How to save a Pike?

[Pig_sticka]

So your out fishing Northerns and you end up catching a smaller norther with a treble hook(attached to a hard artificial) swallowed down a long ways. You look around for the trusty pliers when you find out there aren't any. What do you use to get the hook out?

I tried to slowly work my finger down without gettin my finger ripped to shreds by the teeth. I tried working it out by grabbing the bait and using that to try and work the hook out, but the thing was that all 3 hooks were stuck back in the throat. I ended up cutting the line but the bait was way to big in the northerns mouth to look like he could actually live. So I was just asking what other people do when that happens, besides keeping them because this fish was maybe 14 inches long and I dont care to clean northerns.

[Random guy]

The best attempt I think would to try and reach down with a long nose heavy wire cutters and snip the hooks. I know that most don't carry such a tool with them but other then that it is a tough situation to get out of. I would run into that on RED alot so I found a set of "High Leverage Wire Cutters" in a tool catalog. They look like really long side cutters and they work awesome for cutting deep hooks and they are strong enough to snip heavy musky hooks. I would say they are 18" long with a regular side cutter head on them.

[MuskyBrian]

Fishing for pike without pliers is not fun at all. A time or two we have forgot the trusty tool doing walk in portage lakes up in Canada and it is an awful idea. Dangerous for the person and definetely huinders the handling of fish. After learning my lesson, it is now at the top of my tools to never leave home without.

[Swimmer]

Considering that you are talking about a 14" pike...it would be nice to save him, but...

Realistically he is already a gonner, so I would kill him to remove threat of thrashing, and then stick an object (like a stick) down his throat to try and dislodge or turn the treble so it can be removed (ripped out?). Sounds kind of grim, but it's better than stitches, or worse.

[Pig_sticka]

I suppose even heading to shore quick and grabbing a stick to dislodge the bait might work, and then he might have a chance at living still.