Iced My Fish :-(

[Tizer]

How do you prep a fish after you take it out of the tank, what a load fo tosh? I net them, i chuck them on the chopping board and i slice their heads off, no matter what size the fish. The quicker the better. If you like to string it out, carry on, but i like to make sure they are dead quickly. Its not nice, its not pleasant, but its quick.

 

[barb218]

I havn't kept fish for long so luckily i havn't had to kill one.

But i wouldn't really like just to drop a brick on it

 

[soybean]

My method for small tetras,etc:

Fill fish bag with tank water
Net said manky fish
Plop it in bag
Prop bag upright in a jug
Fill small water bottle with tank water
Add about 30 drops of clove oil
Shake shake shake, senora
Start adding slow trickles into the bag until fish goes belly up
Check every ten minutes or so, adding a little more if need be until gills stop moving
Tie up bag
Bin
Store bottle of leftover water/oil for next time

Painless and no guts to wipe up.

 

[Twinklecaz]

I don't like any of these methods but did have to do the brick and bag method about a year ago. I used a non see-tru bag and made sure it was tied up tight so I never had to see any guts or anything. I wouldn't have been able to do it if that were the case.

Couldn't do the head chopping thing though

 

[CrazyAirborne]

Tizer cracks me up.

but im not going to lie. ive only had to kill one fish. and i dropped it in boiling water. it was probably not the best decision, but i felt it was quite instant and looking back, it was for the best.

i think clove oil will be my technique if i ever have to do it again.

 

[Geoff-]

Tizer for president!

 

[Tizer]

 

[Mcbenthy]

My method for small tetras,etc:

Fill fish bag with tank water
Net said manky fish
Plop it in bag
Prop bag upright in a jug
Fill small water bottle with tank water
Add about 30 drops of clove oil
Shake shake shake, senora
Start adding slow trickles into the bag until fish goes belly up
Check every ten minutes or so, adding a little more if need be until gills stop moving
Tie up bag
Bin
Store bottle of leftover water/oil for next time

Painless and no guts to wipe up.

Pretty much what I do, but I add a shot or two of vodka (tesco's own super saver nasty stuff) before binning the fish, just to stop the zombie fish stories

 

[trianglekitty]

[/quote]


Taking the fish out of the tank (stressful in itself), then prepping it and leaving it in air whilst you ready up fo rit is not great. by all means if you could net it out and shoot it etc, then that would be best, but these animals arent big enough.


[/quote]


That's my thing- imagine you're already ill and stressed. Someone comes along and shoves your head under water, even for ten seconds- it would be a terrible experience. Taking the fish out of water and lying it down to either drop a brick on it or cut off the head means there's a period of time there where the fish can't breath. With clove oil the fish can stay in water the entire time.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

It is interesting to me that we are discussing how to properly euthanize a fish (pet) without considering the way that professionals (vets) euthanize our pets. When you have a terminal pet, your vet will euthanize your pet by overdosing it on anesthesia and "puts it to sleep" permanently. Now, if folks around here are going to get all worked up about the way fish are not treated fairly by people and how there should be penalties for abusing fish (keeping them in cramped conditions, overcrowding, wrong fish together - basically a dog fighting ring without the gambling), etc. Then why are people not more consistent in how they put the fish down?

Why is decapitation a preferred method to anesthesia? Would you feel the same if someone euthanized a cat that way? What about the bashing their head with a rock plan? Would you feel the same way if it were a dog?


IMHO, anesthesia is the way to go. A good OD on clove oil is the way to go. I've only had to do it once, and I don't look forward to doing it again. But the other methods are primitive. Yes, they are quick. I won't speak on the subject of "painless" except to say that I can't imagine that it would be. Ultimately, consider this scenario: A loved one is deathly ill. Would you prefer they die quickly (but violently) or that they merely pass on in their sleep? Personally, I prefer the sleep thing, but that's just me.

 

[trianglekitty]

IMHO, anesthesia is the way to go. A good OD on clove oil is the way to go. I've only had to do it once, and I don't look forward to doing it again. But the other methods are primitive. Yes, they are quick. I won't speak on the subject of "painless" except to say that I can't imagine that it would be. Ultimately, consider this scenario: A loved one is deathly ill. Would you prefer they die quickly (but violently) or that they merely pass on in their sleep? Personally, I prefer the sleep thing, but that's just me.

Also, as a vet tech I know that cutting off the head is not considered humane for animals like reptiles or fish. The actual act may be over with quickly, but the brain continues to send signals for as long as 30 seconds. The guidelines for fish are similar- if you cut off the head, you're supposed to follow it by pithing the brain. With mammals, cutting off the head stops blood flow to the brain, resulting in rapid loss of consciousness. With reptiles and fish, their nervous system is capable of working with lower oxygen levels.

 

[Cooper2085]

I just flick the head..... Net it and flick the skull/neck/head area. They die instantly and are out the water for a fraction of a second.

 

[Tizer]

Why is decapitation a preferred method to anesthesia? Would you feel the same if someone euthanized a cat that way? What about the bashing their head with a rock plan? Would you feel the same way if it were a dog?

I'd have to fire up my chainsaw to get through the bone in the neck and it would get quite messy.

It would totally depend on the condition of the animal. If it was dying, with no hope in hell, perhaps ran over with its guts all over the shop, i dont think i would sit there cuddling it saying "there there it will all end soon", i'd put the poor thing down by whatever means available. Fish are totally different creatures in my eyes, they cannot express any emotions, they dont look sad when ill, they dont scowl at you, they dont cry. Its far easier to lop off a head.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

If ease is all we are looking for, then flushing would win.

 

[Man of fish]

That's how I'd save my fish if my tank somehow broke. Throw them in the toilet and hope they don't die/swim away.
+1 eagles. They still have a POSSIBILITY to live as they're in water. For then. Then they go to the sewer and eventually die but still if it's ease we want that's ease for you.