Rejuvenade and fish care

Carl Guffey · Apr 20, 2011

Please do not use Rejuvenade for fish care, either as a livewell treatment or weigh-in tank additive. Simply put, it is not good for black bass or for the environment, as it is not FDA approved for human consumption. Rejuvenade has an ingredient that stimulates the fish. While having fish jumping out of the weigh basket has proven to be good PR at large tournament weigh-ins, in truth Rejuvenade has a very adverse effect on the bass. Bass are short sprint experts and will give a quick burst of energy to capture their food and then recuperate with a rest period. Their type of chemical makeup does not tolerate prolonged effort or irritation. If fish are subjected to prolonged stimulus, their bodies will have increased amounts of lactic acid from the adverse situation. Because the physiology of black bass does not easily dissipate lactic acid, the end result is delayed stress syndrome. 

Just because a fish swims off does not mean that it will survive. Generally I equate this to some aspects of deer hunting. If a hunter misses a shot and lung shoots a deer, it will immediately start running as far and as fast as it can to escape its hurtful situation. However, if you walk up on a deer in the forest and give it plenty of room, it will move off slowly. If it is curious, it will jump when startled, then stop and investigate before moving on. The same can be seen at weigh-in releases. Fish that are not hyped up on drugs or panicked from lack of oxygen will swim off slowly and deliberately. On the other hand, fish that are in an agitated state will sprint away as fast and as quickly as they are capable of to escape. Aqua culturists have used un-iodized salt for years with little to no adverse effects on the fish being moved. The salt water will deter viruses and most invasive species as well as promote slime growth. The promotion of the slime coat can be good, especially if the fish may have fallen to the floor or rubbed against the boat carpet on its way to the livewell. A simple solution of 3 ounces of un-iodized salt to five gallons of fresh water is all that is needed to provide a restful and relaxing environment for the fish in the livewell. The salt and water should be added to the livewell at the first stop of the morning when the water would be at its coolest and devoid of oils or chemicals from the blast off location. The livewell water will need to be at least partially emptied and refilled during the day to remove any ammonia build up. An additional amount of salt will have to be added to bring the salt percentages back to the original level once the water is replaced. Once the lake water surface temperature reaches 75 degrees, non-chlorinated ice should be added to the livewell in order to maintain the water temperature at least 10 degrees below the surface temperature of the lake water. In addition, once you have fish in the livewell you should run the aerator 100 percent of the time. Fish will deplete the oxygen in the small space of a livewell very quickly at cool temperatures and even faster as the livewell water temperature rises.

Triton20xHarris · Apr 20, 2011

Thanks for the heads up.. Hope everybody reads this and takes it in. Its some real good info

Mike Hernandez · Apr 20, 2011

emoThumbsup Excellent post Carl! Very informative and appreciated. emoThumbsup

clutch442 · Apr 20, 2011

Another way to do the salt at a safe level would be 1 teaspoon per gallon. It also helps with ammonia and nitrate in the water. You can get small packages of synthetic sea salt in the pet dept at Wal-Mart please don't use table salt. I have used the 1 tsp per gallon method in my 12+ years of running aqauriums with great results.

Triton20xHarris · Apr 20, 2011

Another very informative post ill have to give that a try emoThumbsup

kdxdude · Apr 20, 2011

Carl Guffey - 4/20/2011 9:07 PM

Please do not use Rejuvenade for fish care, either as a livewell treatment or weigh-in tank additive. Simply put, it is not good for black bass or for the environment, as it is not FDA approved for human consumption. Rejuvenade has an ingredient that stimulates the fish. While having fish jumping out of the weigh basket has proven to be good PR at large tournament weigh-ins, in truth Rejuvenade has a very adverse effect on the bass. Bass are short sprint experts and will give a quick burst of energy to capture their food and then recuperate with a rest period. Their type of chemical makeup does not tolerate prolonged effort or irritation. If fish are subjected to prolonged stimulus, their bodies will have increased amounts of lactic acid from the adverse situation. Because the physiology of black bass does not easily dissipate lactic acid, the end result is delayed stress syndrome. 

Just because a fish swims off does not mean that it will survive. Generally I equate this to some aspects of deer hunting. If a hunter misses a shot and lung shoots a deer, it will immediately start running as far and as fast as it can to escape its hurtful situation. However, if you walk up on a deer in the forest and give it plenty of room, it will move off slowly. If it is curious, it will jump when startled, then stop and investigate before moving on. The same can be seen at weigh-in releases. Fish that are not hyped up on drugs or panicked from lack of oxygen will swim off slowly and deliberately. On the other hand, fish that are in an agitated state will sprint away as fast and as quickly as they are capable of to escape. Aqua culturists have used un-iodized salt for years with little to no adverse effects on the fish being moved. The salt water will deter viruses and most invasive species as well as promote slime growth. The promotion of the slime coat can be good, especially if the fish may have fallen to the floor or rubbed against the boat carpet on its way to the livewell. A simple solution of 3 ounces of un-iodized salt to five gallons of fresh water is all that is needed to provide a restful and relaxing environment for the fish in the livewell. The salt and water should be added to the livewell at the first stop of the morning when the water would be at its coolest and devoid of oils or chemicals from the blast off location. The livewell water will need to be at least partially emptied and refilled during the day to remove any ammonia build up. An additional amount of salt will have to be added to bring the salt percentages back to the original level once the water is replaced. Once the lake water surface temperature reaches 75 degrees, non-chlorinated ice should be added to the livewell in order to maintain the water temperature at least 10 degrees below the surface temperature of the lake water. In addition, once you have fish in the livewell you should run the aerator 100 percent of the time. Fish will deplete the oxygen in the small space of a livewell very quickly at cool temperatures and even faster as the livewell water temperature rises.

Is this your opinion or do you have facts & figures to prove your statements? I use Rejuvenade & I have been really impressed with it. A couple of weeks back my partner had deep hooked a 3.25 LM & it was bleeding pretty good. He put it in the livewell & we kept a close eye on it. After 45 mins in the well it had turned up on its side, we put Rejuvenade in the well & kept the fish upright. After about 20 mins. it stayed upright on its own. 4 hours later we weighed the fish in & then released it, it swam off just fine. Do I know that it didn't die later? No, but what I do know is that it would have died if we didn't try something & I do know that it swam away just fine after 4 hours in the well. Gonna be a hard sell for ya on me. I'm very impressed with Rejuvenade.

Jmax · Apr 21, 2011

I have done nothing, done the salt and did the juvi. I have the best results with the juvi. I am a hard sell on not using it either. MY experience tells me different. You can say delayed death all day long if you want but what is your conclusion to delayed death on the salt? Both are unknown. I will continue to use it. emoScratch Jmax

Carl Guffey · Apr 21, 2011

The salt solution that I mentioned is a known entity. Wildlife agencies and hatchery personnel have used it for years when transporting fish, during all kinds of weather, with great success. The salt will provide a very comfortable environment which relaxes the fish and makes them less susceptible to physical damage.

fishinvol · Apr 21, 2011

Jmax has spoken . I will follow the Legend .

Oldman · Apr 21, 2011

i heard the legend died.

fishinvol · Apr 21, 2011

Oldman - 4/21/2011 1:34 PM i heard the legend died.

No way, he was just wanting attention with that statement.

drumking · Apr 21, 2011

Great post and info, Carl. emoGeezer

cast4bass · Apr 21, 2011

I have kept fresh water aquariums for many years and the most important things are to make sure the fish tank does not build up ammonia and slime coat. I have used rejuvenade but I did read somewhere (basstimes or bassmaster or elsewhere) that if you put too much in the livewell it will kill the fish so I guess if you use if you have to use it according to specs. However, I think I will try out what Carl recommends since it is simpler and makes sense given what I know about maintaining fish in aquariums. I might also go buy a big bottle of slime coat in the pet department to add as well. Couldnt hurt. Thanks for the post.

EricM · Apr 21, 2011

The only basis that I have for an opinion is from bait tank useage and recommendations. I have read about, and have had personal experience with, the use of non-iodized salt in my bait tank. I normally use rock salt or water softener salt tablets at a rate of 1 cup per 20 gallons (double if the fish are in poor shape). Shad are a fragile fish and do not last long when you put a bunch in a good bait tank. Without the salt solution they weaken and die easily, even if water temps are controlled. The addition of the salt, as recommended by the bait tank manufacturers, makes all the difference in the world, and if not too overcrowded, the shad last all day.

I can't speak for Rejuvenade, but have also used a product called Shad-Saver that I suspect is similar (and expensive). I have not personally noticed a major difference in how the fish react to it vs. plain non-iodized salt, and the salt is cheap and available.

Although I don't see much difference when using salt or a commercial additive, there is a MAJOR improvement over using nothing at all. I wonder if anyone has published tests using commercial chemical additives vs. the salt???

And I am thrilled that CFF folks are really interested in the welfare of their catch and release fish!!!!!!!!! emoWorthy emoWorthy emoThumbsup

Sniperchoke · Apr 21, 2011

This is why I do not use Rejuvinade. I use the Sure Life Catch and Release product. This product reduces ammonia, stress, and de chlorinates if I use ice. It also uses a natural tranquilizer to calm the fish instead of stimulating them. If you can believe the web site. I read somewhere in a head to head this product out performed rejuvinade both in stress related weight loss and post tournament mortality. It was developed by a husband and wife biologist and chemist. Check them out for yourself. www.sure-life.com

Buoy-Master · Apr 21, 2011

Ask Rogie about the salt set up with an oxygenating live well system! Cost him FLW last Fall. Salt only works well with recirculating systems.

Carl Guffey · Apr 22, 2011

One of the by-products of electrolysis in salt water is chlorine. The oxygenater system has a formula for salt water and it is discussed in great detail in the literature. In addition I worked on a test experiment with several oxygenating system while I was at the Nationals in Kimball. The oxygenater was quite impressive. It turned tap water which normally will read about 5.3 ppt into a prime solution of 10 ppt with the use of a re-circulater to stir the water up. Anything above a 7 is wonderful.

churly · Apr 22, 2011

This discussion has my interest, so I ask the question, What was the blue stuff in the FLW weigh in box? We all see it and it is blue. Also, I am like most, I have seen rejuvenade perform miracles...

fishinvol · Apr 22, 2011

I believe the blue stuff is that shad saver type stuff. Same stuff that's in minnow tanks at bait stores. I have read on some other forums about rejuvenade being dangerous for fish . I quit using it last year, just because of what I had been reading. Having the bass that hyped up in a small space isn't good. I've been using please release me ( think that's what it is called) and I noticed the bass chill out a bit more in it. Need some sort of fish dope. Make them relax more and then they will get the munchies and fatten up.

SpurHunter · Apr 22, 2011

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Rejuvenade and fish care

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