there. If you're into sushi, use a length of 400# mono and run it down his spine through your ice pick hole.
> 
> This does NOT kill the fish. It relaxes the muscle and he is still quite live. The ultimate in sushi eating is when the raw fish meat still twitches on the plate. Yeehaw, it is something to see, better 'n' frog's legs.


Plate? Rookie...


----------



## Bonito (Nov 17, 2008)

Show them a picture of Master Cylinder. They'll die instantly/


----------



## Sportsman3535 (Jun 24, 2010)

92 posts on how to kill a fish? Really?


----------



## big john o (Aug 12, 2005)

dont ya'll have any compassion at all for another living creature? fish have feeelings too...


----------



## Category6 (Nov 21, 2007)

If they act right I just ice 'em down and let 'em go to sleep, but if they **** me off I generally like to line 'em all up on the table where they can see what's coming and then start down the line with an old, rusty rapala filet knife. By the time you get to the last one you almost start to feel sorry for 'em...almost.


----------



## DMC (Apr 2, 2006)

big john o said:


> dont ya'll have any compassion at all for another living creature? fish have feeelings too...


I think plenty here have passion for some animals, not sure about compassion though.


----------



## big john o (Aug 12, 2005)

DMC said:


> I think plenty here have passion for some animals, not sure about compassion though.


there is no <sarcasm> icon.

btw, my fish usually bleed to death when I yank the treble hook from their throat.


----------



## kennyboy (Aug 11, 2010)

Kenner21 said:


> I clutch them tight to my chest and tell them everything is going to be ok.


NOW THAT'S FUNNY :texasflag


----------



## Chuck (May 21, 2004)

Paint a picture of Rosie O'Donnell on the bottom of your live well...that will make the fish kill themselves! If some seaweed happens to settle under her nose, it will then look like MC...same results! :slimer:


----------



## out_fishin69 (Jun 17, 2008)

its fun try'n to filet 'em out when they are still floppin round... plus thats as fresh as it gets rite there buddy!


----------



## TrueblueTexican (Aug 29, 2005)

*Hmmm to be " Humane" to a fish?*

Pre-supposes that a fish thinks or acts like a mammal. Fish do have a rudimentary nervous system, and one might "suppose" they feel pain in a similar way -- next time I am filleting a fresh live trout, I will ask it what it is feeling -- probably only get squirted with some blood as the serrated blade slices and artery to the still pumping heart.

Oh the "humanity" of it all

People Eating Tasty Animals


----------



## topdawg jr (Nov 4, 2009)

a picture of chuck norris under the lid of your ice chest can't be beat. remember chuck norris doesn't use fishing rods...the fish just jump in his boat


----------



## wet dreams (May 21, 2004)

Fish market in Evadale throws wires with 2 big washers on the ends in a bucket with your fish and then plugs it into 110 wall outlet for 5 seconds, he's been doing this for yrs....WW


----------

