What is a good catfish bait for BIG CATS, 15lbs plus?

Answer 1

live bait (other fish) if legal, carp, shad, suckers, bluegill and other sunfish. crayfish and frogs. you can also use what we use mostly here in socal...mackeral fillets and chunks or anchovies. don't worry about the bait being too big. it won't. be sure to use a big hook. no, bigger. a 5/0 to 8/0. and make sure the point and barb are completely exposed.

Answer 2

Get a small hook and some earthworms. Catch bream or perch and keep them alive to use these for catfish bait. The bigger the bait, the bigger the catfish. Smaller cats won't be able to swallow the bigger bream or perch. Fish at night near structure, usually near the bank. Find the first sharp drop-off from the shore and fish near it. Use a "carolina rig" with a heavy weight so the bait can't pull it around.

Till next time....
Tight Lines!
Johnny
http://www.fishintopsail.com

Answer 3

Live shiner minnows (3 - 4") work pretty well, weight them and fish them about 6-12 inches off the bottom. Also stink baits and doughballs will catch any size cats. There are no baits that work only on big fish. Lots of big channels and shovelheads are caught every year by crappie fisherman with little minnows. Lots of the paylakes here in ohio sell goldfish to be used as live bait.

Answer 4

There are many Catfish baits to choose from, but knowing where they are at and how they run is the best chance for big Cats so here it is.
Go Jug fishing in the river and put a small Bass Shiner on the hook and watch happens.

Answer 5

The 3 BEST baits for Catfish
1. Live Bream or Perch
2. Shad - catfish cant get enough of this bait.
3. Live Crawfish- one of the best that no one else mentioned.
I live in Louisiana and when i'm not in a Bass tourney, i'm catfishing , I do most of it at night thats when the big boys come out to feed, there are a number of ways to fish for them and if you have a boat you can employ all of them at the same time, one of my favorites is called jug fishing, simply take a 20 oz or larger plastic jug and tie anywhere from 3ft to 8ft of nylon string with atleast a 5 ought extremely sharp hook tied to the end of the line bait it with a big hunk of cut shad, and simply toss it overboard, this tactic works best in backwater where there isnt much current the buoyancy of the jug is what sets the hook and if its dark just take a good spot light and shine at the jug if a fish is on it the jug will stand up and take off this is where the fun begins, you have to chase it down, grab the jug very gently and ease it up slowly as most of the time the fish arent hooked very well, as you ease it up get ready with a large landing net if you feel the fish make a surge then release the jug and let him wear down some more it can be a blast with a 30 lb blue cat or even bigger. I have caught 6 ft long 150lb gar doing this as well which i sell whole for 75 cents per pound. 2. Limb lines is my favorite way to fish live bream, same as jug fishing only find a good sturdy limb and tie your line to it and use an 8 ought saltwater hook as these tend to be stronger, hook the bream just behind the dorsal fin and set him in the water , try this at various depths using all aforementioned baits and I gurantee you will catch fish. skip jack also work very well as they put off a lot of oil as do shad as far as all the prepared dough baits and crap like that , dont waste your money , yeah you may catch one or two small ones, but when you employ the tactics I have refered to you stand a chance of loading the boat with some really huge fish up to 100lb cats are out there waiting on your bream, what are you doing sitting here reading this get up and go wet a hook. P.S. I have caught over 500lbs of catfish in one night of fishing do just what I have told you to do. Good Luck

Answer 6

Here in Texas on lake tawakane and ray Hubbard we use cut bait large shad cut into peaces one to two inch's long,large shrimp just like u by to eat, the type that is sold for fish bait works but not like the fresh peel put on hook, But the best is what is called Blood Bait check at local bait shop I personal have taken a lot of big cats12 to30 pd on rod and reel but most larger cats were taken on trot lines on cut shad38 to 65 and larger my personal best 58.5

Answer 7

I always have the best luck using skipjack herrings (big shinners around 10 to 12 inches) cut into 4 to 5 inch section. The skipjack is good because it bleeds a lot when cut.

Answer 8

Live bream, from 3 to 6 inches. Most local laws require bream to be caught with a hook though, so you'll have to fish for them first. Big shad and shiners also work good.

Answer 9

My granddad used to catch catfish out of his pond on leftover canned biscuits from his breakfast. He said they loved em. I was too young to remember how big they were or how much they enjoyed this bait.

Answer 10

to catch a big hog catch your bait perch, bluegill , or buy some large chubminnows 4to5 inches long if you use a rod and real, think big trout line, limb line,jugging think large staging and large hooks.run trout lines or fish with rod between midnight and day break.