Crawfish Farm Progress...

[Jester896]

they still put 40# in a croaker sack?

 

[Mexican Squealer]

@Jester896 sacks are generally 30-35 pounds these days

 

[Jester896]

shrinkflation

 

[DannyW]

The two types of crawfish we catch…Louisiana Red Swamp and White River. Both can get big. White River are the true natives….
View attachment 1295088

Those are whoppers. They are as big as the ones I see in Northern Minnesota in the BWCA.

 

[Deerhead]

Those are so big they make lobsters look small.

Thanks for sharing the journey.

 

[Mexican Squealer]

The molt is a blessing and curse…it’s a blessing to get to fry up the soft shells and a curse if your catch % is heavy in ‘em due to dead loss. Nobody wants to buy dead crawfish and I don’t want to sell anyone dead crawfish. These cold snaps and other factors make them molt…young ones generally double in size with each molt. One year olds may molt up to 8-10 times during season. Less their second (3-4 times) year and less often as they mature. They can double in size after molting. The oily, rich sheen on the water is a result of the molt. Next time you are around a ditch, swamp or place that may have crawfish, look for it. Not the pollen but the sheen the pollen settles in. Once you get used to looking at it, you can ID solid crawfishing waters…

 

[Mexican Squealer]

Fresh molted soft shell. He just crawled out of his shell and is soft just like a crab. You can see the considerable growth. He is perfectly alive but will be immobile for several days as his new shell hardens up. They are delicious but I’ve had my fill for a while so he got a pass.

 

[DannyW]

Fresh molted soft shell. He just crawled out of his shell and is soft just like a crab. You can see the considerable growth. He is perfectly alive but will be immobile for several days as his new shell hardens up. They are delicious but I’ve had my fill for a while so he got a pass.
View attachment 1295577

Never knew...really interesting.

 

[Mexican Squealer]

Crawfish of the day…big ones today

 

[Core Lokt]

Dang, those are lobsters....

 

[Mexican Squealer]

Dang, those are lobsters....

It’s strange how much the consistent size varies each day….some days you catch mediums and some days they are giants. Catch also varies from pond to pond with no rhyme or reason…days you load up on the big ones are cool but from a consumer standpoint, you will yield more meat out of a sack of small/medium than you will from a sack of jumbos.

 

[Mexican Squealer]

 

[Jester896]

ain't but 2 things...maybe 3 that is wrong with that picture

 

[zaraspook04]

@Mexican Squealer ...them thangs looks familiar!!!!

Met @Mexican Squealer the other day for a bag full. My youngest son turned 16 and asked for a crawfish cookout. Needless to say, all 30 lbs got eaten Saturday evening. They were sho-nuff good.

Even better was meeting @Mexican Squealer ...heck of a great guy!!!!

 

[Mexican Squealer]

@zaraspook04 I appreciate the kind words! It was great meeting you as well and I’m glad y’all enjoyed the crawfish! Thank you

 

[Mexican Squealer]

Good evening running traps and shooting
cardboard turkeys with his .410….

 

[Mexican Squealer]

Delicious

 

[Core Lokt]

Good eat'n size.

 

[antharper]

Delicious View attachment 1296784

Heck yeah ! Best eating size for sure . Can you eat it with alpha gal ? And has the symptoms eased up any ? I think about you and @ryork often . Can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like . From what I’ve read on it , it can pretty much go away I think , if so I hope it does for you both

 

[Mexican Squealer]

@antharper thankfully, I can eat it and I love it! My alpha gal levels are higher than when I was diagnosed unfortunately. Dr in VA I go to said that many believe it goes away simply because you may not react every time. He says you can eat meat, not react, proclaim you are cured then drop dead on the next meal. My wife is a nurse and saw this
exact scenario happen with one of her favorite patients, two years before I got it. I come close to dying about once every month or two due to cross contamination. I still eat out and do irresponsible stuff that leads to those episodes. That’s my fault. The jacked up part is I get horrible gout…so I either load up on seafood and get gout or eat meat and die. At the end of the day, there are folks dealing with worse situations/issues. It’s all in Gods hands and I’m good with that. Thanks buddy, I appreciate your kind words!