Walk the Dog!

[ronaultmtd]

So this year I have found the speckled trout in Southern waters love walk the dog top water lures...A year or so ago my buddy Bill gave me a couple of BadonkaDonk lures that he had given up on...The only thing I changed to the lures- I swapped the treble hooks out for in line single hooks...one early morning a few weeks ago I saw a few swirls on the water...figured it was stripers and I tied one on....I was working it over some shallow flats...four big 20 inch plus Speckled trout later...I was stoked! 95% of all the fish taking the lure were trout, not stripers...And they were a lot of fun on my Stradic CI-4+ FB reel, St Croix Mojo Inshore medium light 7’ rod with 10# braid...I have used several brands of walk the dog lures: Bomber, Heddon, Rapala, & Mirrorlure...The noisy ones seem to get the most attention from fish...Colors I find work best are dark colors before sun up and bright colors after sunup...hot pink and silver and chartreuse and silver are two of my favorite “bright colors”...chartreuse and black is another very effective color in pre dawn and dark overcast days...So...which lure is your favorite walk the dog? BadonkaDonk? She Dog/Top Dog? Zara Spook Jr? Skitter Walk? Or ??

[Slobber Bob]

That's awesome and encouraging to me. I will have to give top water some more effort when I start speck fishing again this fall.

I've never had any luck getting them to hit a top water over here on the Eastern side of the bay. I just end up catching stripers or blues. Even when I know I'm in a school of specks I can't get them to rise for a top water and can only get them on sub-surface lures. I'd all but given up on trying to get one on top unless it happened by chance.

The spook lures I most commonly reach for int he tackle box are either a Mirrolure Top Dog or a Tsunami Walking Minnow; both are bone color.

[Mark]

Zara Spook modified with inline hooks and dressed with pelican feathers.

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You don't need the feathers. I just though it was a nice touch.

I've used a Zara Spook only in salt/tidal water catching specks, reds and stripers. I've never tired it for freshwater bass.

It has a great action but I find it a little tiring on my wrist when fish want it moving continuously and fast.

[J.A. Veil]

Specks will definitely hit topwater lures. My favorite speck topwater photo is shown below. I was working the lure across a shallow grass flat near the mouth of Tampa Bay when I caught separate specks on each of the two hooks. This popper, with its two trebles, was provided to me by the guide. On my own topwater lures, I replace the two trebles with either one or two inline J hooks.

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[DanMarino]

I will give walk the dog lures a try in the OBX on the sound side when I go there for 2 weeks in September. I think the trout are still around that time of year down there.

[summersoff]

I got my biggest trout this year on a Jumpin Minnow, problem was with all those hooks flying around, I snagged my leg pretty darn good when I pulled it in. Took a while to get it out, even with the bent barbs.
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[ronaultmtd]

That is exactly why all my hard baits have the trebles removed and replaced with in line single hooks...a few years ago I had a 30 inch Striper In the cockpit with me...pinned to my thigh with a treble hook through the fabric of my waders with the hook clean past the bend in my thigh muscle...and the fish was thrashing driving the hook deeper...it was not a pleasant experience...one I swore would never happen again...

[captmikestarrett]

Owner/Cultiva makes a bait called the Zippin Ziggy that I use all the time. It catches all kinds of fish. The hooks are light wire trebles and will take a small single hook and still work great. Not cheap but worth it.

Capt Mike

[ronaultmtd]

If fish are actively feeding they will take a wide variety of lures that mimic wounded baitfish...the shape and line attachment on these baits varies and under some conditions makes a difference...the shape and buoyancy of the Badonkadonk enhances its darting from side to side- its treble hooks are junk, easily bends, losing fish...gotta replace them...the best hooks I have seen are on the Mirrorlure “Dog” series...but since I replace trebles it isn’t a deal breaker for me. The old standby Zara Spook is really hard to beat...it is the lure everyone mimics. I like the Jr. series...if you have confidence in your lure, work it in an erratic, twitch, twitch with slack line that allows the lure to glide between pulls you will be rewarded with blowups...As with any top water bait a blowup with a walk the dog bait does not necessarily mean a “hookup”....You can pull the bait away from the fish if you try to set the hook too soon.I generally wait until I feel resistance on the line before I give a quick snap of the wrist to set the hook. With fishing top water, you cannot be a “one trick pony”...walk the dog lures are deadly under certain conditions, but ineffective under others. If the water is slick calm, overcast, you see bait jumping, ripples on the water- throw the “dog”...if it is choppy, windy, fish busting bait...throw a popper/chugger...work it hard, making lots of noise...read the water...it tells you what they want and how they want it...

[Mark]

That's excellent advice by Ron on when to use which kind of topwater lure. For calm water, use a smoother running surface lure, like a Zara Spook. For choppy water, use one that you can chug across the surface, a cupped-faced popper.

Hesitating slightly on the hookset is also good advice. In fact, some suggest using a rod for topwater with a slower tip action. I've been doing that for years and I'm a believer that it helps. I think it's even more important for anglers who use braided line that doesn't stretch. A quick reaction with fast tip rod and braid will yank a bait from the fish's mouth. A little "give" in the rod tip is often enough to ensure a proper hookset.

[JAR]

My favorite spook type baits are:
Yo-Zuri Hydro Pencil
RM Smith Jigsmith (custom wooden plug)
Luckycraft Sammy 128

My experience with spooks is mostly similar to yours, particularly using dark colors in low light conditions. I mainly throw bone colored spooks in the bay and catch stripers, specks, reds and blues. I find the walk the dog action to be deadlier than a popper/chugger in rough water. The key is to use a heavier plug that will maintain the gliding action in chop, this is where the custom wooden plug is more effective since it is weighted a certain way that allows this.

[ronaultmtd]

Fishing is a constantly evolving sport...new lures, new techniques...we learn constantly...no one knows it all...no matter how many decades of experience...general rules of use change with the introduction of new lures...the Mirrorlure Mirrordine lure, the Paul Brown, and Whopper Plopper Prop baits have a technique specific to just that lure...learning new skills working lures is the difference between “fishing” and “catching”...