At nighttime I like to have beta lights on the tips of the arms on the net so you can judge when the fish is inside the net.
I also try to get the fish’s head as close to the net float and spreader block as possible before lifting the net.
Get the fish to the unhooking mat as safely possible the first thing to do is to take the hook out of the fishes mouth while the fish is in the water; I do this with forceps to avoid injury to my fingers, if the fish lets out a sudden burst of energy, my fingers could get caught up with the carp and the hook. The rod can then be moved out of the way saving any breakages, Remove arms from the spreader block grab the two handles mentioned previously and get the carp on the mat.
A lot of the time especially in hot weather I will weigh the fish while it is in the landing net instead of putting it in a sling that needs wetting, this saves a lot of time, my landing net has weighing loops and I can return the fish with the landing net, this allows more time to take photographs without distressing the fish.
I always have a bucket or bottle of water unhooking near the unhooking mat to keep the fish wet and hydrated and to wash any crap off for photography purposes.
My mat is a Fox one that Velcro’s together making it easy to transport the fish back to the lake safely.
You should always give the fish time to swim off, open up the mat when you are in the water with the fish slowly sinking the mat back and the fish back and forth this will get the carps gills moving. You can also do this by moving the carps top lip up and down this gives him the oxygen he needs to swim off and recuperate.
Carp care is also to do with the bait that we put in the water by making sure your bait is prepared.
High Oil content halibut or trout pellets in large numbers are not good for the carp; I would sooner use a hemp, CSL, or bleedworm type of pellet.
Same thing with particulate baits like peanuts tigernuts being the main killers of carp if not prepared right.
Peanuts and Tigers, I like to soak them for 2 to 3 days, boil for 1 ½ hrs and put them back to soak another day or so, then I know the baits are fully hydrated and cannot blow up in the carps belly causing the carp harm.
It is the same with maize, maples, haricot, adzudei etc. so try and prepare your baits right and there will be no bait bans on our waters, it's those who cannot be bothered to find out how to prepare bait that ruins it for the rest of us.
I have done very well over the years on peanuts and Tigers but can't use them because of this problem.
The problem with high oil pellets is that they shouldn't be used in the winter.
When high oil pellets are used in cold water the oil in the pellets will not emulsify, it just congeals making it hard for the carp to digest, causing damage to the carp’s digestive system, which can be fatal to the carp in large amounts causing death to the fish.
These high oil content pellets should be barred on waters in the colder months.