Am I really suppose to flush my fish?

[BlueAnchors]

I have 6 red eye tetras and 5 black phantom tetras and some how one of my black phantom tetras get his tail fin ripped off.... and I have him in a separate tank now and he is floating at the top like he is about to die. So what am I suppose to do with him when he finally does?

 

[herp_mommy]

I toss mine into the backyard, I'd rather have some raccoon eat it and recycle the nutrients than just flush it

 

[WhiteDevil]

Freeze em till trash day then toss em out.

 

[torontofc]

I just simply flush it, i think it will fertillize something at the end of the sewer

 

[DragonFish71]

We bury ours in the vegetable garden or flower garden in spring/summer/early fall. If it's winter, when the ground is frozen, we just toss them into the compost heap.

 

[HN1]

Flushing is theoretically a bad idea for a sewer system. I personally have for small fish, but I am on a septic system. If that weren't the case, I'd probably utilize the garbage. We have too many dogs for anything to stay buried. lol

 

[Tim Wheatley]

The Native Americans taught the first settlers to use a dead fish as fertilizer when planting seeds, if (unlike HN1) you don't have anything around that might dig them up you could plant them in your garden. I usually flush because we don't have a garden.

 

[WhiteDevil]

Carp is the #1 choice of garden fertilizer, whatever the asian restaurant owners dont tank we divy up and go bury them in community gardens and the like.
Tomato's ala carp carcass = best tomato ever.

 

[OhNeil1969]

It is considered by some to be cruel to flush a fish that isn't already dead. They can survive the current of the flush and will suffer a slow painful death in the sewage. Again, that is just an opinion shared by some in the hobby. There is a sticky at the beginning of the Unhealthy Fish forum with more info.

 

[Tim Wheatley]

The OP was asking about dead fish. Nobody mentioned fish which are not dead.

 

[WhiteDevil]

It is cruel to suffer, if anything use ICE cold water and the freezer to shut the fish down naturally. I pay good money for my fish, Im not gonna toss em aside as though they are just a cigarette butt that will go out in the toilet.

 

[BlueAnchors]

Some are confused if the fish is dead or not yet. Personally I am not even sure myself, but he is definitely on his way. I felel really bad for the guy I don't want him to suffocate so I though down the toilet was the best. I haven't done anything yet and I am thinking about burring him in the backyard

 

[HN1]

I was most definitely talking about confirmed dead. If in doubt, euthanize humanely.

 

[jenatron]

+1 on euthanizing humanely. And like HN1's sig says, Google it for proper methods.

 

[Homedog98]

I always flush, but then again, I've always had small fish. I kind of have a funeral, I drop them in, say "let all that come from the sea return to the sea!" and flush. It's kind of comical actually, but it just seems right that if they live in the water, they should end there. But that's just me.

 

[Bettababe1011]

I always put them in the freezer until I can bury them, then have a funeral and bury them in the pet cemetery. I would rather treat them like any pet we have to say goodbye to.

In loving memory of Pansa Princess, the greatest horse who ever lived. May you rest in peace.

 

[Homedog98]

I buried my goldfish, but that was because he was my first pet... And I was 8.

 

[torontofc]

I just simply flush it, i think it will fertillize something at the end of the sewer

edit: i meant after its dead, not while it's still alive, there is still hope until the last breath.

 

[glassbird]

When I have a death in my tank, I wrap the body in a small piece of paper towel, and put it in a zip-lock type baggie in the back of my freezer. When I have a few bodies back there (jeez, that sounds bad), I buy a new perennial to go near my pond, and put the fish into the hole, under the roots. That way, I know they are going to fertilize the new plant, and become part of a special (fish-related) part of my yard. Seems respectful, and yet practical.

 

[OhNeil1969]

When I have a death in my tank, I wrap the body in a small piece of paper towel, and put it in a zip-lock type baggie in the back of my freezer. When I have a few bodies back there (jeez, that sounds bad), I buy a new perennial to go near my pond, and put the fish into the hole, under the roots. That way, I know they are going to fertilize the new plant, and become part of a special (fish-related) part of my yard. Seems respectful, and yet practical.

That's definitely a nice sentiment!