How do you dispatch Octopus?
I fish for flathead with poddy mullet and the number 1 bycatch is octopus. I've let them go in the past but I usually have to cut the hook, unless they drop off, which I don't like from a rubbish standpoint. Also re rigging is a pain in the arse.
With all my fish it's brain spike, bleed, into ice slurry. With squid it's just the ol karate chop to the noggin until they turn white but I don't think octopus is the same? Some old guy told me once a octopus grabbed the knife off him and started waving it around!
I've always released because of their intelligence (and alleged knife skills) but they do only live a short while anyway and I'm sure they're tasty, if they're anything like squid. So, fuck it. I'll eat them. I caught two good sized octopus today and only two flathead, only one which I kept so I could've went home with a seafood feast instead of a good meal.
But how do I dispatch them safely and humanely?