Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Creating the food chain catfish

does anybody have any idea what type of survival rate channel cats have in 5 acre pond.i keep reading they have a hard time making it but my question is:do you think 10% make it are should i be using a smaller number.trying to decide if i should put more in my pond.we still catch cats but you are lucky if you catch 2-3 aday,we use to catch 7-8 day.

I am not an expert, but it depends on what else is in your pond and how you are managing it. Lot of people pretty much manage catfish as put and take. They don't provide habitat for reproduction and have bass in the pond. The bass take out any offspring even if it comes about. In that scenario, you put in about 6" catfish, feed them, you count how many you take out, and after you take out about 50% you stock their replacements. Survival rate should be very good if you follow suggested stocking rates and take into account pond fertility and feeding.

If you do want your catfish to reproduce, you need to provide spawning habitat, like several old tires or other hollow places, and lot of cover for them to survive to decent size. Exactly at what point those sharp fins stop being palletable for LMB is unclear to me, but people here mentioned seeing dead bass impaled on a catfish in their mouth.

Catfish are also tolerant of low O2 content, so they are pretty hard to kill.

In my pond, I have no problem with survival but with getting them to bite. They get smart and hook shy but will readily take pellets.Catching one pretty well ends fishing. If you do restock use 10 to 12 inch. They don't have much of a predation problem,. 4 to 6 inchers don't last long.

listen to exactly to what ed is telling you....