Why yes Theo - we "fish ranch" at our place as well. We are a bit more sophisticated though...we have a small chute where we routinely turn some of our prime male bluegill and bass into "steers". This is a difficult task, but the fish get larger, tend to be less aggressive and also stop watching sports.

Sorry..I couldn't resist!

We also have a small herd of cattle on our ranch for the same reasons as you. Plus the tax benefits are great!

One of our smaller ponds is specifically managed for "food". It is about 1/3rd acre It started as exclusively a catfish pond and then added bluegill 2 years ago. Most of the catfish had been in there for years unfished. We started harvesting and filling the freezer and then I started again with smaller CC fingerlings. We harvest every stocked catfish that we catch. Last summer after the bluegill started filling it we added 20 Bass to the mix. (caught 4 nice bass this weekend!) There are a few large 8-10 pound catfish that have been in there a loongg time - we throw back if we catch them. I know that they are piggy eaters, but we all have our "sacred cows"!

"Our Life is frittered away by detail. Simplify, Simplify" -Henry David Thoreau -