Off the wall baits for persnickety catfish.

ASAFETIDA AND OTHER SCENT BAITS
Asafetida is another superb catfish enticement now largely forgotten. Also called stinking gum and Devil's dung, this product, made from plants native to Eurasia, comes in two primary forms - a resin and an oil - both of which are used to flavor foods and for medicinal purposes. In decades past, children often wore a pouch of asafetida around the neck to ward off winter colds, an embarrassing matter for the kids, for asafetida has a strong, repugnant smell.

From:Here