ok, just food for thought here. you are asking questions, but not really listening to the answers, and being kind of harsh toward some of the responses. we are merely trying to figure what would be best for you and the fish. now if you plan on putting channels and flathead in there, you may also want to put some other stuff in there as well, to give it nice ballance. i would suggest bluegill, crappie, largemouth, carp, and bullheads. this will give you cats a little competition as well as plenty of farage so that they dont get used to looking at the same things all of the time. this will also ensure there are plenty of forage for them to feed on and will keep them from getting overpopulated and stunting thier growth. as far as habitat goes, i would definatley put in plenty of wood (like logs and brushpiles) as well as some rock piles. also, go to a junkyard and get a few junk cars. you can proabaly get them for less than 2 hundred buck and usually all of the fluids and chemicals are already drained out of them. what better place for a fish to hide in than an old car body. if you can find an old building or know someone in demolition, you can also use cinder blocks and pile them up. will work well. i would also throw in a couple of old metal barrels and even some appliances. hey they are all cheap and wont degrade as fast as the logs will and they will provide plenty of hiding places for the cats as well as the forage. if they are clear cutting the area, tell them to leave the stumps in the ground. these places are awesome areas for cats as well as forage fish. think about it and let me know what you think. if you have any more questions, please ask, and remember we want to help, but we are also looking out for your best interest as well as for the best interest of the fisheries.
oooh: thats one thing i forgot to mention, if you use old junk cars remove all of the rubber hoses and tires as well as the weather stripping. and dont worry about being harsh, i dont think you were trying to be, but you have to remember that we arent talking face to face so we cant see your reactions or hear your tone. fathead minnows will be great, and i would defintely look at putting some crappie in there. they can be really fun to catch during the spring around your brush piles. another thing you may want to look into is putting in some floating docks with some brush piles spread around them. they will hold baitfish and will be easy to fish off of. you can make them out of plastic barrels and 2x4's with plywood on top. just a thought. since you have a good lake that you can personally set up for your purposes, then you should definately put in there what you would like to have. thnk about the things that you like to look for whe you go and fish public water and incorporate all of these aspects into your lake. once the lake gets established, put in some lilly pads. will give the baitfish a place to hide in shallower water without having to worry about getting caught up in brush.
