Bleeding your fish

[Lee Borgersen]

Does anyone bleed your keeper fish before placing them in your cooler. I'm curious to get your opinion/feedback on this process. I guess its less messy when you go to clean them. Some say they taste better that way. When you bleed them you can flush them clean in your live well or rinse in the lake first. This way the cooler won't be such a mess.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCUPN3KW8H0[/youtube]

[DDSBYDAY]

   On some lakes in Canada any fish kept must be dispatched before putting it in the live well.  We snap the spine.  I could see the bleeding of the fish to be a big mess.  I won't be implementing that technique anytime soon.   

[HD]

We just do it for trout (steelhead, loopers)

Just take out the gills......

[corny13]

I have been bleeding my fish for years, started with catfish,do it to perch,walleyes,gills,and pike now.  You get a much whiter fillet...its worth it..  I just cut their throat.  It also makes filleting a much cleaner job with no blood spattered.  I put back in livewell to bleed out, then up to fillet table at cabin,or if trailered boat,put in cooler on ice. When pulling boat out and draining boat.

[MTCOMMER]

I do it when im ice fishing, Ill bleed them in the bucket and then wash it out after im done cleaning.  Ill usually only do it for walleyes though - too much work for everything else.  You do get a nice white filet - I think its easier.