Can you shoot a fish caught with rod and reel?

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They're a bunch of upper crust dingles who don't like guns. I'd like to see one jump in the frigid water and deal with a 500 lb. salmon shark or barn door halibut bare handed. They put absurd ideals of "sportsmanship" over safety and humane slaughter.
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Uh, I think you're a bit off-base.

Sport fishing records have nothing to do with anything but sport fishing records. You can still eat the fish. You can still have the picture of you and the fish hung up at the local bar without being mocked as a fake. The fish might still be of interest to news reporters, marine biologists, sportfishing-related businesses.

You just can't have a record, recorded with a particular organization, for landing a 500 lb. fish in your boat, when you didn't do that.

Think about this. What if you're the guy who actually landed a live 485 lb. halibut in your boat? Would you want your record to be broken by a guy who shot his fish in the water?

I agree with you about safety, ethics, humane slaughter, etc. But since when have world records been about safety, ethics, etc?:)
 
I caught a 104lb halibut in Alaska when I was about 19. The skipper popped it in the head with a .410 before we pulled it in the boat. Some of those fish are a couple hundred pounds of thrashing lean muscle and WILL break your legs, kill you, knock you off the boat, or kick a hole in the boat if you try to bring them onboard alive. The last time I went up we got little 30 pounders and just gaffed them and threw them in the fish box.
You don't want to go in the water there, just sticking your arm in the water is painful and you won't be swimming for more than about 5 seconds before you can't move.
 
DTD, quit whining and go read The Old Man and the Sea by this guy.

hemingway.jpg
 
California law allows for unlicensed concealed carry by licensed fishermen while engaged in fishing, or going to or coming from said fishing.

So, presumably, there's some legal situation where you would shoot fish.
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Can you cite the code that allows that?
 
I wouldnt consider it as the smart thing to do. That is a good way to put a whole in your boat or possibly lose a gun.

When I go fishing for monster cats or cobia, or catch a shark, your everyday rubber mallot or hammer will do the trick for killing them. (or in the Cobia's case, dazing it so that it doesnt trash the deck of your boat or break your leg with one good snap of the tail)
 
People who take fatal risks with lousy odds, in the pursuit of a token world record, deserve whatever they get. If they live, they should get their record and be quickly forgotten. If they die, they should simply be quickly forgotten.
 
I have buried my Aftco gaffs in some real big, and real green cobia. They come onbaord and get to beat the snot out of one of the infloor fishboxes. Followed by heaps of ice ASAP.
Sharks are cut and dragged (since someone else has posted this already, I won't be giving newbies any ideas) The only way I'll eat shark meat.
Kingfish and wahoo get the same treatment as the Ling- Ice, steel, grill, butter, etc... Yummy!
 
California law allows for unlicensed concealed carry by licensed fishermen while engaged in fishing, or going to or coming from said fishing.

So, presumably, there's some legal situation where you would shoot fish.
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Are you sure that's not to prevent piracy?
 
I'm old enough to recall how a small .22 revolver was pretty standard equipment in most serious Musky Hunter's tackle boxes.

One of my neighbors hailed from Kenora Ontario and always had a little starter pistol sized .22 wrapped in an oilcloth (that dates me right there) along with a box of ammo in the bottom of his tackle box.

Only saw him use it once on a really good sized pike before bringing it in the boat. I have to give him credit, Fred knew how to fillet a Pike and get all the Y-bones out. Great eating, not up to walleye Shore Lunch standards, but pretty darned good in a Beer Batter.

Now they all switched to the weighted billy club if they are keeping the fish.

Darn, it's Friday night and now I'm hungry for fish! Better check witht he wife and see if she feels like a trip to the VFW for some fish and pitcher of beer.
 
DTD, quit whining and go read The Old Man and the Sea by this guy.
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I haven't read that in a long time! The old man should have had a gun for the sharks, but I suppose if you fight a fish for a couple days he wouldn't be as much of a risk being all tuckered out. :)
 
Think about this. What if you're the guy who actually landed a live 485 lb. halibut in your boat? Would you want your record to be broken by a guy who shot his fish in the water?
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You don't shoot it when it's swimming by. You raise it up to the surface and shot its brain out, then hoist it up. To do otherwise is to put everyone's safety at risk esp on the deck of a crowded boat in a giant washing machine full of lethal cold water. I don't think the jerks who make these rules have a clue about the conditions people fish in up here, even on "good" weather days. I think they're a bunch of upper crust jerks with their own pleasure craft used to having a team of underlings lift their marlin or whatever on board. But I digress ;-) I'm really just burning with petty envy.
 
The record for an Alaskan Halibut is not the same as the record for a Marlin.

Again, I agree with you about not committing suicide in pursuit of a world record. However, those who pursue world records may not agree. Let 'em do whatever...:) They have issues, and they have to live with themselves like any of us.

Why are records so important anyway? And why do you make yourself sound like you envy these people?
 
In the immortal words of Kevin Cronin: "You can tune a piano, but you can't tuna fish"
 
Apparently you can off-shore in Alaska. The guide didn't tell me about this practice until I had caught a 180 lb. halibut and they had hooked it through the side and pulled it up to the rail of the boat.

I'm admiring my catch and a huge bang goes off 3 feet left and 2 feet back from me. The guide is standing there with a Glock 22 and looks at me. Then I hear the brass plop in the water over to my right. Then I look back at him...

"That thing'd break yer legs."

"Oh. Ok. Thanks....
.
.
.
.
.
Glock 22?"

"Yep."

:uhoh::eek::what::eek:

But ultimately, :D.
 
I can see alot of reason for shooting a halibut or monster fish like tuna, but anything else with a head not much bigger than yours is the perfect size for a hammer, mallot, crowbar, or club.

In all honesty, the only time I'd have a gun on me when fishing is if I was in Florida or some place down far south, and it would be a 12-gauge or my cousin's .357 to take out snagged alligator gar, gators and pythons.:uhoh:
 
Why do you need to shoot a fish you caught with rod and reel? My buddy just set the IGFA world record on hammerhead and he didn't see the need to shoot the thing...If he can bring in a 1000+ lb hammerhead on a rod and reel NOBODY needs to shoot fish.

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The difference is that I'm not fishing in a 30' center console boat with a tuna tower. I'm in a 14' aluminum v-hull with a 10 hp motor. I don't intend on going out to catch a record fish, but if I happen to accidentally hook up with a big shark that I intend on keeping, it would be safer for all of the occupants of my boat if the fish were dead before being brought onboard or even close to the boat.

As far as a richochet, I wouldn't be shooting at the fish when it was 30 feet away from the boat. I would surely wait for the fish to be close enough that the bullet would either enter the fish or fragment on impact with the water. I know that a richochet off of water is possible and I have seen it happen before. I just wouldn't allow enough of an angle with the water that a richochet would be likely.

I appreciate the honest answers, as I was half expecting to be flamed for asking this question. Please know that I have no intention of shooting every fish that I catch, I just want to know if I am likely to end up in trouble for killing a fish in this manner if the need arises.

One of my neighbors hailed from Kenora Ontario and always had a little starter pistol sized .22 wrapped in an oilcloth (that dates me right there) along with a box of ammo in the bottom of his tackle box.
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My grandparents have a cabin in Sioux Narrows and I have been to Kenora several times. Lake of the Woods is a beautiful place. I hope to take my children there some day. Also, if the S ever HTF, that's where I'll be headed.
 
Can you shoot a fish caught with rod and reel?
I recently acquired a small boat that I have been using to do some fishing in the intracoastal. I was wondering if I catch a fish that is simply too big or violent to bring into the boat alive (eg: a shark), can I shoot it to kill it? As long as I am sure that the fish is legal to keep and I am fully confident that there is no way my actions could injure another party, would I be justified in using a firearm to prevent any harm to myself or my vessel?

There is a story in this month's Florida Sportsman about a man who fought a 600 pound mako for 3 hours on light tackle before he called in two more boats to help out. They shot it with a 12 gauge shotgun and a .40 caliber handgun. Just got me thinking.

There are laws in Florida that criminalize the "taking" of fish with a firearm. But what if the fish is taken with rod and reel, and the firearm is only used to finish the fight? I suppose it would be legal as long as I'm not breaking any other laws concerning discharging the firearm?
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Only if the fish was reaching for a side arm!
 
The difference is that I'm not fishing in a 30' center console boat with a tuna tower. I'm in a 14' aluminum v-hull with a 10 hp motor.
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Please DO NOT try to boat a big fish in a 14' boat.

I must admit that I have been about seven miles offshore in my Alumacraft 1648 with a 30hp- grouper fishing on a nearshore artificial reef. The look of shock when the guys in the 19' center consoles was priceless. :what:
One of them actually broke the water for me when we headed in- I had limit of gags and black seabass. ;) even released a small kingfish
People often asked me why I carried 200' of 1/2 rode on a johnboat:D
 
I know some guys who do a lot of bowfishing in rivers and lakes here in Texas. They don't use guns, but they do have a club. Alligator gar have a lot of teeth so they have to bring them in close and knock them over the forehead to kill them. I have gone with them and we were trolling along the shore in the middle of the night with campers not too far away. Gun fire would not have been good.

Texas allows bowfishing of non-game fish so you can go for carp, gar, tilapia and such.

http://www.bowfishtexas.com/
 
Think about this. What if you're the guy who actually landed a live 485 lb. halibut in your boat? Would you want your record to be broken by a guy who shot his fish in the water?
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I wouldn't mind (but if it's against the rules, it's against the rules). Fighting the fish is the hard part (usually for a couple hours) and often once it sees the boat it'll take off again like it's running from the police, several times. Actually pulling it on the boat when the fight is over isn't even done by the fisherman on any charter I've been on, and usually those big ones won't fit in the fish box so it's a safety issue. Well-heeled guys probably charter a boat solo but anytime I've gone there are at least 6 guys fishing off the deck, not a good place for a flopping ankle-breaker!
As for riccochets, anytime I've seen one shot, it's basically a shot straight down when it's alongside the boat, it's not like you are trying to drill it 30 feet out.
 
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