Thanks or the tips!
I thought channel cats were thriving in Winnipeg, which is way colder than here.
Maybe I can look into trying them.

When I was a kid I caught a few 3" or so catfish in a pond in the city. They were elongated, or not looking like a bottom fish-style. If only I could have ID'd them. May be be worth the trip to see if any are still in there.
They were feisty little things, it would be awful to release a catfish that only grew 3". Yet still had a mouth large enough to clean out any new introductions! Lots of research to do yet. Maybe those things grew 3'.