chris.brock Posted October 5, 2015 Report Posted October 5, 2015 Most minnows stay in the creeks all winter. It can be a cool hobby Dave. I had a lot of fun keeping native species in my aquarium (not sure if this is legal or not). I had some less common guys like Tadpole Madtom. The easiest was the Brown Bullhead, it would eat table scraps and didn't mind poor water quality. The Green Sunfish is total bugger and would continually nip at and pester the other fish until they had no scales left. Esox are a pain to feed.
davey buoy Posted October 5, 2015 Report Posted October 5, 2015 Most minnows stay in the creeks all winter. It can be a cool hobby Dave. I had a lot of fun keeping native species in my aquarium (not sure if this is legal or not). I had some less common guys like Tadpole Madtom. The easiest was the Brown Bullhead, it would eat table scraps and didn't mind poor water quality. The Green Sunfish is total bugger and would continually nip at and pester the other fish until they had no scales left. Esox are a pain to feed. Thanks Chris,had a bunch of feeders for my Piranhas years ago,one turned out to be a green sunfish,talk about aggressive.He lived for a week,and then put him in another tank where he was dominant.What a terror he was.lol.
smitty55 Posted October 5, 2015 Report Posted October 5, 2015 One more thing to consider is not to overfeed or your water will go bad much faster. Also as a substitute for fish food you can grind up soybeans or get soybean meal. Easy for the fish to digest too. Cheers
OhioFisherman Posted October 5, 2015 Report Posted October 5, 2015 Minnows I have seen stay in the creeks and streams all year too, because of ice on the creeks they may try to find deep spots though. Since I was usually after bigger minnows that the bait stores sold here I would fish for them at times were water depths prevented wading with a net. From what I have seen your bait stores up north had a better size selection than a lot of ours do here.
Dutch01 Posted October 6, 2015 Author Report Posted October 6, 2015 Great info guys,having fish for 20 plus years I know the ups and down.If you don't mind dutch01,I would like to add another question on topic.Do minnows run in the creeks all winter?,or do they go elsewhere.?.I'm getting into this as well.Great thread.Thanks. Dave. I would assume they're in there all winter. I didn't get the trap yet I went fishing instead (17.5" walleye and a small bass). Will probably get the trap tomorrow. Work in 4 hours..... This ain't gonna be pretty!
Gerritt Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 Not much to add to what has already been suggested here... I have had several large tanks in the past. Keep the water cool and you be alright. Chris, not technically illegal however they do count towards your limits. Its the transporting that is an offense. I had pike and sunfish, bluegill and bass. The pike was by far the coolest to watch G
gaspumper Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 Take a look at Ice shanty.com and scroll down way down you will see a topic called ice fishing live baits and plastic .
Big Cliff Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 Lotsa people here doing way more work then I ever did when I fished with minnows. I used to use an airator....but found it wasn't necessary for the amount of minnows I kept. At the end I had it down to 2 white buckets kept in my cold cellar. Filled both buckets with tap water and then those drops of stuff from the aquarium store to remove chlorine from the water. Dumped the fish in one bucket. About once a week transferred them to the other bucket of water then dumped the bucket they where in and refilled it. I was told you never even had to use the chlorine stuff if the water sat for a while but it was cheap so I used it anyways for piece of mind. The most important thing IMHO is keep an eye on things and get any dead ones out ASAP. I fed them goldfish food but if they are kept cold they really don't eat very much at all. The smallest sized container of fish food would last me for years. I just found by giving them fresh water once a week they had enough oxygen and the water never got enough fish or food waste in it to cause any problems. I kept minnows all winter this way. I would never ever use a heater for minnows. X2
John Bacon Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 I have been able to keep store bought minnows alive in my garage for a few weeks without an aquarium or aireator. Once or twice a day I take a half bottle of water from the bucket and shake it up then poor it back in. I think this adds oxygen to the water. I also add snow if available. If I am keeping them a long time, then I will fill an extra bucket with water and leave it in the garage for a few days for the chlorine to clear. That will allow me to give them some fresh water. I lose a few minnows, but it is better than having to buy a new batch every time I go fishing. Keeping them during the summer would be more challenging.
Bondar Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 (edited) I use a aerator and a siphon filter that hooks up to the aerator. And a cheap filter that hangs on the side of a Tupperware container in my garage, the moving water helps with freezing. On real cold nights I run a standard issue light bulb beside the tank for some heat. I keep large minnows all winter when I can get them Edited October 6, 2015 by Bondar
davey buoy Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 That's kinda what I'll do,leave outside,areator running,proper bucket of course with lid.One other Question if you may,what type of tag would you use that would with stand being under water?.Name and phone # I get,but would you have to get a metal tag stamped?.Thanks guys.
chris.brock Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 (edited) Again, I don't know if this is legal either, but I would put the tag on the rope (not in the water) that tethers the trap to a tree. G, did you ever get your pike to eat anything other than live fish? Green Sunfish = hellion nightmare on crack Edited October 6, 2015 by chris.brock
davey buoy Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 Again, I don't know if this is legal either, but I would put the tag on the rope (not in the water) that tethers the trap to a tree. G, did you ever get your pike to eat anything other than live fish? Green Sunfish = hellion nightmare on crack That would make more sense.maybe I will laminate a tag?,that I have access to.Thanks Chris.
davey buoy Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 (edited) Other then dry crusty bread (thanks Eric) is there any thing better to bait with that would last even two or three days?. Kind of like a Monday to Friday check,but a time or two during the week would not be out of the question.Thanks again. Dave. Edited October 6, 2015 by davey buoy
chris.brock Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 Dry dog food might be better. Throw in a rancid piece of meat and get some fat leeches too.
Old Man Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 I use bread for bait but I also throw a golf ball in the trap sometimes as well. Over the years, the number I catch always seem to be more with the bread and ball vs bread alone.
davey buoy Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 I use bread for bait but I also throw a golf ball in the trap sometimes as well. Over the years, the number I catch always seem to be more with the bread and ball vs bread alone. Interesting.!
Bondar Posted October 6, 2015 Report Posted October 6, 2015 (edited) Oops Edited October 6, 2015 by Bondar
Dutch01 Posted October 7, 2015 Author Report Posted October 7, 2015 Well the trap is baited and set up in the creek, so hopefully the catching is taken care of. I'll check it tomorrow and if I caught anything I'll report back.....
Sinker Posted October 8, 2015 Report Posted October 8, 2015 I always use dog food as bait. Bread is a little messy once you have them caught. S.
Dutch01 Posted October 8, 2015 Author Report Posted October 8, 2015 After a few false starts, success! Got about a dozen feisty minnows this morning. They're a touch larger than I like, but totally workable. So I put I about $100 in sweat equity to save $10 on minnows lol Anyways it was fun and I'm sure I'll get better at it.
davey buoy Posted October 8, 2015 Report Posted October 8, 2015 After a few false starts, success! Got about a dozen feisty minnows this morning. They're a touch larger than I like, but totally workable. So I put I about $100 in sweat equity to save $10 on minnows lol Anyways it was fun and I'm sure I'll get better at it. Good for you,it will get better,where a bouts are you located?.
Dutch01 Posted October 8, 2015 Author Report Posted October 8, 2015 (edited) I'm in Markham. A buddy told me he often brings a trap when shore fishing and puts it out when he arrives. By the time he runs out of minnows he often has more waiting! Edited October 8, 2015 by Dutch01
chris.brock Posted October 8, 2015 Report Posted October 8, 2015 I don't know what you're fishing for, but I like bigger minnows this time of year.
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