Catfish bait ??

[Iceman1026]

Thinking about goin to the river fri what would be the best bait this time of year ?

Thanks

[mrklean]

cant go wrong with cut bait

[Stick500]

when you guys talk about cut bait do you generally let it get a little rotten or does work fine from a freshly caught/thawed fish?

[Brad B]

when you guys talk about cut bait do you generally let it get a little rotten or does work fine from a freshly caught/thawed fish?

when us die hard cat guys talk cut bait we are talking taking a live sucker minnow and cutting into pieces. fresh seem to be the best but in the spring of the year they will bite on dead frozen suckers. I freeze some suckers during the ice season so I have some in the spring if i can't find live ones in the area. they will work but sometimes not as good as the fresh. another option for catfish bait is dip baits. I like team catfish secret 7 for a dip bait. Chicken livers are also good bait for cats. Raw shrimp that you can get at the grocery store will work also . I tried it once but didn't have luck with the shrimp. the mentioned baits are channel cat baits. if you are looking to fish flat heads then you need to use bullheads(you have to catch your own since most bait shops won't carry them)

I almost forgot yes another option for cut bait is catching suckers or redhorse and then cut them into pieces. sheepshead will work also. basically any rough fish.

[Stick in Mud]

I caught lots of cats this winter on smushed fatheads...would just step on them until they were dead and oozing bloood-n-guts and then put them on the hook. I know this isn't cutbait, but if it catches them in the winter, it seems to make sense that it'd work in the spring, too, no? Any thoughts?

[pushbutton]

Think that would also work in the spring, but if using them would try to load up a hook. Would suggest trying to upsize the bait to keep the dinkier fish away. Does not always work, but usually a decided difference in the size of cat caught as the type and size of presentation goes up, especially after the ice season. Not saying you can't get a 6 lber off a single fathead/crawler/piece of liver, but the six inch cut/squished sucker will keep more of the 12 inchers off your line.

[Stick in Mud]

Thanks for the advice, pushbutton. It's actually very helpful, considering I get tons of little guys where I fish. The big ones will make themselves known, usually by making an initial run that'll pull the rod off the dock if I don't have the drag set loose enough. The little ones don't pull at all, so i'll reel up because I haven't caught one in a while and lo and behold there's a gray bullhead on the end of it.

[masoct3]

Chicken gizzards.....let them sit out or in a bag until they turn green. That will bring 'em in.

[rough_rider]

I hear lots of overthinking and misconceptions. All this "let it rot" stuff. Here are some of my observations:

-younger cats are more omnivorous, willing to eat anything: corn, hotdog, worm, cutbait.

-as cats grow, they become more piscivorous, essentially becoming apex predators and prey exclusively on fish/live critters. will they pass on a dead animal? Of course not; lions, tigers, wolves, hyenas--all these top predators eat dead animals all the time.

*Use nightcrawler if you want a lot of action or when testing new waters but expect smaller cats, drums, suckers, and other fish mixed in.

*Switch to cutbait once you've found your rhythm and confidence with nightcrawler.

*Leech and crawdads have worked for me as well for the ~20-28 inchers.

[nsnutter]

Dude, catch yourself some creek chub or sucker minnows and slice and dice. The fresher and bloodier the better. Don't waste your time on stink baits/dip baits unless you want little bitty channels. A big hunk of bloody cut bait will do the ticket. Don't over-engineer it, cut bait for channels is pretty self explanatory. If you must freeze your bait for storage, try to freeze them while live. Good luck.

[MidCoast]

So I am assuming for Flathead Catfish, the only real go to bait is live bowheads?

[maj330]

What's a bowhead? A chunk of nightcrawler on a #8 circle hook works for flatheads too.

[Scott K]

Flatheads are a predator, they prefer live fish. They are also opportunist, and will take a free fresh dead meal as well.

As far as flathead live bait? You name it, if it is legal, and can fit in its mouth, use it.

Sucker, creek chubs, bullheads, drum or any other legal bait, they will eat it.

Other states allow bluegills, goldfish, carp, drum, but MN is strict on bait laws.

[EBass]

Don't forget the shrimp for channels

[rough_rider]

So I am assuming for Flathead Catfish, the only real go to bait is live bowheads?

Live bullheads would be the preferred bait but not the "only" bait. Key point: do not overthink it. I've caught small flatheads while aiming for channels. Unless you've had your share of big cats and are using big game equipment, do not pursue flatheads until you've mastered the more abundant channel catfish.

[pikestabber]

Fishbites Yeh Monn Freshwater Catfish Bait. Has anyone ever heard of this stuff or tried it? Some positive reviews out there...

[TruthWalleyes]

I usually use big bullheads or other live bait for flatheads...but my biggest flatty to date came on worms...So it can be a carpshoot.

[raiserlures]

Bullheads , cut bait, big suckers,and creekchubs are the only bait i will use. There biting on Bullheads all ready this year. its hard to go away from what works year after year.

[pikestabber]

Fishbites Yeh Monn Freshwater Catfish Bait. Has anyone ever heard of this stuff or tried it? Some positive reviews out there...

I was thinking more for channel cats...just curious if anyone had used it.

[Mr Special]

1st time ive seen it and im sure it would work, but half the fun is catching bait. well at times it is at least