There are a wide variety of methods of how to put live bait on the hook. You can even say that every experienced fisherman has his own way. But, as practice shows, most lovers of catching a predator on a bobber and donkey still usually use only two or three ways.
The main methods of putting live bait on the hook
Most often, live bait is pushed onto the hook through the nostril, but this must be done so as not to damage the brain of the fish. You can hook it on your back. The hook tip is passed under the dorsal fin, while the bait must be in a horizontal position. As a rule, live bait is planted over the head when fishing is carried on the course, that is, on rivers and larger bodies of water. Basically, a gudgeon, loach is planted like this. They are planted on the back of the bait fish if fishing occurs in a standing reservoir, most often on a lake. So a flatter fish is attached: roach and scavenger. Therefore, it is important to know how to put live bait on the hook in different conditions. But these traditional methods have a huge number of disadvantages. Bait fish in the water behaves sluggishly and very often slides off the hook. In addition, the pike, suspecting something was amiss, is trying to burp it.
The disadvantages of traditional methods of packing live bait
The biggest drawback when fishing for live fish is the poor play of the bait in the water. Even a freshly caught live bait is already wounded and in the water it will behave listlessly. Very soon, his activity will become minimal. A predator is rarely seduced by a half-dead fish. It doesn’t matter how to put the bait fish on the hook (through the back, tail or nostril), the effect will be the same - quick damage to the bait. But this is not the only problem. The thing is that, waiting for a bite, anglers, especially beginners, often take out gear from the water, while they excite the fish. A predator eyeing the bait will simply leave in search of another less suspicious victim.
How to put live bait on the hook artfully?
But there is no one trickier than a fisherman who wants to catch a big pike. Indeed, professionals fishing for live bait have long come up with a way to put the bait on a hook without injuring it. As popular wisdom says: “Everything ingenious is simple.” You will need an ordinary office gum. It is carefully put on the tail of the fish and a hook is threaded through it. As a result, the bait fish is whole, without punctures. It remains only to make a good cast and wait for the bite.
What are the advantages of the "tricky" method?
As it turns out, there is a fundamental difference in how to put live bait on the hook. It’s best not to injure him. Applying the method of fixing the bait with an elastic band, the angler immediately eliminates all the disadvantages that are found in traditional methods. Firstly, a fish in water behaves very actively, as it tries to get rid of a foreign object on its tail. Its constant movements will be noticeable even to those predators that are at a distance. Secondly, the fisherman knows for sure that the bait is alive, and therefore there is no need to constantly check gear. So, the chance to frighten off a cautious predator is minimized.