Did you guys manage any sheepshead? I can't imagine you hit any of our regular spots in the winter and didn't run into the aggregations of convict fish. Also, how was the inshore viz?
Posts by Emil
-
-
Buena pesca! Nice report and fish Rolie specially that black. As you know my weekend diving plans became a casualty of the "curse of the Venezolano" but I somewhat salvaged the day by surf casting Sunday morning in Jensen and filling the cooler with some of these. Blue fish were also present in plague like numbers which kept me busy and entertained between pompano bites. A picture of the average fish
-
Nice fish Emil. I've never seen anything like it, not even in photos. If I saw one I'd really want to shoot it. It doesn't come across like a very fast or skittish fish. Is it a matter of if you see one you have him?
Pretty much. These fish are bold and curious. Once hooked or speared they are relatively fast but they don't exhibit any desire to flee until they are in trouble. There were 5 or six of these fish in the bunch and this was the largest of them. There was another one with it that was of equal size and as I brought the speared one to my hands it just stared at me from a distance that seemed to be only about an arms length. The speared fish fought well for it's size and once I had him in my hands I got careless and it bit one of my fingers. Tough little buggers....some might classify their behavior as "dumb" but the way I see it they are perfectly equipped for the life they lead.....the fact that their behavior doesn't favor them when encountering speardivers says nothing about their intelligence. BTW the flesh and yield on these fish is outstanding...meat looks and tastes like the finest of snapper and the fillets are super thick.
Julio thanks for the compliment...we though of you often as we scanned over huge schools of macks....reminded us of our Ft Pierce outing with you. A picture to follow to bring back the memory.
-
Here is a pic of the tripletail. Getting ready to go H&L fishing with the wife at Sebastian Inlet State Park or I would chat more. I hear there are monster bull redfish, flounder and snook being caught on the outgoing tide. Let you all know how it goes tomorrow.
-
I would prefer an intact dog but part of getting one from a shelter would mean having to accept that they will sterilize the animal. When I was in college my sister adopted a pitbull puppy from the pound. He was one of the greatest animals I have ever been around (affectionate, protective and incredibly smart). We called him Gordo. His early castration lead to some terrible problems for him as he struggled with bladder control. We worked with the animal and finally after about a year the problem seemed to resolve itself. This dog brought years of joy to us all and saving him from the pound gave us a sense that we really made a difference in his life. I at one time also owned a rottweiler so I am not new to large breeds.
PS Gordo was a sweetheart to people but he was incredibly animal aggressive. Killed a cat or two and had multiple unprovoked attacks on several dogs (male and female) throughout his life. He calmed down when he got older and ultimately accepted living with both a cat and another female pitbull my sister adopted once she moved to Washington state. To me this proved that castration is not guaranteed to cure aggression and in most cases we felt it made it worse...male dogs didn't know what to think of him and to him females where just other dogs encroaching on his space and dominance.
-
My wife and I are still mourning the loss of our dog Lenny. However, we know some day in the near future we will be ready to welcome a new dog into our lives. I often look at the animals available at shelters and find so many of them appealing. Recently I saw a mastiff breed that caught our eye. Unfortunately we are not ready to take the plunge quite so soon but we are certain our next dog will come from the pound. I wish I had a small hobby farm....I would be on my way to pick up this guy in a heart beat.
-
Congrats to Harolf and the team. Great showing in the overall beating teams like South Africa, France, Brazil, Australia...etc. Pero los Chilenos le sacaron la chucha a esos huevones:D:D
Ironic how he placed so high after all the "controversy".
-
Sorry to hear about your shellfish allergy. While I wouldn't consider myself full blown allergic to shellfish I do display a certain reaction when eating shellfish that has passed it's prime. For me it is also the iodine and to some degree the ammonia that develops in shellfish if it is more than a day or two old. Have to be careful about these type of allergies as they worsen with each case you suffer and many times food borne allergies make one sleepy. Some people lay down for what they think is a slumber caused by overindulgence and never wake up....scary stuff. I can usually tell if I am experiencing a reaction as I tend to swell and my fingers feel like a blown up rubber glove and the back of my neck feels like I am smuggling a pack of hot dogs. So far a mild antihistamine and bronchiodialator stave off any major problems when affected but for me the best practice has been to shun everything except the most fresh shellfish available.
-
It is with a heavy heart that I report that our beloved dog Lenny has succumb to his illness. In the eight days since my post he had two major bleeds which left him both anemic and lethargic. Mandy and I knew without really saying much to each other that it was now up to us to help him die with some dignity and to help end his suffering. Our emotion overcame us at several points but we came through it by recalling the moments of joy he brought us during his life. Thanks again to all those who offered their advise and support.
-
Hey Dan I was thinking of the picture you posted re. the bump on your puppies head in my other thread. I remember telling you about a lump that formed on my parents dobie's ear. I found a picture of the dog that I took on the day we had her laid to rest. This was my favorite of the gang of dobies my parents owned throughout the years. Her name was "princess" ...she lived into her eleventh year until finally she wore out her hips. Her appetite remained ravenous until the end and on this day my mom and I took her to a nearby canal for our princess to enjoy her last meal, the view and our company before I took her to the vet. She ate an entire rotisserie chicken....bones and all. I used to refer to this dog as "my girlfriend" for her habit of begging to climb onto the bed and sleep with me when staying at my folks house. Recently I got into a discussion with someone about whether or not dogs get into "heaven" after much discussion I ended the argument with this comment....."How could it be heaven without dogs?"
PS I posted copy of your puppies picture first for reference
-
Found some pics that illustrate my previous post. Also great news....turns out Ft Laudy has fleas....just checked a surf fishing forum I frequent and they get them there regularly. Here are some pics of sand flea pods and some of some sand flea rakes. BTW I am sure bass pro has these for sale and if you are handy making one should not be that tough. Hope these help
-
Mole crabs are collected using a sand flea rake. The rake is more like a wire mesh lined basket with a handle attached. You use it to scoop up the layer of sand they are dug into then use the backwash of the surf to filter/wash out the sand. What is left is the larger bits of shells and the fleas. When looking for fleas it is preferable to hunt in areas that have natural sand beaches which have large diameter particles made up of shell pieces. The fleas prefer this natural shell sand to the powdery imported or dredged sand usually seen in south Florida beaches. I have never seen a sand flea any further south than Boca and generally no further south in any concentration south of Palm Beach. I would not guarantee there are none there I have just not seen them.
Also when looking for them you are not going for the little holes you see in the surf (those are usually ghost crab holes)...you should be looking for shoals of them on the shoreline. They will appear as bunches of V shaped disturbances in the sand visible when the waves leave a very thin layer of water as they recede. These V shapes are their food collecting antenna being exposed as they try to strain out what they eat out of the water. They move in groups and if you stand where the waves meet the beach you can look to parallel to the shore and notice what seem like shaded areas in the skim....those are fleas. You will get up to a dozen or more per good rake....work the edges of these groups....the more you work them...the more they will scatter....fall back...or dig down deep until eventually you have to look for a new group to target.
-
I read a study recently that demonstrated that this given orally to prolong survival of terminal cancer patients showed no positive results. However, when given intravenously the concentrations available in the body were enough to aid patients in fighting cancer and prolong their survival. The problem is how do I obtain it in a form that can be safely administered to the dog....also what dose?
Dan...what do you believe the bump on you dogs head to be? Is it a calcification or is it mobile and soft like tissue? My folks had a dobie that in her older years developed a lump above one of her ears and it was a ruptured vessel that remained in that state for the rest of her life. Whatever it is I hope it clears. As far as starving the dog I am not sure I am willing to go that route. I might be wrong but I feel the dog really has days and at most weeks before the tumor gets to affecting him so much that we are going to have to put him down. Believe me if I thought starving him would give him 6 months and help him fight the tumor to the point where he regained function and comfort in his jaw I would. I believe starving him would only add to his trauma. He expects his food around 8pm even when he is having trouble getting it down he asks for it....I think it is one of the things he enjoys most.....ranking around third behind screwing and going for a walk.
I have heard many folks give testimony about one treatment or another curing cancer but many cancers are generally a death sentence. I think these diseases are both genetic and also the result of old age. Cancers are "freak" cells that do not function as normal cells should. The older we get and the more divisions and repair we force our cells to produce (as in the case of constant irritants like tobacco, alchohol etc) the more likely we are to "crap out" and churn out a "bad egg" ie cancer. His father died of cancer....and not just cancer but the same type...melanoma....could be coincidence but a few studies I read said black dogs in particular demonstrate a genetic predisposition to melanoma
-
Give him intavenosu shots of High C vitamin Ascorbile palmitate
how would you go about getting this?
-
Some pics I took today of our dog. Last one shows just how progressed the swelling/tumor is on his right jaw.
-
No they can not bite you. The only part they (and I) removed was the "telson" as denoted in your diagram. This little appendage is used to dig in the sand and also covers their roe. It looks like a little triangular tail. About their size some are 1 1/2" to 1 3/4" and they can also be tiny. I stuck to the bigger ones and cut loose any smaller than 1". In that telson you can see the mud vein and after removing it if you squeeze the body just a tad the rest of the mud comes out.. In Maine and other NE states they serve a small Atlantic shrimp that is tiny compared to our standards...like a salad shrimp. All they do is remove the head (sometimes even this is left on) ,dredge and then fry whole. In the show about the fleas they also said they served them tempura style but personally I just as soon have them with less fried dough attached to them. With the only cost associated with the fleas being your time it makes for a great and unusual snack.
PS in sushi if you request a "amaebi" aka sweet shrimp/fresh water prawn they serve you the body raw on a ball of rice and the head separate deep fried in the same manner as the fleas. They normally serve this head with a side of ponzu sauce to dip into. Some folks are intimidated by the horn and eyes peering back at you but there is no doubt after trying it that some of the best taste resides in the head...when I ask for amaebi I am really asking for this part....I don't really enjoy the texture or taste of raw shrimp.
-
After watching a episode of Bizarre Foods from Thailand I saw these folks were consuming mole crabs aka sand fleas. In the Treasure Coast we have them in abundance and if you have the right equipment and a little technique gathering a few is a cinch. These little crustaceans are typically used as bait for tasty surf zone fish such as pompano, whiting and the like. Turns out they are not just pompano candy but a tasty snack for anyone that enjoys seafood. Cleaning them is a matter of running them under cold water in a collander and removing a small appendage they use to dig into the sand. First you twist the little tail off and give them a gentle squeeze to coax out any remaining grit (ie poop) they have in their bodies. Rinse one more time then dredge them in a combination of corn starch, salt and a little powdered garlic. You can add other spices to the mix but our first batch we went minimalist to preserve the authentic taste of the "fleas". I used a deep fryer set to the highest temp setting. Wait till they float, remove and allow them to cool some. Dip in any sauce you like and crunch and munch. We set out regular cocktail sauce and a grated ginger thai style sauce.
Don't worry about the shell and feet when fried they become very crunchy like "tater" chips and the taste of the crab meat and roe is what you taste. Being reduced to eating the bait might sometimes be seen as the sign of a bad fisherman but at least your not hungry. Enjoy!
-
There are cancers and there are cancers. Malignant melanoma is fast and furious. It is literally wrapped around his jaw bone from the far back end and now involves that entire side of his mouth including under his tongue to about mid jaw on the lower right side. The back teeth are enveloped in the growth and it is oozing blood and sometimes tissue. This has happened all in the 14 days since the surgical extraction of two visible growths about the diameter of a nickel which brought his jaw back to almost normal. While he was on antibiotics the bacteria in his mouth subsided ad he did not have any halitosis or noticeable bleeding. His surgery was to restore function to his mouth for the purpose of eating and to determine through biopsy what cancer we were looking at. At first we thought fibro-sarcoma and figured we had a few months but the biopsy discovered melanoma and I knew he would go downhill fast. I am sure at this point it has involved his lymphatic system and would soon metastasize in his lungs or other organs but it seems he will be spared that stage since he is likely to soon have trouble eating or drinking and worse yet trouble breathing as his airway becomes restricted. I am going to take some pics of him and our family and maybe take him for a walk on the beach today. The only thing I really wish I could do for him that I know I won't be able to do is get him laid...my dad who cared for my dog for almost two years while I was out west and is incredibly fond of him said this to me recently: hasta que se muera dejalo que duerma y coma todo lo que quiera. Lo que te duermes, comes o culeas nadien te lo quita. :DWe both had a good laugh.
-
Thanks for the words guys. About doing anything to stop the cancer it is futile. His tumor was operated on the first of the month. Since then it has come back with a vengeance...it is nearly 7 to 10 times as large. It is killing the surrounding tissue, has become malodorous and it bleeds chronically although not profusely. We are in the last few days i think. Today we called to inquire about the cost and necessary lead time for a house call euthanasia ($105). I walked him this morning and I notice his BM was very watery and dark. He still goes ape every time he hears his collar and lead jingle when it comes off the hat rack we keep it on. His appetite is fine although we now have to mince it (home made roasted chicken) finely so he doesn't have to chew to get it down. Scary to see just how aggressive such a tumor can be. At first I thought we'd get him to Christmas but it is obvious now that making the end of the month will be a stretch.
I have had this dog since its birth....I owned his mother who gave birth to a litter of 16. Of those 16 2 were still born, another two were crushed by the mother even though I had her in a maternity pen. The puppies were well cared for and I administered all necessary vaccines and care until they were 8 wks old. I gave away about 6 dogs and while I was away for the weekend one girl who took two brought the pair back (vomiting and suffering from diarrhea and dehydration). I was not home so she put them back in with their litter mates who were housed in a dedicated enclosure outside of my house. Those two pups had contracted parvo and soon they infected the entire lot. Soon the pups who were just days before vibrant and healthy started dropping like flies. I had each one sans 3 die in my hands as I worked to save them. Of those three the biggest and healthiest one my dog Lenny was set aside and I kept him. One seriously tough dog. I later (a few months) lost his mother to a car collision. This guy has beat the odds before but we are now at the sunset of his life. His father also died as a result of malignant melanoma and I understand black dogs may be genetically predisposed to such conditions. I am with my wife and we are both feeling the onset of the mild depression that comes with realizing how close we are to his end. Lenny on the other hand is still courageous beyond comprehension...just yesterday he was having an across the fence stand off with a rottie that belongs to our neighbors....the dog weighs about 120 and is built like a brick shit house....if you asked Lenny I am sure he would tell you he can still take him....that's right buddy...i tell him...you can still whip him:)
-
I have a dog I have had for many (11+) years. Recently he was diagnosed with melanoma. He has a tumor on his jaw and it is inoperable. He has had the growth (lower right mandible...all the way to the back of his jaw) removed once but it has quickly grown back at an alarming rate. So far it has mostly the tumor has grown between his jaw and cheek and it has as of the last two days began to ulcerate. The tumor is contained inside his mouth but I notice it is causing him discomfort and undoubtedly some pain. He has proper pain management (i think) tramadol 100mg we have administered at our discretion. Early on we had him on antibiotics (cipro & amoxicillin) as it lowered the smell of decay in his mouth and seemed to help while we waited for his first biopsy results. I know this cancer is highly metastatic and we are watchful of his condition. At this time for us it is like hospice for the dog. We make sure he is comfortable...well fed with his favorites...given special attention. His energy is noticeably lowered but he does manage to walk, feed, water...go for a full walk around 1 1/2 blocks. is defecating and marking. I ramble but I guess my problem is the dog is pretty tough...never complained much or whimpered so for me it is hard to make a call. When do we say he needs us to end his suffering? What can I do to make him more comfortable or content? How can you tell if your buddy is having a bad day or if he needs you to help him get some rest. We are both incredibly attached to the animal but we feel it our responsibility to make sure he never lingers for our inability to make the right decision. Any thoughts, comments and opinions would mean a lot to us both.
