Fishing With Live Bait

Fishing for Catfish Using Live Bait

Bluegill

My favorite live bait for catfish is bluegill.  This is a natural favorite food of the channel, flathead, and blue catfish, especially the flathead catfish.  Live bait generally the only type of bait that will produce flathead catfish, although it is possible to use stink or cut baits.  I've found that live bait is more productive on channel catfish and blue catfish than any other bait in most situations.  I believe this is due to the catfish being able to sense vibrations of a fish in distress on the bottom of the body of water.

Bluegills are not the only type of fish you can use for live bait.  Many people use bullhead, other types of panfish, bream, crayfish, frogs, and others.  My best advice is to see what bait fish are naturally found in the water you are fishing and use that.  Present the catfish with a bait that they are used to feasting on.

You can hook live bait in various ways.  I usually hook them in the back, about half way between the dorsal and tail fin.  Be careful not to hook them too close to the side of the fish as they will tear off.  Other ways to hook them are through the eyes, through the tail, or through the mouth.

Use a kahle hook in order to increase the chances of the hook setting.  Use just enough weight to keep the fish at the bottom of the water.  Pick your weight type due to the flow of the water.  I use egg sinkers in lakes and bank, coin, or pyramid sinkers in moving water like rivers or streams.