Transfering Fish???

[mcdenney]

Is it legal to transfer fish caught in a lake/river to a persons own private pond assuming they meet the length requirement?

[CSS archer]

As long as it is a legal fish for taking, it should be OK. I'll check into it further. It is illegal however to put fish in public waters.

After all, if it is legal to be introduced to a hot skillet, why would putting in in your own pond be illegal, either way it is no longer in the public waterway?

[Scott7m]

one of my favorite streams for catching bait seemed to be void of chubs a couple years ago, I kept trying to figure out what was going on, then one day i noticed a big catfish laying in a deep hole, about 4ft deep, i waited til the creek got muddy, and went up and down the stream tossing worms on the bottom, caught a whole bunch of catfish, all 4-8#, they had been caught at a paylake somewhere.... this streams is really small too

[7mmx2]

I read about this the other day.
It's not illegal but KYFW doesn't recommend it b/c it stresses the fish out and possibly not survive.

[mcdenney]

Thanks for the info and the feedback. A friend of mine was looking for a way to stock a new small pond. He was considering just going to a local lake and catching a few and then place them in his pond. I wasn't sure though if that was legal. Again, thanks for the info.

[Hammer]

i'm sure lots of ponds have been at least partially stocked in this manner.

[Rat]

It's best to do it in early spring or fall before the weather gets too warm or cold. Try not to keep the fish in containers for longer than 3 hours and make sure the water is oxygenated. I had a lot of success transporting fish in a large cooler 1/3 filled with water. I add enough ice to cover about 1/10 of the surface of the water. The cool water tends to calm the fish down and add oxygen to the water. Sunfish are easy to transfer. Every one of the largemouth that were over 15 inches survived as well even after being caught 4 hours prior to the release. Good luck and have fun.

[longtimegone]

I wouldnt think there would be an issue...I hope not Ive done it a number of times

[Valley Station]

"Standard convention", is transport in a 5 gallon plastic bucket.

[Feedman]

I would not transfer any largemouth bass that had black spots on them. This is a virus. I cannot remember the name right now.