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injured barbel

Jerry Gleeson

Jerry Gleeson

Senior Member
found this pic on a friends website and i wondered if a barbel with such bad injuries would survive, aparently the hook was embedded behind the gill cover. looks like a nice sized fish but the blood makes it look really bad

CIMG5053.jpg


tight lines
jerry
 
You can't see where the blood is coming from in this pic but I'd say that it's almost certainly the gill rakers which tend to bleed badly when cut. How badly they are cut is the issue that will effect this fishes chances of survival. When fishing for barbel it is rare to ever cause any bleeding, unlike in pike fishing where they occasionally get cut or hooked in the gill rakers (a problem that occurs due to two treble hooks being commonly used). However I've often caught pike with broken gill rakers that have survived the ordeal, though it isn't a pretty sight.

I'd say the best thing to do with a fish that is bleeding like this is to return it to the water as quickly as possible to avoid too much blood loss. Unlike humans, which bleed profusely when a cut is submerged in water, with fish it is the other way round with the bleeding usually clotting quickly as soon as they are submerged in the water.
 
Chris Turnbull said:
I'd say the best thing to do with a fish that is bleeding like this is to return it to the water as quickly as possible to avoid too much blood loss. Unlike humans, which bleed profusely when a cut is submerged in water, with fish it is the other way round with the bleeding usually clotting quickly as soon as they are submerged in the water.
Click to expand...

If I were the cynical type I would say 'out of sight, out of mind', but being pragmatic about it what else can you do?
As anglers we have to accept that what we do causes harm and just occasionally we will get a casualty, if we can't accept that then perhaps its time we used our rods for growing beans up.
 
Obviously I need to expand on my post...... I did not say release it, I said "return it to the water as quickly as possible". In the case in question I would still be inclined to retain it in my landing net until I feel it is fit to release, as I would with any barbel I catch.
 
agree with christopher, i would hold it in the landing net the usual way when i found the bleeding, that looks grim!!!
not something i would do.
 
Chris, I'm not having a go, like I said, "what else can you do?". :confused:



Dave, when you say, "not something I would do", do you mean make the fish bleed or post the picture on a public forum for all the world to see?
If the former then tbh there but for good fortune go any of us, a barbel feeding confidently can take a long hooklength way down without registering a bite, especially in a sluggish area with little or no flow, and you could easily find yourself with a deep hooked fish. If the latter then I have to agree, posting this picture has done nothing to further fish care and simply points out the fact to anyone with an axe to grind that fishing can harm fish.
 
i mean lay on the mat, take a picture, and probably weighed, it would go back in the water as the injury would come first not self gratification.
 
I'm sure this particular fish was fine. It's just a tiny hook and some blood - how many times have you seen fish with 'horrific' (healed) scars caused by Pike or whatever? It's a tough world underwater, and I reckon they're hardier than we think!
 
i put the pic on should i ever have the misfortune of catching a fish with similar injuries that i might aquire some suitable information to aid the fish,s recovery, it was not my intention to show that anglers can harm fish more to do with gathering information from those with more epierience than myself.
take care
jerry
 
Well said Jerry.

I've learnt something myself from Chris's responses.

Andy F
 
Andy,

If you are referring to Chris's suggestion that fish blood clots quicker under water then there is little evidence to back this claim up.
I was always under the impression that blood coagulation in all animals has little or nothing to do with outside influences and is entirely dependant on internal coagulation mechanisms.
A quick google search came up with this http://http://www.cpafap.embrapa.br/aquicultura/download/rev_bras_biociencias_revisao.pdf which if you can be bothered to read it, (I only skimmed it), seems to confirm what I have said.
It stands to reason however that keeping an injured fish out of water for any period of time is going to cause it more harm than good so returning it with all haste is obviously the best course of action.
 
Jerry Gleeson said:
i put the pic on should i ever have the misfortune of catching a fish with similar injuries that i might aquire some suitable information to aid the fish,s recovery, it was not my intention to show that anglers can harm fish more to do with gathering information from those with more epierience than myself.
take care
jerry
Click to expand...

This sort of reaction to posts, Jerry, is why I always think twice before asking anything...most people are very helpful and positive, but you will always get someone to shoot you down in flames...seems to be the nature of the site a bit...perhaps some people are just a tad too precious, and a bit too keen to "preach"!! ( Hell, here I am asking for trouble again !!!!)

Sad really, cos otherwise it's a great forum and I have found it invaluable as a bit of a novice to Barbel Fishing...

Perhaps the secret is not to take anything too personally !!!!
:eek:
 
Adrian Williams said:
Andy,

If you are referring to Chris's suggestion that fish blood clots quicker under water then there is little evidence to back this claim up.
I was always under the impression that blood coagulation in all animals has little or nothing to do with outside influences and is entirely dependant on internal coagulation mechanisms.
A quick google search came up with this http://http://www.cpafap.embrapa.br/aquicultura/download/rev_bras_biociencias_revisao.pdf which if you can be bothered to read it, (I only skimmed it), seems to confirm what I have said.
It stands to reason however that keeping an injured fish out of water for any period of time is going to cause it more harm than good so returning it with all haste is obviously the best course of action.
Click to expand...

I'm happy to be corrected on this if I am wrong but I'm far too busy to read through all that, so I've taken the liberty of Emailing Dr Bruno Broughton who should have an informed view on the matter.
 
Adrian - It was the bit about blood clotting that I was referring to. Thanks for the link, I just wish I had time to read the document!

Chris - Let's hope Dr Bruno can deliver a slightly more concise summary...

AF
 
Well who would believe it but the good doctor says he don't have a clue?.... I'll ask someone else!
 
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