I was catching a mixed bag over at the river pond today when I got the thump of a lifetime! This fish was taking drag off my med-heavy baitcaster at will, and I figured I had hooked a monster flathead.

I started getting excited because I usually give big catfish to my neighbor and he always goes nuts about it... I tried to imagine what he would say when he saw Super Cat, hoping that I might actually be able to land the fish...

So, after what seemed like forever I finally get this pig up to the surface only to discover that I have hooked.... a smallmouth buffalo carp!
On the way in to the boat, he busted my net in half, then set out to "rearrange" my tacklebox.

When I finally got him subdued, I hung him on my 50 pound scale, only to see "OVER" on the display. What a horse!!!

Don't worry though, you won't be seeing "Squirrel" in the record books for this one. Ol' girl is back in the river pond eating who-knows-what as you read this. I'll let somebody else keep the buffalo carp record for the next 30 years!

Still... What a fight!!!

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I know that feeling Squirrels. I caught a 35 lb Bufflao last summer at Perry. Man was it fun. I also thought that i had a big kitty cat on.

As a fellow Kansas fisherman, I've changed my attitude on Big Cats to C_atch-P_hoto_Release. In your case, I suggest that instead of giving any "Big Cats" you catch to your neighbor, you should also think about and PLEASE consider C_atch-P_hoto_Release as a better choice.

It takes MANY YEARS to grow a big catfish !! And they typically are NOT nearly as good eating as those 5 lbs or less in size anyway. And the smaller "eaters" are much more plentiful also.

Don't get me wrong, as a fisherman you certainly have the RIGHT to do whatever you want with your legally caught fish. I'm just suggesting you consider what you can do to help preserve a precious resource.

If you enjoy catching them as much as I'm sure you do, please consider releasing ALL the "BIG cats" you catch so there'll be more trophy catfishing for all of us in Kansas in future days !!

That's a very valid opinion Charlie, and I respect the fact that you recognize not everybody may feel the same way. You can rest easy though, because I don't think a cat over 15 pounds would fit in the livewell anyway. Also, I don't eat cats myself, so I almost never go fishing for them. They just seem to like my walleye and crappie rigs...

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Sounds like you had a blast catching that nasty old thing. Take your camera next time a get a picture for everyone to enjoy!