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After reading several threads I decided that I needed to go ahead and euthanize my Tetra who had been suffering from swim bladder. I decided to sever the head, since it seemed the best way, given what I had at home. I know that muscles can spasm post-mortem, but after completely severing the head, the gills and mouth were moving, as if breathing. Was this normal post-mortem movement, or did I do something wrong? It took a lot for me to do it, and I would hate to think that I caused a lot of pain to the fish during it's death. Has anyone else had this experience? Any information would be helpful. Thanks.

I've never heard of euthanizing a fish.



Inky

a "easier" way is using carbonated water.

Euthanizing fish who have had prolonged suffering is not at all uncommon. Strange that you've never heard about it. I suppose you are lucky in that you've never had incurable diseases or complications with your own fish.

Anyway, I spoke to a vet this evening and found out that the moving gills and mouth was normal, and that my fish did not feel pain.

As for the carbonated water, I think that's just easier for the person, not for the fish...in my opinion. I'd assume that submerging a fish in carbonated water would probably be painful for them, and wouldn't kill the fish instantly.

I hope that I won't be doing this again anytime soon, but I have learned that this is part of being an aquarium owner.

I have euthanized fish by decapitation, and it is not uncommon for the gills to continue moving after the head has been severed. I believe this is just the nerves still reacting, even though the fish is technically dead and not in pain. It is the same thing why the body may twitch and the heart still beat for 20 or more seconds after the decaptitation. The nerves of vertebrates can still tell muscles to move and everything even though they are seperated from the brain.

I was watching a documentary on Piranhas about a year ago, and during it they attacked an injured catfish. They ate pretty much the entire thing, except for the gill/chest area and part of the spine. The fishes' brain had been eaten, because most of its head was gone, but the gills still continued to move for about a minute afterwards. It was kind of nasty.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

ok after reading that thread i was left feeling a bit quesy.. there is no way i could ever do that to a fish..

im hoping other members might be able to suggest a few less gruesome ways to end the life of a fish painlessly...

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Truth doesn't always win friends but it influences them

Some people swear by some chemical concoctions to euthanize their fish, but these tend to take longer, are more expensive, and many are extremely stressful to the fish.

Decapitation or blunt trauma to the brain is generally considered the most humane way to destroy a suffering fish (as long as you do it properly).

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

When I have had to euthanize a fish I have a bowl of ice cold water with ice in it, I catch the fish and put it in the bowl. The fish gradually goes to sleep, they feel no pain just off they go, no struggles. Then you can dispose of the fish in whatever method you see fit. We have a small service in the bathroom and off they go to fishy heaven. This is really done for the sake of the children, they prefer to say goodbye. I have heard that soda water, or carbonated water is an anesthesia as well, it doesn't hurt the fish, they feel no pain, then the actual euthanizing in ice water, or the freezer is a gentler way to go. It is much easier on the fish keeper to not feel the fish is suffering while we try to end their suffering. Keep it neat and as painless as possible.

"If you're afraid you'll make a mistake, you won't make anything."
-Family Circus

There's a lot of debate about the ice water method, or freezing fish. The method i have previously used is clove oil (from herbal/aromatherapy shops) to anethetise the fish completely and painlessly, and then freeze it so it dies. the glove oil also works to shut down the internal organs, effectively killing the fish before freezing.

I have heard the arguement against freezing is that it crushes internal organs... which i'm sure is anything but pleasant. I know i certainly would not like to be killed in a bath of freezing water or in the freezer.

Indeed, freezing is not considered humane. Certain parts of the fishes' body (fins, barbels, etc) freeze before the fish dies while it is still conscious. Since water expands as it freezes, the cells burst. This presumably causes the fish much pain.

Edit: I've also heard something about tiny ice crystals forming in the fishes' blood and damaging it from the inside. This would be akin to us having miniature razor blades flowing through our veins.

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

I too have had to euthanize a few fish and I did the decapitation way only once. Never again! I have used the clove oil method and it is the most humane way to go! It is easier on the fish and on you.


*Mitch*

I simply smash the fish's head in with a blunt object. Though it is a messier method than clove oil, I save time and money, and probably don't cause the fish extra pain. The only thing I can think that would really hurt the fish during this process is removing it from the water.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

thanks for all the suggestions..
there really isnt many ways to do it nicely is there! i think im gng with the clove oil idea in the future as the ice water had some suggestion of being quite painful in the ways described!

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Truth doesn't always win friends but it influences them

vodka is also reccomended but i cant remember why its supposed to be humane, something to do with the way its distilled?
can anyone give more info

OH TOLEEDY!

From what I understand, vodka alone could be very painful for the fish, due to irritation, stinging, etc. I have heard about people having used a solution made of vodka AND clove oil, but I don't have any personal experience with that.

My intention wasn't to provoke a discussion of the best ways to euthanize fish, since it's not a pleasant topic, but hope that it helped someone else out. As for me, I'll stick to what I've had to do recently, with hopes that another instance won't present itself for a long time....

Thanks everyone!

Oil and water don't mix, alcohol and water don't mix, however, alcohol does help oil dissolve in water. So in my understanding, if you're going to use the clove oil method (basically an overdose of anaethetic, same as is usually administered for cats and dogs), you'd need to use alcohol (vodka is cheap and pure) to dissolve the clove oil into the water.

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baking soda in h2o (i think its one tablespoon per gallon) i'm told it puts them sleep IME it works fast and they don't look like their in pain.

I would thing think the baking soda thing would in fact cause pain. As it would be more of a ph burn than anything. For a comparison of this, think about chemical burns in humans. Like sticking our hand in a vat of sulfuric acid. Or the other end of the scale, in a vat of lyme. We call them chemical burns, but in fact they are ph burns.

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There is always a bigger fish...

alcohol and water don't mix

They mix very well actually All your alcoholc drinks are part alcohol and part water. Actually, if you would leave a bottle of pure 100% alcohol open and exposed to the sky, it would attract the water vapor from the air until it reaches a relatively stable 96% alcohol versus 4% water. Of course, if you leave it open too long, the alcohol will just evaporate away.


Edit: this was quite off topic actually. In my opinion the most "humane" way of euthanizing a fish is by doing it as quick as possible. Decapitation is quick, hitting it on the head with a hammer is quick too. freezing takes several minutes at least, and also alcohol solutions won't kill instantly. In the end it will be your own decision, do what you feel comfortable with.

Natalie, I've also seen that documentary on piranha you are referring to a few times.. The cat's mistake was it was wounded already. The catfish would have died from a secondary infection were it not eaten, so served it's place in the food chain. Want fries with that ?

I agree with what you said. Beheading or blunt object is the fastest. Beheading is the least mess. The twitching is from electrical impulses, which flows not only thru the brain, but the entire nervous system.

Vodka has no benefit, well, to the fish.
Just use the clove oil and some water.. Don't mix alcohol.
The clove oil simply puts it to sleep, the fish should still be killed afterward, by your preferred method..
Note after a fish is put to sleep with clove oil, it can then be frozen and the fish won't feel a thing.

The Amazon Nut...