No answer yet from Southeastern Pond Management. They may have thought the email was a joke. If you look closely at their web site these guys are Bass enthusiest and here is what they have to say about catfish:
The channel catfish has traditionally been the species most commonly stocked into ponds. The reasons for the popularity of channel catfish are varied and many. They are easy to catch, attain large sizes, readily train to artificial feed, adapt well to almost any environment, and make fine table fare. Also, catfish generally do not reproduce well in ponds that contain bass, so they are not likely to overpopulate; provided they are stocked at a low density.
"The common belief about catfish is that ol' Mr. Whiskers scanvenges off the pond's bottom and will eat just about anything that he can swallow. While it is true that catfish are not picky eaters, most pond owners do not realize how they compete with bass and bluegill for food. Catfish will eat things that are dead and alive, including minnows and insects. They also can be voracious around automated fish feeders. If you aggressively harvest catfish, they aren't terrible additions to your pond's fish community. The problem with catfish is that they get quite large. And their appetites grow right along with them. So they keep growing, often at the expense of bass and bluegill. Our phlosophy on catfish is this: If you really like to fish for catfish, stock them in low numbers and harvest them before they get too big."
Their web site says nothing about stocking any kind of catfish. Here is the first line on their website: "Few things in life are as exciting as landing a trophy bass or bluegill from your own pond!"
I don't get the feeling from reading the entire web site that they would do any more than turn their nose up at a catfish pond. I may be wrong, I have been before, once or several uh-- hundred times
! Well we have a 20% chance of rain on Monday and Tuesday. If that does not pan out my stocking plans are very close to going down the tubes anyway! :p
