I have been fishing for catfish the last few evenings using chicken livers. I am missing a lot of fish because they suck the chicken livers off the hook. i am using treble hooks. is there something I can use to hold the bait on the hook so the fish can't get it off so easy? what other stuff do you guys use for bait for catfish?

 

I used to know some cajuns that would chum the water with cans of dog food, They would stab holes in the cans and toss them into the area they wanted to fish. They would use grass shrimp on their hooks or worms. There is also some stink bait that supposedly works, but I have never tried it.

 

We cut the livers smaller and rolled them in cornmeal and we always caught catfish and sometimes largemouth bass at night.

 

That's the ticket.....just get enough on there to cover that hook.

 

actually stick a tiny chunk of marshmallow over the hook after you attach liver. The stickiness should keep it on.

do it the Texan way...find road kill put it in a net and hang from a tree branch over quiet water area..as it decomposes maggots fall and catfish swarm to dine.

 

You guys are making me glad I am a Trout/Salmon/Steelhead fisherman.

The worst thing I ever put on a hook is a cut herring!

 

I haven't really fished in years, but in my teens, it's all I ever did. Perfect way to get out of my chores since Mom didn't have it in for me if I was "outside."

Livers work great for cats, and there are two good ways to do it. Either use a treble (which you are) and make sure each barb is good and stuck in there, or do what I think is the best option.

Take a little square of that plastic mesh netting you get when you buy a bag of oranges or something similar. put a liver in the middle and fold the edges up around it to form a little package. Tie off the end with a string or some monofiliment and stick one big hook through the bag and liver so it comes out the other side. It'll hold up really well to repeated casting and fish can't just suck or tear it off the hook. The holes in the mesh allow plenty of stinky goodness to filter out, and the fish will still be able to taste the food when he/she mouths it.

Bam, catfish for dinner.

And oh god, don't ever use blood bait or stink bait. You'll smell for weeks.

 

Chicken liver is too soft. Use beef liver instead. Or you can always use Dynamite for quick fishing.

 

That's about all I have ever used for catfish...the stink bait...and have had really good luck with it.
I always rinse my hands in whatever water I'm fishing in after each use of the stuff and have never had a problem with the smell.

 

The old timers wrapped the liver in scraps of old panty hose then put it on the hook. Some of your smaller grocery stores may carry rooster livers. Rooster livers are tougher and stay on the hook a little better.

 

I make my own stink bait.MOF I make 1000# at a time.You get used to the smell when you are dragging them fish in one after another.I have used it all over and they still cannot resist it.I use a straight hook and a sponge.

 

Rick....Telephones work good to!!!!!

 

That does work but I like cattle cubes.Take a 50# sack of cubes and chum the whole.Come back in about an hour and catch um.

 

Can't answer the chicken liver question, but I did actually learn the difference between true 'hillbillies' and 'rednecks' while meeting friends of a friend who were out fishing.

Hillbillies fish for catfish.

but...

Rednecks use parts of cats (that they intentionally shot or ran over) for bait when fishing for catfish.

Gotta admit, it turned me off a little when I finally met true rednecks there in the middle of Pennsylvania.

But the cat liver did help them catch a big cat (fish) out of the river.

 

Auggh, you guys brought back horrific flash backs to my early teen years.

When I was 12-15 years old, my gramps would take me and my cousin cat fishing at Isletta Lakes. Oh the horror.

My gramps was a believer in cleaning the fish while they were still alive. So my cousin and I were always busy gutting and skinning the fish as soon as we got them off the hook. So I never really got to enjoy catching them. We used all sorts of bait, naptha soap, Blood bait, stink baits etc. But liver worked best for us. A treble hook was all we used and maybe some of those fancy ones with springs wrapped around the shank. we used just enough bait to cover the hook. Too much and it would fly off.

My gramps even taught us how to catch cat fish Indian style, using our bare hands and sneaking up on them. That was fresh fish for sure. We got stung far too many times.

To this day I refuse to eat cat fish. It has been about 40 years. I hear it is good, but I won't touch em.

Jim Henderson