Handling Carp With Care

By Bob Roberts

You know, I can’t remember how long ago it was that I joined a bunch of dedicated carp fanatics on the first ever CAG Fish-in at Mille Lacs but I’ll certainly never forget their enthusiasm. What an inspiration it was to someone who lives in a culture where it is second nature to fish for carp.

Since then I’ve fished in the States on a number of occasions and thoroughly enjoyed every minute of each trip, especially the one I shared with Bud Yancey and Bernie Haines on the St Lawrence River.

Today I sit in front of a computer screen 3,000 miles or more away and derive a great deal of satisfaction from seeing how the CAG has grown and how successfully you have managed to spread the gospel. Attempting to change the perception of a nation is a pretty tall order, but I think you are getting there. Keep up the good work.

When Jack Blackford made contact and asked me to write a piece on carp care I had to think long and hard about what I would say. You see, I understand how carp are regarded in the States and a typical English carp care piece would be totally inappropriate, not because your fish deserve to be treated any differently, it’s just a case of being realistic at a given point in time. There is little point in giving a lecture on gourmet cooking when the audience is struggling to grasp the principle of a can opener! Please don’t be offended by that quip, most of you who are reading this article practise fish care, but you are very much in a minority when compared to the 60 million anglers on your side of the pond.

So, why should we care for carp? I’d like to turn that question on its head and ask you to consider what happens when you go for a swim. Our bodies experiences a state of semi-weightlessness when we are in water. A carp out of water experiences the exact opposite. For the first and probably the only time in its life it can feel its own weight. If you lay a fish on a hard or rocky surface that weight is transferred directly onto its rib cage. If the fish panics and begins to thrash around, it is all too easy for it to cause real damage to its internal organs, perhaps break a rib or two and it will certainly damage the rays in its fins and tail.

Surely carp deserve more respect than that.

In Europe where a carp may be caught several times through the course of a season it is extremely important that the fish is returned unharmed. We go to great lengths to ensure this happens - padded unhooking mats, barbless hooks, soft shock leaders, slime friendly weigh slings, antiseptic lotions for cuts and hook marks and so forth. The exercise might seem a little over the top to you but it certainly pays off. Some of the larger fish we catch are 50 years old and more.

In the States, where at the present time, carp seem to be a never ending resource and few fish get caught more than once in a lifetime, there is less pressure on the angler to treat a fish with quite the same respect. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do it though. Conservation and ethical treatment of animals is a huge issue in the world today and I believe we owe it to ourselves to treat carp with dignity. If it is not going to be eaten I believe our first priority should be to return it unharmed to where it came from.

So how should you treat carp? It is unlikely that you can easily buy an unhooking mat over there but a pillow or piece of thick foam can easily be tucked inside a large polythene bag and perform exactly the same role.

On the other hand, do you really need to remove the fish from the water in the first place? Why not unhook it in the landing net?

If you wish to photograph your catch or have a desire to bring it ashore, look for the biggest tufts of grass or rushes you can find and let these support the fish. Do not lay a fish on rocks or even sand. How would you like to have your eyes pressed into a pile of sand or gravel?

It’s common sense really.

I’ll close with a word on photography because more carp are put at risk during the taking of photographs than at any other time.

Number one problem comes when the excited captor stands upright and tries to push his fish towards the camera. Big mistake! If it struggles you’ll be lucky to hold on. The carp will fall to the ground and certainly suffer internal damage. Keep the fish close to the ground at all times. Bend those knees.

And when you hold the fish up to the camera, never under any circumstances place your fingers in the gill covers to get a better grip. Damage the gill rakers and your trophy will surely die.

Don’t support it’s weight over your knee either because this can push ribs into organs and cause internal bleeding.

I know you get to see our UK magazines so have a look at how big carp are held. One hand is placed under the fishes chest so that the fingers go either side of the pectoral fin. The other supports the tail end of the fish and again the fingers go either side of a fin, this time the anal fin. It is son easy when you get used to it. I do hope this helps. Let’s not just put ‘em back alive, let’s make sure they survive.

Good luck to you all out there and keep spreading the word.

Bob Roberts, Editor
Advanced Carp Fishing Magazine

Bob Roberts World of Angling