How Do You Euthanize Fish?

[Lissa]

I was just curious what other fish-keepers use to "put down" their fish. It's sad when it happens, but I'm always curious what others use when a fish its too far gone to save.

I hit upon a mixture of cod liver oil and vodka a few years ago that has worked really, really well. The local fish importer suggested it as a (apparently) painless way of euthanasia for fish.

I have a customer that has a "smashing rock". I'm not sure I'd have the stomach for that, especially since she keeps large South American cichlids. Ugh.

What do you use?

[yim11]

Most vets suggest decapitation but I freeze mine. Bag em up and put into freezer, remove and discard on trash day.

HTHs,
-jim

[atlantis_child]

When I worked at the pet shop in the fish room I cut off or smushed their heads. Freezer is alright if it's just yours. But a nasty shock to open the freezer to get something and it's full of bags of dead fish.

People say they dont feel themselves getting cold and dying, but I think it must still suck for the fish. Even if it's just the being stuck in a small bag of water for so long before death.

I cut off the head and destroy the brain. The fish's head still seems alive for quite a while after, and it's really un-nerving.


AC

[Tom2006]

freezer is a very bad method I my opinion. Water expands when it freezes slowly and so your fish will die slowly and from a quite nasty death as all the cells freeze and expand!

The best method that I use and the quickest is just to flick the head of a small fish like a danio or tetra. Anything larger I place in a suitable bag and hit it as hard as I can on a hard surface, never had this fail, kills the fish outright.

[atlantis_child]

[theemon]

i stab the eye/head with a barb-b-q squew (long bamboo stick) then the fish becomes food

[Larsvb]