Jump to content

How do you handle dead fishes in the most humane way??


ethantang
 Share

Recommended Posts

In labs, they usually place fish in freezer. The slowly declining temperatures will render fish less active,then unconscious and finally killing it after. Fish are cold-blooded, they shouldn't feel cold.

I read this somewhere before, & I agree that this is probably one of the most humane ways to let the fish leave..

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Back in medical school, we hold the rat by the head and then make a swift tug at the tail, hence breaking the spinal cord. This is quite humane, but I am not sure of the fish equivalent. When I accidentally stepped on my seahorse and ruptured its abdomen, and assessing that the prognosis was dismal, I promptly and forcefully tossed it into a metal dustbin, killing it instantly and hence minimising suffering.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • SRC Member
Back in medical school, we hold the rat by the head and then make a swift tug at the tail, hence breaking the spinal cord. This is quite humane, but I am not sure of the fish equivalent. When I accidentally stepped on my seahorse and ruptured its abdomen, and assessing that the prognosis was dismal, I promptly and forcefully tossed it into a metal dustbin, killing it instantly and hence minimising suffering.

Some labs use slamming head against table. Seems effective as fish should immediately suffer from concussion before dying.

I still prefer the freezer method though

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

physical trauma is actually one of the best methods of euthanasia available to private aquarists, if you do not have suitable anesthetics on hand. but many people are squeamish about such methods.

freezing is a slow, painful process of death for your animal.

and apart from option #2 here, of which i am not certain, these are in fact very good choices.

search the web got many ways.

1) is whack head

2) is insert needle behind eye.

3) break the spinal

4) use clove oil /vodka to anaesthesia it n kill it.

overall, using a tried and tested chemical will be the best way to euthanize your fish.

just to add, NEVER release fish from your tank into the ocean. even if caught from the same waters. even if there are populations of the same species in those waters. in 99% of cases, once a fish leaves the ocean and is put into a private tank, it is not suitable for reintroduction into the wild. (remaining 1% reserved for scientific institutions who work at the highest level of scrupulousness)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • SRC Member
physical trauma is actually one of the best methods of euthanasia available to private aquarists, if you do not have suitable anesthetics on hand. but many people are squeamish about such methods.

freezing is a slow, painful process of death for your animal.

and apart from option #2 here, of which i am not certain, these are in fact very good choices.

overall, using a tried and tested chemical will be the best way to euthanize your fish.

just to add, NEVER release fish from your tank into the ocean. even if caught from the same waters. even if there are populations of the same species in those waters. in 99% of cases, once a fish leaves the ocean and is put into a private tank, it is not suitable for reintroduction into the wild. (remaining 1% reserved for scientific institutions who work at the highest level of scrupulousness)

Freezing is only painful for warm blooded animals as the body fights against the drop in temperature. Fish showed not much response to freezing, just showing a slower swimming movement and lower respiratory rate.

Chemical euthanasia is a difficult procedure. Too acute an overdose and pain will be felt as reactions are similar to a drug overdose. Too low a dose and the fish will be aware of what is going on. There's cases of medical anaesthesia where patients are fully aware of the pain and surroundings during operation, however, they were paralysed, hence not emitting physical response. Anaesthesia is a science which is extremely poorly understood. Euthanasia is a form of anaesthesia whereby the total dosage used is much higher. I have euthanised animals before, I have noticed some teared after the dose is injected while some reacted with muscular spasms. It seems to me euthanasia is not as humane as perceived.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share



×
×
  • Create New...