Pond Boss Forums MANAGING AN EXISTING POND Feeding Catching fish once you start to feed!

Has been twelve days since stopped feeding on one of the now seperated ponds. On the other have been feeding 64 oz every day by randomly broadcasting around perimeter. Took kids out after feeding and fished both for one hour apiece with live grasshoppers. Caught thirty one on one side and twenty eight on the side that we feed on. Most were various sufish but we did catch yp on each side and a crappie on each side. one would not be able to tell any difference at all between the number of bites or the size of fish with the exception of the food bellies on the side we had just fed.

Very interesting topic! Do you guys feel that abrupt discontinuation of feed trained fish on a specific feed program can be detrimental to a BOW? I worry that the biomass can be elevated due to the amount of supplemental food.


Any thoughts?



drp

My buddy came across this problem with his fish and we pondered the situation on how to get the bluegill back to eating natural food. First he used game fish chow so only the bluegill were eating, while they were eating he cut his food back to half as much and we started throwing out crickets with the food and the big gills would watch them and eat more GFC they slowly started eating them mainly big gills. As days went on and this feeding kept on, the bluegill would eat the crickets first. Finally it got to the point where he only threw crickets out. Then he stopped feeding on a schedule and a certain place just throwing at random locations. The bluegill are still doing great, I went fishing there about two months ago he has been doing this for about a year now. I feel like its getting bluegill to act more naturally by eating something live and crickets float an make a lot of commotion on top of the water so it calls in a bunch of gills, also it's easy to watch the takers of crickets since there on top of the water. Another plus is crickets are so easy to keep. Make a box with a wire top, put potatoes, egg crates, green beans, lettuce, grass, and just about anything leafy or great and something to hide under.

BG do not stop eating natural food when they are provided supp feeding (pellets). It just means more food for all. The biggest limiting factor in most waters is not enough food for the existing mouths .

Anytime the food supply (food web) is reduced be it all natural or lots of pellets or fertile water you are going to have lots of problems unless you reduce the fish biomass (harvest) to match the food web.

No doubt that more food means more fish biomass (not necessarily just bigger fish but also more). Population quality requires harvest mgt and water quality as well.

Not sure if this answers the questions but is supp food for thought.

Do crickets provide enough protein for a pond full of BG?

This year grasshoppers are all around here in Oklahoma. Last night we were fishing and I threw a few grasshoppers in the water and they were instantly hit by BG or LMB.

I have heard BG love crickets...

Not to bring up an old subject but I think this will be the last year I feed. It seems to get worse and worse trying to catch my own fish. Yesterday we were fishing for a while and my mom couldn't even get a decent fish to take her small hook. Got a lot of smaller ones nipping at it but that was it. So we strolled over to the feeder in the boat mind you and set right there next to it and I grabbed a bunch of food and chunked it out there and the fish went nuts not 10 feet from us!!! Some nice size fish too. We had just been fishing in that area and couldn't get a bite!

I would rather catch a little smaller fish than not be able to catch hardly any. I am also thinking if I spend 200 bucks on food each year I would just go ahead and put that money towards 10 to 15 pounds of feeder fish in the winter and supplament feed that way. These fish need to work harder for there food they are just to darn lazy!!

RC

Tell me exactly (specifically) what tackle and bait you were using, from hook to rod tip. I realize every pond is different, but I haven't seen that happen in any of the ponds that I've fished in that have fish that are on supplemental feed.

Well I know other things can factor in like cooler weather and high pressure things like that.

I was fishing more for bass and HSB slow rolling a beatle spin so I wasn't to worried about me catching anything as I know both can be quite pickey!

My mom however was fishing with your typical 5.5 foot rod with a quater size bobber and split shot on the line with red worms. Short shank small hook 4 lbs test line. Not sure of size but it looked like a #8 hook.

I turned the feeder off yesterday. Going to let them go without for a week and see what happens. That will tell the tale. I don't know what else to try?

RC

snap swivel on the line or line tied directly to the hook?

One lake I fished on I was using redworms. It was almost like something was wrong with the worms - the fish avoided them. Switched to wax worms and problem went away.

Fishing this past weekend was tough - post cold front.

Try it without feeding for a while, it can't hurt. It could be that the majority of BG were bedding too, and weren't interested in feeding unless the bait was put in the bed.

She did have a small snap swivel!! Good call maybe that was making them act weird?? And your right about the post cold front.

I just find it fustrating that I can go out on a big lake I don't do anything to at all and catch more fish than I can catch in my own 1 acre pond!!!

Growning up I don't remember having this much trouble catching BG no matter what we used as far as hook / line/ bobber ect. But most them BG were wild and competing for food I am sure!

Thanks for your replys esshup I guess I am just venting more than anything. It can get fustrating, but I did enjoy time with mom for sure!

RC

Take the snap swivel off. Tie directly to the line. If there's a split shot on the line, move it to directly under the bobber, away from the hook.

There are less fish in your pond than in the local lakes. If your pond gets fished on a regular basis, and the fish and released back into the pond, they learn what NOT to bite on. The more natural the presentation, the easier it is to get them to bite.

Case in point. I caught a lot of BG on nests using a white 1" curly tail grub. They hit it as soon as it came close. I moved them to the pond. Could I catch them on the same lure? Heck NO! But, switch from a pink jig head/white body to a black jig head/brown body and they hit it.

I'm a big fan of what I call the slow-fall presentation..... no weight, and no float...a size 8 or 10 hook, and in this case, some lively bait, or maybe a small hair jig. It takes a pretty good setup to cast in this fashion, (unless you're using a fly rod), but it usually pays off for me.

Cast, and let it sink slowly. If you have time to eat a sandwich before your lure/bait hits bottom, you're on the right track. Set the hook on ANY twitch of the line.

Speaking from Indiana, my RES are on the beds, and the BG are staging just off in deeper water, with a few hardier souls already fanning out nests. If I were fishing right now, I would cast out to the slightly deeper water beyond known spawning areas.

For many, many years now, I haven't used anything but micro jigs for bluegills. They are perfect for that slow fall presentation when matched w/an ultralight spinning combo w/4lb test. Cabelas sells them in 1/80 and 1/100 oz sizes. Occasionally though, I'll switch things up w/ice jigs. Another plus is that the BG almost never swallow these jigs. The only time I use a swivel is w/an inline spinner to prevent line twist.

I like to fish this way as well, seems to produce more. We always do this when catching bait for Catfish trips.

As far as the BG/HBG I have the opposite issue. I go out trying to catch CC using Liver, Guts, Stink Bait or anything you would think the CC's would like and I cannot get my bait past the BG as they hit it on the way down.

Whatever it takes to catch them I hope it picks up for you.

Keep us posted.

Update on turning feeder off.

Ok now I turned off the feeder Sunday afternoon. My mom and dad went fishing last night dad said he didn't catch any bass or hsb but mom caught about 5 or 6, 4 to 6 inch CNBG and one nice 8.5 incher!! Sorry no picture! So this means 1 of 2 things I guess.

1. Me turning off the feeder is making in difference in catching my BG already just after 2 days. Or.

2. Itjust happend to be a bad day of fishing on Sunday and turning the feeder off really didn't make a big difference at all??? We just caught the fish on a bad day and they were not hungry?

What do you all think makes more since option 1 or 2? I think option 1 is what I am leaning towards for now.

If it is option 1 I won't quit feeding but I will sure feed at certain times of the year other than when I know we will be doing more fishing.

I sure wish they made a feeder that had an app you could control your feeder from your phone as to when you want to feed or stop feeding. That would be cool!!

RC

I don't know how different your weather was Sunday, but Monday I could not get any of my HBG to bite for nothing. Caught 4 of the HSB I put in a couple weeks ago. Throw out feed at feed time and the water boiled. Guess I'm going to have to get me some stubby Steve's.

I think you probably just had a bad day of fishing.

I have been to my pond and the fish just boil the water but do not seem interested in biting at all.

Then there are times that the food is untouched and we knock them out as we fish. This is very odd to me but at least we catch fish when we are there.

Not the shortest drive to the land, so we hope to have a good time when there.

I've had the same experience. And this from a fish that, to read some reports, eats anything and everything all the time. I wonder how many of the articles I've read that touted this supposed HBG trait were written by folks with hands-on experience with this fish, rather than just recycled material from an earlier work?

Matter-of-fact, and on a broader scope, when is it time to revisit old articles, theories, and generally accepted facts regarding fish of all kinds? Certainly building upon the work of recognized authorities is commonplace, but surely new information, new variables, and new questions will sometimes demand another look at what is considered the standard answer?

I don't think the wheel always needs to be re-invented......but I'm open to the idea that improvement can sometimes be achieved by thinking outside the norm, rather than simply accepting as fact, that which has been steadfastly regarded as the final word.

Sorry for getting off-topic, RC.

You take the swivel off of the line??

I think fishing just been crappy last couple weeks.. Feeding too (waters boiling but not alot of variety of eating pellets on my pond feeding)

Just like with other animals when the spawn starts fish are not much interest in food ! Point made.

Hey Esshup

No I am not up there and I have not had a chance to tell dad to take it off so she actually caught those with the swivel so it could have been a lot better maybe with it off! I will take it off this weekend.

Thanks