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How to bleed a fish

59K views 23 replies 22 participants last post by  Amerman 
#1 ·
I see every couple of months a post on here asking how to bleed your catch. A while back one of my clients asked the same questions, so I had him grab his camera and shot this little how to video for everyone.

Just before the video, the fish was landed and hit once with the club just enough to make its eyes role up, but not too hard (you don't want to stop the fish's heart). You will see with each beat of the heart the fish quickly bleeds out. This is the best way I have found to bleed your catch. Blood free meat and eggs.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zX682QXKFl4

Feel free to ask any questions.
 
#3 ·
Nice video and the explanation was very well put as well. May I be so bold to add one more important thing to make fish taste better? ICE 'EM DOWN after ya bleed 'em. Not too big a deal when the winter weather is here but in the summer it's quite critical. :twocents:

Anyone else think so? :lurk:
 
#12 · (Edited)
Never said I belong infront of a camera. Just figured it would be a lot easier to show someone than try and type it out. I think squirt bleeding is two words but maybe it's just me. Guess I need to watch more CSI

ICE 'EM DOWN after ya bleed 'em.
I agree. This day it was about 36 out, if you couldn't tell by my 2 hats and hoody I had just pulled down.


never thought about the importance of the final couple heart pumps
Often the heart will beat for 15-20 minutes.

I think we saw you do that 4 times for us the other day. Nice video.
Sorry I couldn't teach you anything new:D

u mean all these years of just ripping the gills apart with my hands have been wrong???....
That can work too. I would still do both sides. I guess if you really need to, you can just pull the heart straight out and eat it while it beats, gets the job done too.

Thx to everyone else too.
 
#16 ·
Well done Scott.

I think it was DJ that showed me years ago when holding the fish over the box, Reach knife straight down into the throat and cut across the top of the gill arches, severing them from the top of the mouth. That cuts across the veins going to both sets of gills. They dump their blood super quick. I've done it that way ever since.

It's a cut that needs to be made when you clean the fish anyway. Just be careful with the blade.

Whichever way you cut them, cutting is far superior to ripping a gill. A sharp cut bleeds quicker. Think of a paper cut or a broadhead slice.
 
#22 ·
I saw this in a video and tried it on my first sturgeon...worked like a charm - it started squirtbleedin' (©2009 Amerman) all over the boat...like a lot.

Lay it on it's back and make your cut here straight down towards the top of the sturgeon:



Tie your rope off to a cleat and the tail, and drop it overboard.

Do make sure your knots are good and tight... :)
 
#17 ·
Nice video. Thats exactly the way my grandpa taught me to do it many years ago. With hens I have always found it best to remove the eggs right away and put them on ice. If I dont have ice then I bleed the same as above plus I like to make an incision near the heart and where the top of the egg skeins are to help drain any blood that coagulates in the area.
 
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