I have a friend....

[walleyeking19]

who keeps any walleye that he catches. he doesn't care how big or small it is. i was with him one time and he kept a 12" walleye and he threw it in the bucket and said "thats a perfect size". I don't know what to do, i've tried talking to him and ask him why he keeps them but he just thinks of another excuse.

what should I do? i ran out of ideas.

[fish2live]

not much you can do if there is not a minimum length on the water he fishes. i'd rather see small ones kept then the big ones anyway.

[PerchJerker]

If he's not breaking any laws like slot limits, there's not anything you can do other than to preach and practice catch and release and selective harvest. I agree with fish2live, I'd much rather see the small ones kept than the larger ones.

I used to get a lot more worked up about the fish people kept, now I try not to worry about it too much. I preach and practice catch and release and selective harvest, but try not to get frustrated by others. Life's too short. Good luck with your friend.

[mrklean]

How good of a friend is he? My good friend i feel i can say anything to, so if one of my friend did something like that because my opinion is we should release them i would chew them a new one cause if hes a good friend he can take it.

[Coach1310]

If you have influence over where he fishes take him to lakes with slot limits any chance you get. This will help him to understand it won't kill him to throw a few eyes back.

[troutmaster]

get over it, some people like to keep and eat the fish they catch.

[Team Otter]

Perhaps we could sort through some ideas over e-mail.

Send me an e-mail when you have a chance and 'Cc' your friend.

[email protected]

[PDOGG]

I also have a friend like that. I thought he was gonna cry the other day when I put back a female full of eggs don't understand his thinking. I also agree I would rather see him keep the little ones.

[keith schultz]

Oh ya lets keep every thing we catch so that we won't have anything to catch in a few years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! then what do we do with all our fishing gear???????????

[PDOGG]

That's what I tried telling him. We both have young boys so I told him I let it go so there where still some fish for them to catch.

[walleyeaddict]

in my eyes keepin a little one is just as stupid as keeping a big one. 2 fish sticks now would be 2 fillets in a couple years! Greed is what it is all about. We need a statewide minimum!

[kkahmann]

I think catch and release is the natural evolution of a fisherman. Ever notice that guys catching the majority of the fish tend to be more into catch and release?

[polarsusd81]

You got that right. The main reason I practice CPR is because if I kept every fish I caught, I would eat nothing but fish, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I want to leave some fish there for my son, so he can enjoy the experiences as he grows.

My dad and uncle, can't catch a communicable disease, so they keep just about all the fish they catch. I try very hard to teach them things about fishing, but they just don't want to learn. The old saying, can't teach an old dog new tricks, definitely applies to them. I tried to get my uncle to join me on a trip to Pool 2 and he said he wouldn't go because it is all catch and release, and he likes to eat fish. So instead, he is going farther down stream, to Pool 4, so he glows a little brighter at night when the lights go down. I'd rather not eat fish from the river, so CPR on some pig eyes is fine with me.

[wolkie]

I beleive as sportsman it is our duty as well our honor to be stewards of the land and waters. There is nothing wrong with using the bounty God has given us. It is only when this privalege is being abused that something should be done i.e. taking more than needed. We all need to protect our fisheries so there will always be more for our future generations to be apart of. I must say there is no taste like a fresh caught eye.

[mrklean]

I love to eat fish as much as the next guy but with the amount of fisherman out there and amount of fish being kept, both little, big, and trophy, i think it is our duty to pratice C&R so the next genarations can have the same success we do.

[tisosy11]

I got a buddy and he wants to KEEP EVERYTHING...no matter the size. He once told me, "I've seen fillets at a restaurant smaller than that!"

I don't care to keep any fish unless necassary or looking for supper! I enjoy the release as much as the catch!

[b1gf1sh1]

this is a multifaceted subject that touches on everything from the aformentioned ''evolution'' of a fisherman to the few times a year fisherman, all the way to cultural beliefs. in the end it amounts to around 80 percent of fish kept are by 2 percent of fishermen. years back 100 percent of fish were kept by 80 percent of fisherman. i believe as long as we follow the path we are on and stick to it, in the end we as fishermen have no major worries in our future.(except funding our fisheries but thats a whole nuther animal) CPR C&R will win out. lead by example. tsossi and others faced with this dilema my advice is just that. don't bother them, show no disgust. in their presence never keep a fish. never. and when you release it and if it feels good to do it. let it show. if they wonder why. say why not. or it just feels good. or both. my advice is don't berate them. there really is nothing wrong with keeping fish, as long as you aint wasting them. ... edit... i should mention these percentages are based on what i believe and days on water and amount caught. everyday fisherman is 100 few times a year fisherman.

[Bigeye30"]

I'd just take him to a dead lake and tell him there's was a hot bite earlier, when he asks why there are no fish biting simply say they must have gotten fished out by the others, maybe he'll get a little upset that someone beat him to it, that's if you feel like taking the rude approach,

In all reality all we can do is practice what we preach and lead by example. Hopefully others will follow.

[kato wall guy]

Buy him a cheap digital camera tell him take a pictures. I have found that the people that dont many fish are the first to 1. keep the fish so they can tell everyone that he caught his limit which leads to 2. always telling people where he is catching his fish. 3. never telling you how big they are. Dont get me wrong there is nothing wrong with keeping some fish to eat every once in awhile. I really wish they would make a state wide slot on walleyes.

[wanger29]

As long as he eats them I guess that's not so bad. I've heard of guys taking fish home and neglecting to clean them & ending up tossing. That's what I've got the biggest problem with. The little ones, but mostly the hogs, are real disappointing to see being kept but a real challenge to convince at times what the right thing to do is. By the way got word of a guy, by himself, earlier this afternoon fishing where I was getting his picture taken on shore with 2-8 lbers. he'd caught today, then he tooled along on his way. Times like those would be a great time to call these guys out on state size limits? I've seen a few too many more than healthy stringers be pulled.

[b1gf1sh1]

there went a half million fry.

[weeds]

Don't fish with him.

[b1gf1sh1]

 Originally Posted By: b1gf1sh1

there went a half million fry.

guess i should ask where, what kind of fish?

[lotsofish]

What lake where you fishing on that he kept a 12" walleye? In reality, there are relatively few natural walleye lakes, most of the lakes you fish for walleyes only have them there because of the stocking by the DNR. In these stocked lakes, the fish can't spawn or the spawn is almost non-existent, so releasing walleyes doesn't really do much for future walleye populations, it only means 1 more fish left in the lake.

I don't have a problem with people keeping any sized walleye from a stocked lake, really, the DNR will just continue to pump thousands of fingerlings or millions of fry in the lake year after year. When it comes to natural walleye lakes and rivers, that's where I would like to see more C&R/selective harvest, because that's where it will really make a difference.

[Team Otter]

Not sure how slot limits would go over on a river system...