# Petition to Help Catfish



## mrfishohio

Please read & sign if you agree (click) 

All of you who have websites and agree, please link the petition from your sites & forward it to others, thanks. Jim


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## catking

Signed it Jim. I was #415. I really believe that this type of practice will end, I just hope it comes in the next couple years. Thanks for posting this. CATKING.


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## Corey

Signed.......#418


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## Bassnpro1

I was #414 earlier today. Hopefully they look at this petition and do something about it!


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## H2O Mellon

#419-Me
#420-Dad
#421-Wife

I hate, yes HATE PETS, but heck send this to their web site, you'll see a few thousand signatures real quick.


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## mrfishohio

Got an email today, from the guy involved with the petition, here's part of it... 


> Signatures up to 422, big jump today, something must have clicked somwhere.


 

I wrote him back with a link to Ohio Gamefishing


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## tpet96

Signature 423 here!


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## UFM82

Heck, I have never caught one over 15 lbs, much less 50. I need all the help I can get!


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## tpet96

UFM.....I'm still Flatless in my quests LOL.


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## Lundy

signed!

Kim


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## Big Daddy

There you go.

Carl


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## cheezemm2

Well, the guy from NAFC(spell?) hasn't gotten back to me yet, but this should be going out in a rather big montly newsletter soon...either this month or next...at some point I'm going to have to print out this petition as I believe it ends in April....I will then repost it for another 6 months...this may take awhile, but as soon as I can get my foot in the door with the right people, it'll happen!


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## mrfishohio

Gill nets ARE legal in inland waters, the Ohio River


(2) Gill net or trammel net.

(a) May be used only in Ohio and Mississippi Rivers and overflow lakes directly connected with each river or as specified in 301 KAR 1:140. Minimum mesh size is three (3) inches in the Mississippi and its overflow lakes and four (4) inches in the Ohio River and its overflow lakes.

(b) May be fished weighted or as a flag net.

(c) Shall have one (1) commercial gear tag attached to each 100 feet or part thereof.
That's from their regulations (click). 

As for hoop nets....(a) Shall have a minimum mesh size of three (3) inches, except in the Ohio River, the Mississippi River, those portions of the Cumberland River below Barkley Dam and the Tennessee River below Kentucky Dam that are open to commercial fishing where the minimum mesh size shall be one (1) inch.


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## Fishman

Signature 428, I'll forward it on to some people!


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## esoxhunter

#429

Don't fish for cats myself but pay lakes generally annoy me.  
SIGNED!
EH


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## flathunter

Somehow someday I hope to see all nets outlawed.


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## Chuck P.

#430


I'll be sure to tell everyone I know. Thanks MFO.


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## mrfishohio

There's a new petition in the works and also some real movement going on behind the scenes. This is the same petition that went around last year, I didn't realize it when I posted it. I'm on the first page signed on. I was sent it just a few days ago. It gets an idea across (however, there's no loophole, there's simply no laws in place), the next one will be a new and improved version. Will be correctly worded by an English professor also. It will have the backing of many sites and magazines and newsletters. Sportsmen will get behind it & changes will be made. It's not just an Ohio issue, it's a Sportsmen issue. Jim

PS: When it all comes together, I'll be posting a major post in a new thread.

*Note: Anyone with pictures of dead fish from any paylakes, in dumpsters or garbage cans or in the woods out back, please PM me. These will be a huge help to influence the DNR*


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## catking

Thanks Jim for posting this. I really hope somebody wakes up and starts to listen to the people that know there is a problem. I've seen many states in the past 5 years or so starting to take a hard look at their respected water ways. CATKING.


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## cheezemm2

Just keep me informed...if another petition goes out, I don't wanna make the current one obsolete...I guess we could always just attach it and cross check the names so we don't have any repeats...gotta make sure it's valid straight across the board if we want to have an organized impact...I know in the grand scheme of things 430 signatures isn't a whole lot, but every bit helps...just let me know...thanks

-Jim


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## Timberkatz35

WTG Jim, can't say how much I commend ya on your effort. I'll keep an eye out for those dumpsters & woods. Whatever happen to the old petition? Noticed it hasn't being signed yet (new one?). Thanks again.


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## mrfishohio

One is the transport of live wild gamefish across state lines. One is Commercial fisherman...sell fish (FDA). One is pay ponds & Dept of Agriculture, are the ponds adequete to support the size & numbers of fish stocked? Is the environment healthy, clean water, etc, etc.
One are studies of commercial fishing upon fisheries. All show a decline, so why would catfish be different. One is the use of gill nets. One is the use of hoop nets. Why are catfish & paddlefish allowed to be commercially harvested from the Ohio River when they are both on the consumption advisory? There's a few good people getting it together, I'm honored to have been asked play a very small role in it and help to fan the fire spreading.

My vision is to see the Ohio River turn into such a fishery it would become a destination. There would be guides & campgrounds and parks where people would come to spend their vacations to catch stripers, hybrid stripers and of course trophy sized catfish. The Ohio River would become the Catfish Capitol of the World, just like Erie is for walleyes, Cumberland is for stripers, Dale Hollow is for smallies, Cave Run is for Muskies

Of course for purely selfish reasons, they could also hire Mrfishohio's Ohio River Catfish & Striper Guide Service !  Trading furniture is getting old & the older I get the harder it gets. I'd rather get a nice 25' boat & be on the water everyday.


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## flathunter

Jim I like your vision. I am glad you are playing a part in this.


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## katfish

Good Luck with this Jim


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## catking

I know many that would like to see that . JimmydaCat Guide Service  I know one thing, people wouldn't go wrong with you at the helm  CATKING !!!


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## Spike

I signed it too.


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## flathunter

I just read a post on another forum where A guy went to the paylake here in ohio that we all know and caught 60 bluecats over the weekend..Smallest 10-lb larggest 62-lb.


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## THarris

Good luck! I signed and am in full support. Please post any additional or future taks which may need done -- I volunteer to help and I am certain many others will as well.


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## flathunter

Any new info Jim?


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## catking

Things are changing in this state guys and gals. As pointed out by Country Kat, and some of you might have missed it, but there is a limit of SIX channel cats on bodies public waters in the state now. This is brand new this year. CATKING


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## Fishyguy

I just added the link to the petition onto my homepage of my website. You can see the link I added herewww.angelfire.com/oh5/catfish715


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## atrkyhntr

#463........


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## BIGG MAN

#464.......


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## Shortdrift

Signed in #465


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## flathunter

I thought there was going to be a new petition started?


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## mrfishohio

Seems like this stuff goes like wildfire, then the fire dwindles. It's not dead, but there's been a delay. Hopefully the article will be written soon, there's just so many issues to address. Seems many paylakes have their own commercial licences to net their own fish. 
Bottom line, if there would be a restriction similar to TN with only one fish per day over 34" harvested and NO fish over 34" by any commercial fisherman, that might work. You're dealing with 3 states. Ohio wound have to regulate paylakes to stop the demand for the big fish. KY feels that it's something that's gone on for years(no need to change the status quo), it's just a new demand for sportfishing now creating pressure. They feel that it's Ohio's demand for trophy fish that's creating the situation. 
There's been alot of thought, studies from TN, fish farms, paylakes, commercial harvest. It's a very big picture to look at and then add into it an interstate coverage.
Basically, my stance is to go for a size limit, get the article published & information out there about the netting with hoop and gill nets in th eOhio River. Once the information becomes availible to sportsmen, that will create pressure for change.
I think then a new professionally written petition might be written. I'm sure there will be lots of emails, phone calls and letter written once the word gets out into a media blitz.


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## flathunter

I just checked catfishermans paradise website, and they have stocked 7 tons of fish already this year with 60 fish over 50-lbs..Wonder what happened to all the tons they stocked last year, it is a catch and release lake..Probably rotting in the woods.


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## atrkyhntr

Does someone have any idea where I can view the rules/regs for pay lakes and how, when , where bla bla blah they can precure their







fish? 
THANKS


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## mrfishohio

They have their own commercial licenses. Issued by KY. There aren't alot of rules or regulations for pay ponds that I'm aware of, maybe none.


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## truck

A freind came over yesterday & told me that he saw a guy in ky over the weekend with 3 flats 50 to 58#.The guy was real happy to have the fish cause he was getting $1.00 per lb for them.What a waste!!!


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## catking

That's just a shame. I believe the powers to be might wake up someday, but it will probably be a little late. CATKING


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## flathunter

I met up with a group of people today who were fishing one of my Flathead holes on the Scioto..They were complaing that they have not been catching any Flats as of late..So I asked them if they had caught anythis year and was told that they had indeed caught quite a few, and sold them to paylakes..The idiots told me they were running low on beer money and hoped the Flats would start hitting soon..I am afraid the end is near my friends!


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## dan8402

Signed....#483


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## TritonBill

I signed it. Good idea.


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## Jackfish

#486 I hope this works


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## fishing_marshall

signed #488


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## KSUFLASH

My question is the line about "was created by members of GFO"?????????????????

Quote:

The Catfishing Laws/Regulations Petition to Ohio State Legislator was created by Members of GFO and written by James Marchisio. This petition is hosted here at www.PetitionOnline.com as a public service. There is no endorsement of this petition, express or implied, by Artifice, Inc. or our sponsors. For technical support please use our simple Petition Help form. 


You might want to change that considering there is no GFO.

flash--------------------------------------out


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## Flipp

Number 489 Good Luck guys!


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## rockbass

My girlfriend signed and I then looked over some of the sigs........check out #442 don adams He must be a heck of a fisherman. he says you can't catch fgish in the rivers anyway. Look at his sig and realize how dumb he is. signs a petition saying he is not signing it against paylake, but for them. He can't even spell wrong the right way! These are the ignorant people we are dealing with!


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