Ice Fishing etiquette...

[rooney5150]

Amen brother....

[hovermn]

Yeah, umm. I'd like to second that notion!

[metrojoe]

"Get a rope"

[Chris H]

OK so i heard of trash which is a huge problem, and people driving too close very bothersome,I'd like to bring up another DOGS ahh i lost 37 fish to other peoples dogs last year. What do you do i love dogs their owners are nice ive had people bring me half of a northern back with an apologie but my first fish through the hole this year nice crappie gone in 10 minutes. what do you say to people i give up..

[Anylakeanytime]

That is the first time of hearing that nuisance before... I must admit I got a (little) laugh hearing about the dog problem. I too like dogs and their owners may be nice and all but if it happened to often (as it has for you) I too would be bothered by it.

[FOOT]

Chris, I had an uncle (he's since pasted on) who taught his black lab to retreive fish.

He fished both Lake Zumbro and the Mississippi and if he wasn't catching anything he'd send out hi slab to see what he could bring back.

We (a bunch of my friends and I) had our shack close to his and had a nice bite of crappie going. We counted and marked our catch on the inside of our shack so we had a good accurate count but when we went to leave we were short several nice crappie. It didn't take too long to see what was going on. When we confronted my uncle he said that he did it just for fun and would have given them back before we left but I seriously doubt it.

After that we would take along a cooler to put the fish in.

[Trap Man]

Yeah this is sad. Was up on Lake of the Woods with one of my friends the other day. And we ended up picking up 20 1 ponders countless beer cans and pop bottles. And found several eelpout buried in the snow. Sad Sad Sad.

[metrojoe]

Wow, I've never heard of anyone losing that many fish to dogs. I see dogs on the ice from time to time but they are always more interested in the ham sandwich I'm holding. As annoying as that sounds, you might have to consider putting your fish in a bucket.

[eyepatrol]

I'd have to say my biggest pet peeve is the guy who sets up right close to where you're fishing. I try and stay at least 100 feet or more away from other fisherman. There's no need, IMO, to be any closer than that. Fish swim around...that's what they do, and I'm sure they will swim 100 feet in a day. Last year we were on a lake, having a good crappie bite going, nobody within probably 200 feet of us, and a guy drives up with a wheel house and starts drilling holes about 20 feet from us. Throwing things on the ice, banging things, making all kinds of noise. Needless to say, the fish were gone when that started. I don't mind when people are 100 feet away, or even 75 feet, but, in my own opinion, less than 50 feet apart starts to become crowded.

Guys that drive their 4-wheelers or snowmobiles right past your door is my 2nd pet peeve. Trash on lakes ranks right up there too.

[89Bronco]

That gets me...the people who leave fish on the ice. It's usually eelout, but I've also seen small perch or small walleyes, too. In the summer, I don't throw a bass up on the riverbank after I catch it just because I am not going to eat it. Let the dang fish go back down the hole if you're not going to keep it!

[tylerflom89]

Those dog stories remind me of one, of a lighter nature. My Grandpa told me a story once about his friend, Crazy,'s dog. He said it was the smartest dog he knew, and Crazy always took it fishing with him. Well, Crazy always used stringers, until one time, when he tried using a cooler, because nobody had a stringer. Well, the dog saw Crazy put the Eye' in the cooler, and promptly walked over, picked the fish up in his mouth, and dumped it over the side of the boat! The dog then stared at Crazy, as if to say "The fish go out there, why'd you put it in the cooler?"

The dog was so smart, it remembered Crazy always put the fish on a stringer, which meant he dumped them over the side of the boat!

[ozzie]

people on the ice setting up close does not bother me nearly as much as snowmobilers wizzing across the lake or driving in and out of the crowd cause the fish aren't biting or what ever reason they decide to drive near crowds.....the other two things are trash and dogs. I don't mind people bringing their dogs out but keep them close to you or on a leash cause i personaly don't want to deal with them!!! Also if you bring something on the ice take it with you. It is just too easy to throw anything you have for garbage in a bag or the bottom of your house and take it home!!!!!! Cig butts also are very easy to put out in the snow dump the remaining tobacco and throw in your pocket for future disposal. It is almost as easy as flicking it on the ground.

[aug495fish]

I like to fish with my kids. I have an 8 year old boy, and 2 girls who are 5 and 3. Do people really get upset if they go out of the house and play during the times that they get bored? For the most part they fish and love it but there are times that they like to go out and play in the snow. Am I breaking an unwritten rule by letting them go out and play?

[Trouthunter]

anyone ever toss an ice scoop at a dog???

[Dan Thiem]

Aug,

There is so much for kids to do when the bite slows down. By all means get out with the kids. Play hockey, build a snowman, have a snowball fight. It's all about being outdoors.

You and your kids have all the right in the world to do whatever activities you want. That's how I raised my kidlets!

If you ever get to S.E.Mn. let me know. There is a place where kids can slide down a hill and ice fish too! It's called Foster Ahrends Park. It's stocked with trout.

[Walleye Guy]

Trout,

Speaking of dogs and ice scoops. I was at my cabin in NW Wisconsin fishing with tip-ups. My own lab was on the ice with me. I put a shiner on the hook I had on a tip-up and my lab Rebel repeatedly was trying to grab the shiner and the treble hook as I put it down the hole. Out of pure reaction and protection for him I swatted him lightly with the metal ice scooper and hit him on the front knee joint. Unfortunately I hit him in a bad spot and he yipped for 5 straight minutes. I thought one of the nearby fisherman was going to turn me in to the Humane Society. I felt like dump as I rubbed my dog's sore leg as he whimpered non-stop. Talk about feeling like the worst pet owner in the world. I think he knew I wasn't trying to hurt him but I felt like dump.

WG

[nytelyter]

Quote:

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anyone ever toss an ice scoop at a dog???

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no but i have thrown a four way tire iron thru a back window of a car after it flew right by my fishhouse (less than 20') for the third time in less that 5 minutes. funny thing is i didnt see him the rest of the evening

[Pat K]

Anyone complaining about someone fishing with their kids should find a new hobby. Your kids are the future of fishing, the anti's are hitting them all angles disguised as entertainment or education.

Pat K

[Eric Wettschreck]

Bring the kids and when the bite is off let em run around outside and goof off. That's what it's all about.

By the way, when the perch bite slows down, send the kids outside to bang around on the ice and there's a chance the perch bite will pick up again.

[Wish2Fish]

If somebody gets upset because you're kids go outside to play, then they're the one with the problem. There are few things nicer to see than FAMILIES fishing together...winter or summer. Keep it up.