Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: Tylsie on January 05, 2016, 05:53:41 PM
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As so often happens online, one thing lead to another and I was reading about using coke to stop the bleeding from a fish's gills after it has been hooked too deep. After some research it is apparently the Carbon Dioxide causing the gills to constrict and stop the bleeding. A small bottle of soda water is apparently ideal because it is just purified water and CO2.
Has anyone tried this, and did it work? I may start to carry a small bottle with me just in case. It certainly can't hurt a fish that is bleeding badly and will probably not make it.
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If you had McGiver with you and a medivac team...
How long would you have to keep the fish out of water to administer the soda?
Should one use diet?
Or caffeine free?
Then what?
Carbon dioxide poisoning?
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Explain to the Conservation Officer exactly what you are trying to do when he sees you pouring soda water into the gills of a bleeding wild Steelhead.
Maybe it works but how much do you pour in until the bleeding stops or the fish expires?
I think it would be best not to pour anything into the gills of fish until the procedure is approved.
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this has been going around the net for several years. Hoaxes often get passed around so freely they become adopted as fact. I did some research on carbonated water and CO2 a few years ago and there is little or evidence there is any effect one way or the other on any bleeding wounds. Soda water has long been touted as a simple cleaning solution and stain remover. It is clean and slightly acidic. It may wash away clotted blood but it won't staunch bleeding. You can discount this as a likely 'urban fishing myth'.
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After some more research I am not so quick to dismiss it. This article from Outdoor Canada says it might have some validity.
http://www.outdoorcanada.ca/Coke_-_its_the_real_thing_to_stop_fish_bleeding
While I certainly won't be trying on a wild steelhead, I do have a couple of ice fishing trips coming. If one of the trout takes a hook to deep I will probably try it. Worst case scenario I have something to drink with my shore lunch.