For private use a small minnow seine can be used to get the weekend supply of bait form the rearing pond. However, if any quantity is to be harvested, a longer, deeper seine should be used so as to obtain the desired number in as few hauls as possible. In larger ponds from which the entire crop is to be harvested, a quarter-inch mesh seine should 200 feet long and six to twelve feet deep can be used. However, if the pond is equipped with a drain pipe, the water level- should be lowered before seining and a shorter seine should be used. Unnecessary roiling of bottom mud should be avoided.
Muddy water can suffocate minnows in the seine.
If a large quantity of minnows is caught, a bag should be formed about them by holding a lead line, float line and the ends of the seine above the water. Then trapped minnows should be moved to clean water before they are removed from the seine. This is merely an added precaution to prevent injury or suffocation. The minnows should be dipped from the seine with a small hand net. The water in holding or carrying tanks should be well aerated, and the temperature should be as nearly as possible the same as the temperature of the pond water.