# Corn question?



## leebo28

Me and a buddy of mine were talking while carp fishing with corn yesterday if it was hazardous to the health of the fish. You always see people using some type of corn bait to catch carp, but never hear if it does indeed harm the fish. 

Can they digest the corn?

I remember as a kid some 20+ years ago, I was scolded by some older folks for using corn to catch trout that was stocked in the river. They insisted it would kill the fish. I thought I was going to be thrown into the river by these old grumpy men!

Any help on this would be much appreciated.


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## ShoreBoundOne

I dont know about Carp....but i sure cant digest it 

Mitch


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## RiverRat

Carp , like us dont digest the corn and get any nutients from it..it just passes through.

Canned corn has already been cooked and is harmless...BUT you do have to worry about dry field corn...it must be boiled before use..it will swell inside the fish.

This is also true of many natural grains, bean, ect. before you use a bait your unsure of, please ask here or check out the CARP ANGLERS GROUP forum or home web site.

http://www.carpanglersgroup.com/forum/index.php?showforum=29

There are a lot of baits the Euro guys use that have to be prepared before use...if its been cooked and put in a can(like canned corn) its fine to use right out of the can.


Thanks for asking...some guys dont think about the fishes safety or well-being....


Scott


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## crappielooker

something to ponder about when it comes to field corn.. 
biiig barges dropped corn in the water all the time, you know it hasn't been cooked before.. then u got folks from st. lawrance who just drop bags after bags of corn in the water without boiling them as well... at least that what they told us.. i know i sqeeze the poop outta carp before and let me tell you, they can crush anything..lol.. i did that at west branch and all i saw was yellow ooze.. i didn't smell it tho..  
me?? i like to cook them a little because i like that "corny" smells it gives out after being introduced to heat..


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## cwcarper

I think dry field corn causes a lot less damage than what a lot of people imagine. And as Scott mentioned, the stuff in the can won't hurt them at all. Not the most nutritious food source...but it is full of starch and they do get calories (and grow) from eating it. Whatever the reason, they sure do enjoy eating it. I always cook mine first, though...not for safety reasons, but because cooking the corn makes it more attractive to the carp by breaking down and releasing the starches and sugars.

As far as trout go...I think the old guys might have been right, but that's just a guess.


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## RiverRat

Ak, maybe i should of said SOAK your field corn..but cooking it is NOT needed..lol.

I dont go through all the BS with that stuff, i buy roasted corn(same as steam rolled) and i get 100lbs for $7..no cooking needed and very little soak time...maybe 30 mins. if that...."chum them and they will come"

Scott


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## johnboy111711

It seems like carp could easily digest corn, look what they do to zebra mussels!


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## mrjbigfoot

You guys are having some fun on this discussion...LOL!!! Point of interest, pond raised channel cats & trout that taste ever so good on the dinner table... are all fed Purina catfish chow or trout chow which is made up primarily of ground up dry grain! Cat fish that eat fish... taste fishy... catfish that eat catfish chow taste goooood!...LOL!!!


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## misfit

i don't know that it matters a lot.but i've found that they really like a nice fresh roasting ear with plenty of salt and butter.but having no teeth,it takes awhile for them to gum it down to the hook though 
don't worry abou the cob,cause they don't like that part anyway


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## leebo28

Instead of boiling the canned corn, I sprinkle a healthy amount of sugar over the kernels to sweeten them up. It works like a champ. 

I've also tried molasses and that works well too.

Was out yesterday during the day and caught 3 healthy carp all in the 8-9 pound range. 

Went back in the evening and caught one nice carp. The spot I was fishing was overrun by idiots trying to swim in the boiling water. I bet they're sicker than sh*t today!

Anyways, while I was reeling in the fish, I had two young polish women ask me if they could keep it for food. 

I looked at them as if they were nuts. 

I'm sure carp in clean, cold fresh water would be all right to eat, but this water I was fishing was about 82 degrees and I'm sure filled with some nasty bacteria.

They claimed it was their favorite fish to eat. I guess thats what happens when you fish out a lake.

I don't know about you, but I'm sticking with the walleye, perch and crappie.

But then again if you fry it, I'm sure it tastes just fine!


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## GMR_Guy

I really haven't read anything that convinces me that boiling any particle is necessary for the health of a carp. I've never heard of a massive carp kill caused by an overflowing grain barge. I've also heard that some St. Lawrence guides dump unboiled, unsoaked corn as chum. Forums are filled with conjecture on why unboiled particles might be unhealthy, but I've never seen any study that backs this up.

Furthermore, I would not assume that carp do not derive any nutritional benefit from eat soaked corn. Just because the corn passes through the carp in an intact state doesn't neccessarily mean that the carp has been able to extract something from the corn.


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## GMR_Guy

Scott, if you follow the link that you provided and look at the particle preparation section, they briefly discuss the subject of the neccessity of boiling. Carpaholic makes an excellent point that carp are open at both ends and should be able to deal with any swelling. There was not anything in that link that proves anything, one way or the other that, boiling is neccessary.

Common sense might suggest that boiling is neccessary, but common sense would also suggest the earth is flat.


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## RiverRat

Hey GMR..i say do what you think is best..i personally will continue to prepare my baits by boiling or soaking.I wont take the chance...its not hard to presoak or boil grains before use.


"common sense would also suggest the earth is flat".....LMAO....i wont even touch that one..geez!


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## GMR_Guy

RiverRat said:


> Hey GMR..i say do what you think is best..i personally will continue to prepare my baits by boiling or soaking.I wont take the chance...its not hard to presoak or boil grains before use.
> 
> 
> "common sense would also suggest the earth is flat".....LMAO....i wont even touch that one..geez!


 The point of that quote is that the common sense answer is not always correct one. Galileo was persecuted for his belief that earth revolved around the sun. Yet common sense/observation led nearly everyone else before him to believe that the earth was center of everything. 

Us humans eat foods that expand inside, some even produce gas, yet we seldom die from these regular occurences.

I think we can agree that neither side of the boiling factions have much proof on their side. However, I do have a 180 gallon aquarium and may have to put a few israeli carp in it and stuff them full unboiled cracked corn ( I would use whole corn, but it would be too big for them). While I'm at it, I'll see how many DAYS they can survive out of water if kept in a moist sack.


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## FSHNERIE

My 93 year old Grandma has problems with corn also....We give her cream style..


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## mrfishohio

I don't see any problem with corn, *as long as you don't hide a hook in it*, _it's harmless_  
Sorry guys...I just couldn't resist !!


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