Sea Dog question

[Harry Hill]

Yesterday fishing near the bait barge in Newport Harbor we had to deal with a couple of real aggressive sea dogs. One kep coming up alongside my kayak and blowing water on me and then swimming under my yak and bumping it. Not real hard but enough to move the yak some. Anyway, I got to thinking that in order for me to get to the back of my kayak I have to sit sideways and hang my feet over the side while I grab stuff. Has anyone heard of anyone getting bitten by one of the dogs? I know they have excellent sight and can pull an anchovy off of a hook without getting hooked so they know how to be careful but on my first mackerel the dog came in under the boat and grabbed it as I was pulling it out of the water and I got to thinking that could be my foot hanging over the side. So while the dogs were around I didn't hang my feet out but I was still wondering if the dogs knew the difference.

[Zed]

Not on the yak but surfing a long time ago there was dogs messing with with my (and others out) feet. They would gently mouth and tug. Not a chomp anyway. It was scary AF the first time then funny then annoying. I think they were just playing. Adolescents just testing boundaries. Never again after that though.

[Dail14]

If they stay that close a good thrust with your paddle should get them to move a few feet away. Worst case scenario tie on a heavy weight and slam it in the water near them. It doesnt have to hit them but it scares them away. This is for if they stay within 10 feet of you or constantly bump you.

[King Saba]

Did you have any bait in the water? I had ONE greenie in my bait tube at DPH and damn seal followed me for an hour. It wasn't until I released that thing and paddled away that it stopped following me.

[maquinapescado]

In the marina at Ensendada, there was a huge sea dog that was notorious for being really aggressive and had attacked several people. I was carrying a couple surfboards and my bag while getting off my friends boat and he lunged at me. I dropped all my shit and got a good scare. I heard a couple years later someone finally put a bullet in him.

I suggest that you always be cautious around those bastards. I've been surfing my whole life and have been startled by them and heard a couple attack stories but nothing I can confirm.

If it were up to me I would say that there should be a hunting season for them and give out tags like deer tags. That way we could decrease the population some without getting out of hand. They are literally devastating the steelhead and salmon population in some places.

[Superduper]

Sling shot and a bag of marbles always works for me

[Deamon]

There's a big old dog ruling Shelter Island's boat launch these days. When I was being check by The Man, he told me they were monitoring this one. It gets real close to EVERYONE. As soon as/if it ever gets aggressive, they "take him out".

[Harry Hill]

No bait in the water other than the macs we were catching. After they were done unloading the trawler there were a lot of anchovies in the water but the dogs were bugging the boats. I got to thinking it might not be a good idea to put my feet in the water but I guess it won't be a problem. I think those dogs were sucking the anchovies right off my hook without getting hooked. Next time I'll just catch a few greenies and then go soak them out by the kelp. Hopefully some YT will still be hanging around.

[straightrod]

I thought I read of someone on this site getting bit on the leg while dangling their legs overboard. There was a pic and it was a pretty good bite to the calf.

I managed to hook one while fly lining a live mack three weeks ago off La Jolla in a Tandem Island. At first I thought he was trying to steal a fish that I had caught, then realized he was the catch. He surfaced 30 yards away screaming like hell. Another seal sped to his rescue while my wife was encouraging me to cut the line. I contemplated removing the hook from his mouth but worried he may attack if I had him that close. He looked to be bigger than I am. Got him to within 4 feet and cut the line. Still not sure how I should have handled it?

[Zed]

^perfect. Its all you can do. Most just thumb the spool and bust them off.

Its concerning the number of elephant seals around. Im surprised there arent more white shark sightings/encounters.

[Harry Hill]

Originally Posted by straightrod

I thought I read of someone on this site getting bit on the leg while dangling their legs overboard. There was a pic and it was a pretty good bite to the calf.

I managed to hook one while fly lining a live mack three weeks ago off La Jolla in a Tandem Island. At first I thought he was trying to steal a fish that I had caught, then realized he was the catch. He surfaced 30 yards away screaming like hell. Another seal sped to his rescue while my wife was encouraging me to cut the line. I contemplated removing the hook from his mouth but worried he may attack if I had him that close. He looked to be bigger than I am. Got him to within 4 feet and cut the line. Still not sure how I should have handled it?

sounds to me like you handled it just right. I sure don't want one coming into my boat with me while I pull a hook from it's lip. A guy I talked to at the ramp said earlier this year one jumped right over the bow of his yak like it was a sea world show. He said it scared him pretty good, I know the one that came up next to me and snorted all over me gave me a good scare and I'm not the jumpy type. I'm thinking an M80 in a mackerel would discourage them but the rangers might be kind of pissy about that.