Live bait shrimp - $0.33 each
 

Live bait shrimp are not cheap!!!!! And how many of those live shrimp are dead or too sloppy to fish with by 10:00 AM.

We are paying $0.33 per shrimp... that's $20.00/quart... 50 bait shrimp/qt.

When 1/2 of the live bait dies or is no longer fishable by 10 AM, I really purchased only 1 pint (30 live shrimp) for my $20.00... the cost has changed from $20/qt. to $20/pt. from 5 AM to 10 AM (5 hours).

That's $0.67 for 1 live shrimp now.

The Dog Days of Summer are here again as predicted and the cost of live bait shrimp is higher this summer than last summer. But, live bait puts fish in the box this time of year, so much better than plastics.

I heard that some bait camps are now selling live bait shrimp for $0.38 per shrimp... doesn't matter whether 36 count shrimp or 80 count shrimp - the price is the same.

25 shrimp cost a smooth $10 including tax... save the dead shrimp for the hard heads, piggy perch, gaff-tops, skip jacks, crab bait and chum.

What do you guys think about the price of live bait shrimp?

3 things

1. what somerhing is worth is directly proportionate to what someone will pay for it (see duck leases)

2. This is murica where you can skip right by the bait store and not buy any

3. You have to do a little extra in the summer to keep bait alive

4. Wait till fall and fish with plastics. Saves on gas and bait.

If you have the time, just go toss the cast net. I was catching 3-5 shrimp a toss at my little roadside spot, and at the beach, I grabbed about 100 in less than ten minutes. There wasn't much size to them at all, but they were alive, and in the hands of the right fisherman, likely would've landed many trout. In my hands, they still found the gafftops, and one dink.

Most bait shops have poor warranties on live shrimp; I suggest you purchase a policy from LiveBaitInsurance.com. They have very reasonable rates and great service.
They also have a "Melting Ice" policy but you must register your Yeti cooler and only use ice frozen from the inside out to validate a claim.

I have been looking for that sight all morning and I haven't found it yet. I'll report back when I find it...

:rotfl:

I never bought em, and I never will even when they were 20-25 cents each

never had any problem catching limits on plastics when they were feeding on shrimp

now when they are feeding on fish I have bought cocahoes a few rare times and it has helped a lot at those times but I cant afford live bait and learned to successfully fish without it.

I find the only time live shrimp matters is if the guy next to you has it, then they will not hit plastics as much until 10 minutes after the live bait guy leaves, then you still catch plenty on plastics

live shrimp are for guys with disposable income and charter boats who need the edge so their customers can catch, even the fishing challenged ones lol.

it does make a difference but until they can put up a force field around them so I don't catch hard heads, sheep head, and baby croakers who eat all my shrimp, well I cant afford to feed live shrimp to trash fish

I think live bait on the west side of the state is a scam. You buy a quart of shrimp where half of em aren't even usable. Go to grand isle or Venice and they are all the same good size. I have an insulated bait well that constantly pumps fresh water in. I never have a problem with bait dying. If I did I would take a bag of ice and put it in the live well. I buy bait maybe twice a year though so it doesn't really matter to me

I've caught plenty of fish on plastic while other people in my boat were fishing with shrimp. I've actually out fished shrimp before fishing the same spot

I have fished the Port Suphur to Grand Isle area a lot; and you only need 2 baits to catch trout. LSU Queen Cacahoe, and Glow Chart Sand Eel

I believe the West Side benefits from live shrimp much more at certain times of the year.

Probably because you had your Salt Life shirt on and they didn't.

Sometimes you have to have live shrimp (rare) and you just have to bite the bullet and get them. I used to pull a 16' sprimp trawl for bait, much easier to just buy them now if needed. I don't b*tch about the price because it doesn't do any good.

My friend didn't want to go castnet for some yesterday. We paid 40 cent a shrimp yesterday at the Pt.

Not to be rude, but I think your math or your fishing is at fault. If you fished for 4 to 5 hours without losing a shrimp to the fish or just casting, then you need to find a new area to fish. Not a different bait. If you are losing shrimp to catching or casting, then the cost of the shrimp hasn't changed. That's just the cost of fishing.

I find it funny that most fishermen spend ~$200 on a reel, $100 to $200 on a rod, 20k to 40k on a boat, 30k to 50k on the truck to pull it, $100 on gas per trip, and so on, and then are POd at bait camp owners for charging exorbitant prices for shrimp. Of course bait camp owners are all millionaires because their profits are out the roof......lol!

Truth is, most bait camps barely stay in business. Those same shrimp that are dying in your livewell are also dying in their livewells. So they lose money on them also. And to top it off, just let them not have shrimp and people are mad because they can't get live bait. So no, I don't think it's a scam at all. It's a choice. Your choice.

Spot on in my book ... Well said !

Who counts shrimp ?? That must suck


That's why I use artificial only 99.9% of the time because live shrimp does not make a huge difference other than catching more gaftops , hardheads, lady fish, croaker , sheepshead and drum

Trout are reaction eaters so they will eat plastic everyday

True

Exactly.... in the grand scheme of things $20-$40 on shrimp is not that much money. I just don't like to fish with em cause I hate having to re bait my hook after every fish.

I know im going to get flamed for saying this but ....

live bait is for kids, rookies, or guys who don't know how or just never learned to properly fish with artificial baits, once you learn how to properly fish with artificial baits, you bait looks just as alive to the fish as the real thing so you dont need live bait.

Depends on what you're fishing for

very valid point, off shore is a completely different set of circumstances then fishing inshore.

and as I said earlier I do sometimes use minnows and cut bait for redfish when I feel like fishing the lazy way

You are 100% right , only time ever get it is with kids and most kids hate it , I think it's a lazy tool to fish IMO

I understand people that don't fish very much who want it but when I guide someone I rather than be lazy and just have them throw a cork with shrimp on it

I like to teach them how to fish plastics

Gonna start calling you PROFESSOR Tigerhead, cause you just schooled a bunch of fisherman that love their high dollar rigs but don't want anyone else to make a living. Very well put Professor Tigerhead!!

Next spring when hopefully the bleeding stops in the oilfield, I'm giving you a call. I fish mostly plastics for the past couple of years since getting into kayak fishing. I'm learning at age 51, but sure would like a day of lessons. I grew up soaking shrimp with my dad. He didn't like plastics. Glad to hear of a guide that actually enjoys teaching.

You can get 30 shrimp for $11.99 I think at Joe's Crab Shak right now.


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The advantge of being a reds fisherman.

They will eat anything. My son uses dead under cork and they are cheap. I use arti. I just bought him a new rig for fishing arti so now he can swap back and fourth.

Dont get me wrong ill throw a dead under a cork to if thats what they are hitting. Hell ill throw a mouse trap wìth crunchy peanut butter if thats what they are hitting on.

The other day momma wanted the all you can eat shrimp at outback so we went. When the food arrived i started laughing out loud and just blerted out to the waitstaff '' holy crap i fish with bigger shrimp'' with out thinking..... momma wasnt amuzed.

I hired a guide last year (not W, should have looks like) with the instructions to the guide that I wanted to learn to fish plastics, I did not care about fish numbers, wanted to learn. Not only did he book someone else for my day, he sent me out with another guide and a bunch of live shrimp. I wasted several hundred dollars, I could of done that by myself.

Happens all the time , I always make it 100% know that if I'm booked and they want to still fish. I will only book them if I can find guide that I know will catch fish and is worth $550

We have so many guides who just have the title Capt and want to collect a check from other guides who hire them .

This to me is a big problem because I will never book the extra boat unless it's someone that I trust ( most important) and puts fish in the boat everyday

Hell I know several "so called guides who other guides still use " that's has not put 1 full limit in the boat and where almost in Sept

I have never ever fished live shrimp. I have taken my brother in law a few times and he has bought them but I can't remember him ever fishing with them out of my boat. I do buy minnows nearly every time I go fishing but they are more of a back up plan I also bring 2 or 3 pounds of dead shrimp. If I'm catching trout it's either on plastics or minnows. The shrimp are for catching Reds if the trout are slow. I have fished with a few guides on business trips but they have always targeted Reds. Anybody can catch Reds. I'm not going to pay someone to bring me out to catch Reds. If I'm paying for a guide out of my pocket I want him to teach me something I don't already know.

I have three places I want to go with a guide. I'd love to fish with Capt Hoop just because I think it would be a blast to spend a day in the boat with him. I'd like to make a trip on big lake with "W" to learn from him and I'd like to make a trip on Lake P with a good guide so I can experience fishing there.

And you should see Croaker Prices.... I can't believe people are paying $50 or more for a days worth of bait... that could buy a lot of tackle.

If your looking for a cheap hobby, you may want to take up knitting. Live bait is a tough business. Get into that kind of work and you'll find yourself less fortunate than when you were complaining about spending money to buy the shrimp. I am a charter captain and I have not had a problem keeping shrimp live at all. All you need is Lots of oxygen and keep the salinity the same throughout the day. I don't rely on shrimp to catch fish but yes it's very nice to have.

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AMEN, totally agree, avoid being a woman/complaining by...... driving straight to the launch and catching your own bait or using artificial

i would say this is very true, i go to big lake once or twice a year so of course i'm DOWN with live shrimp bc i want to maximize my 1 or 2 trips(never works lol) but you get my point

i bass fish religiously, i wouldn't be caught "cheating" to catch a big one. Which i feel is equivalent to using shrimp for trout

I love listening to guides lie to customers and say you need live bait in summer time and I be like

Ha Got em

I don't even know how to fish live shrimp , think I had 3 customers this year ask for it and out of all 3 trips we might of caught 12 Trout and 300 lady fish , gaftop

Well which is it?

Fishing offshore in July and August...your "kids, rookies, and guys who don't know how to fish" usually bring back a box full of triple digits. This happens while the seasoned angler (spectator) is chunking and working his vodoo shrimp nearby.

Live Bait is Like Fat Chick @ Closing Time
 

Lol, it happens every time live bait is brought up.

Live bait is like the fat chick @ closing time; everybody has taken the easy route, probally will again in the future but nobody ever owns up to taking the "easy road"

(The easy road just so happens to be the road more traveled)

Great metaphor...I'd rather get laid more than laid less!!

there is no reason you cant catch trout year round on artificial.

Ha , the West Side guys here on Big Lake don't even put artificial in there boat I bet until they can't sell shrimp anymore lol

Just like the MOJO duck

"I hate those spinning wing decoys. I NEVER use them. Except for teal season":rotfl:

You won't catch me using a MOJO duck during Teal Season; that's what the MOJO Dove is for.

Man I can't wait until duck season.

I agree to a certain extent on this as a bass guy. BUT, I went to Lake Fork last summer and tied up to a stump on a point throwing huge shiners that we bought at the bait shop. I watched countless 60k+ boats fish around us not catching shat while me and 2 buddies are sitting Indian style on my deck drinking nattys boat swinging 5 pounders dam near every cast. This was also after fishing 2 days normally averaging about 10 bites per day. So I can't hate lol.

DSOB (DeadShrimpOnBottom) 4 LIFE

"W" that's why I bounce around. Can't be labeled as a west sider if I fish out of the east side every now and then lmao.

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If you only knew what time and expense went into having live bait available, then you would change your mind about the cost. I can give you some pointers on how to keep them alive longer. Thanks!

Live bait shrimp - $0.33 each
 

If people spent half as much time pot licking as they do at the bait shop, then their success rate with plastics would go up.


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#ShrimpLivesMatter
Say no to live bait.
#BaitHasFeelingsToo