Frogs

[Ed Carlson]

You guys have me all intrigued by this frog stuff. I've never used or caught frogs. Other than running over them on the highway I've never tried to catch frogs. I'm heading for Lockport this weekend so I'm sure I'll get trained in on how to use them. Can somebody kind of school up us rookies on catching and keeping frogs:

#1: Explain how you find them and the best way to catch them. What are you looking for in ponds or places to find them?

#2: When you are catching them what do you put them in? Don't they just jump out of a 5 gallon bucket?

#3: When you have caught a bunch how do you keep them alive or store them? My wife will love me setting up another bait tank of some sort I'm sure.

Steve have a good back-up supply of frozen suckers, just in case the Goldeye are fussy.

Steve once you get cross the border watch for good Froggy looking spots along the way, ditches with water near bye but mowed ditches are best and easiest to catch them in. Near freshly harvested fields is a good tip too, they get pushed out into the ditches.

If your staying at "Cats on the Red", check in with Stu and ask him about seasonal preferences for bait. See if he can set you up with his favorite "September Bait"...tell him I recommended you chat.

[HotPocket]

Hey elwood any Frogs...

[Gordie]

yep loads

[Ed Carlson]

I Just got 300 Waterdogs in guys.

All ready to go bark at some kitty's.

[Shack]

Goo dluck with those Dogs/puppies Ed!

uppdacreek, elwood and dtro

I know I do not fish the Red, but good tip on the cut frogs Jerry.

On the Miss. North I have had pretty good success with using frogs live. I do not hook them in the head, but in the rear area like this:

When you toss them in (try is shallow to see), they will fight to get to the surface. If you are in an area with active feeding channels, this can be a great time to trigger a quick bite. After 30-60 seconds they find cover and need to be moved. The other trick (and down side to) when fishing with live frogs is they do need to breath. I know they can breath threw their skin and can absorb oxygen to a point while in water. I think the stress of being hooked and tossed out in the middle of river current, from the comfort of a bucket hinders their ability to maximize this. They still need to make it to the surface. I bring them up every 5 minutes or so. Some die quick and others are pretty hardy. It seems 8-10 minutes is the point of no return even with a strong frog. I learned and used frogs when I was younger for Mille Lacs fall, day time, shallow walleyes with gramps. He loved his frogs

Never have for cats, but I would love to try bobber fishing with live frogs.

[Gordie]

thanks Shack and seeing taht frog hooked there OUCH

[Shack]

Ya, he got a 6/0 Gama Octi Circle right in the kisser I also have had good luck giving them room to play. About 12"-16" leader.

[Lowblazah]

Ya, he got a 6/0 Gama Octi Circle right in the kisser

Dang your definition of "kisser" must be different than mine!

[Shack]

Well, I was going to say something else, but I kept getting a [PoorWordUsage] popping up all the time Isn't that where the princess is supposed to kiss anyways?

[Gordie]

good one shack and I think its called keister

[MinnesnowtaWild]

Anyone have luck using toads or is it pretty much only effective using frogs?

[Ed Carlson]

4 out of 5 Catfisherman say Frogs taste better..but don't take my word for it...try them both...compare for yourself...Toads just taste nasty to me.

[Gordie]

your not suposed to eat the toads Ed just lick em

[Ed Carlson]

You ever watch a dog try to eat a Sand Toad? They excrete a mild poison that is designed to discourage predators.

Dem nod's nakes nur tung gno numm.

I also think it's bad "Ju-Ju" to use Tree Frogs, they get a pass from me too. Tree Frogs for Cat fisherman are like Banana's to Bass fisherman...bad luck to have them around.

Some species are endangered or protected by law, so if you stumble upon some nifty looking amphibious critters...check before toss'n them in for Kitty chow.

[Gordie]

yep tree frogs bad JU-JU only leporad frogs for me I try to stay away from the toads also

[pureinsanity]

I caught my big channel on a toad. I actually read some place they prefer toads over frogs

[pureinsanity]

Probably an easier meal for a cat as toads are a lot slower.

[MinnesnowtaWild]

I just ask because I have hundreds of them running around my lawn that I always seem to run over with the lawn mower.

[pureinsanity]

Nice, Prepared cut bait

Try them out! I have caught a channel on a toad, as has Keven.

[Ed Carlson]

Toads can work, but not nearly as well as Kermits in my experience.

But if that Mr. Toad has a fat belly full of fresh juicy crickets and grasshoppers...Miss Piggy will gladly gobble it up.

Are ya starting to get the interconnection now guys?

A tip on seasonal use of Toads and Frogs....they are kitty and walleye candy all the way up tell they get very cold and start to put on there winter anti-freeze....a chemical change occurs in there skin. From this point on, they are not too high on the menu and it's time to go back to fish cuts fresh as you can get.

Now long after ice-up and the stray Kermit is wondering around on the mud bottom with a terminal case of insomnia, well they get gobbled up again by walleye and pike.

I think this is a case of forage of availability and location, they eat them because they are easy to hunt for. This is most often seen during the early ice and late ice periods when easy forage is good forage for most fish.

[Blue Kayak]

Here are a couple pictures of my new frog catcher. What I really like about it is that it also works great for catching grasshoppers at the same time. It is made from 1/2 inch hardware cloth with a 1" X 2" wooden frame. It also has a couple of 2" X 4" handles. I just had some scrap laying around and had misplaced my trout net that I previously used. Of course, I found my trout net a couple of days later, but now I won't be using it for catching frogs.

Here it is from the top.

Here is the back side.

It is much larger than the net, so that is probably why it works better for frogs.

For grasshoppers, I throw the frame. The 1/2" screen is large enough for the hoppers to crawl through, and my hand is waiting for them. Sometimes they get out quicker than I can catch them, but usually they end up crawling right into my waiting fingers.

Has anyone ever tried hoppers for catfish? I've read that they work really well, but have not had much luck yet.

[aanderud]

I've seen some jumbo grasshoppers that I thought about using for bait, but I honestly think they might be better for walleyes than catfish. I haven't tried them out.

To me, it doesn't seem like the quantity of juice and scent from a grasshoper would be enough to attract the attention of a fish that is looking for food in turbid, murky water, primarily using scent. What little bit of juice and meat a grasshopper does have seems more well suited for walleyes in slightly cleaner water, where they can home in on it via sight and decide after chomping on it whether it tastes good or not (hopefully before I set the hook).

[Ed Carlson]

The collapsible folding triangular shaped Frabill pack net that also extends, is a good Kermit catcher, and serves well as a hopper stopper. The bag is deep enough to keep them in and the extending handle is handy. Runs about $30.

[SteveD]

Jerry - How soes that wooden wire thing work? Do you just toss it over the frog?

[Blue Kayak]

No. I toss it over the grasshoppers from several feet away. With frogs I try to move slow and get it close, then move it down fast on top of them. However, I would toss it at a frog if it was moving fast and did not look like it would stop. It is more difficult to remove a frog from this frame than the trout net, but it is much easier to get them inside the frame.