I've fished some bodies of water wherein the owner said the catfish are uncatchable.
I've caught catfish, and the owner has been in awe.
I think it is a matter of changing up the bait, and presentation. Cheese dogs are awesome, chicken livers sometimes, baitfish with fins clipped to show erratic swimming, and even chumming the area (the day before) such as with rice or other bait.
So if you have catfish you're not landing, try switching up the bait you're using, and don't be afraid to chum prior to attempting to fish. One place for 3 weeks I placed cheese dogs in the same cut that I would then fish with, and 3 weeks later I landed a couple cats on same cheese dogs with the hook buried in the dogs.
