The right thing to do?

[Whitetailchaser]

My wife and I were out fishing with the rest of the pack just out of turtle creek today and weren't having the greatest luck.We decided to try our luck down by Crane Creek, and on the way over I spotted a huge walleye floating belly up,and decided to go back and check it out. I had my wife net it for closer inspection, and to my surprise it was very much alive, we both thought it was dead . So I looked in its mouth thinking maybe it a a hook lodged in its gill plates or throat and was suffocating,,the only injury we could see was around her vent, she was bleeding pretty good and had spawned out. It looked like her vent was torn out from spawning and the lake water was entering her body cavity. Took some pictures and measured her (33 inches) and tried to resucitate her by swishing her back and forth in the water. I watched her for awhile and she still couldn't right herself. We both knew she probably wouldn't make it, so we................................................ .....

[gju42486unlogged]

SOUNDS LIKE YOU MADE THE RIGHT CHOICE, TOUGH CALL EITHER WAY, THERE WILL ALWAYS BE THOSE PEOPLE THAT QUESTION EITHER CHOICE YOU WOULD OF MADE. AS LONG AS YOU THINK YOU MADE THE RIGHT CHOICE, THATS ALL THAT MATTERS.

[Steve B]

I was out on a headboat last Tuesday. The captain spotted a huge eye floating belly up, but still alive. He pulled next to it, and the first mate netted it. He threw a tape measure on it, and it was 31". He opened up the cooler, threw it in, and closed the lid. At the end of the day, we were all exiting the boat, and I heard a bunch of "oohs and ahhs". I looked back, and the first mate was walking through a small crowd of people in the parking lot with the fish. I don't know what he did with it.

Are these fish safe to eat? Was it most likely spawning that lead them to their demise?

[SUPERTROLLER]

In Michigan, you can only keep a fish if it was legally hooked in the mouth. You can net smelt and other small fish for bait but not any game fish. I don't see a problem, myself, with keeping a fish that obviously is going to die. I hate to see a nice fish go to waste just to feed the gulls. The local law enforcement might not see it the same way depending upon what kind of mood you catch them in. You also couldn't use this fish in any tournamnet weigh-in either, right guys! LOL. I'm serious but you just know some people aren't as honest as you obviously would be. Trying to revive it is the right thing to do but if it's still going belly-up I'd rather see someone add it to their daily bag limit.

[went522]

I've seen MANY larger eyes belly up, half alive. I've tried in the past to get them going, it just hasn't worked any of the times. Most of the time it's from hooking mortality. Now, I might swing by to see just how big it is but I leave it lay. To many wardens runnin around this lake, there glasses can see a long way! Last year had a warden stop by and check me, asked "how big was that smallie?" I told him hadn't caught a smallie or any other fish in 20-30 min. "I know, I've been watching!" Just not worth it to ME. But, I don't hold it against any guy that'll scoop them up and do what they will with them. Unless of course it's a tourny.

BIRDDOG

[Unlogged T-Mac]

It was either you or the sea gulls were going to have the fish.

I'd have done the same thing.