Disabled Fish

[Bud]

Hello All. I have a tiger barb that has become disabled and I'm wondering if any of you know what it is and how to treat it. She (I think she's a girl due to her being more round shaped, which I read was a way to tell the difference) has gone quite pale over the last week or so and now seems to have a problem with swimming. She eats just like the rest and tries to keep up, but she'll swim a ways and it's like she gets paralyzed and sort of floats head down for a second or so and then resumes like nothing happened...like she just snapped out of it. This behavior started a couple of days ago. Water parameters are perfect. 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, and nitrates are about 20. Wondering if anyone can help with this. Thanks, in advance.

 

[Bud]

Correction...nitrates are closer to 10ppm when checked just now.

 

[BBradbury]

Your Tiger Barb

Hello Bub...

From your post, it seems obvious to me the fish is suffering and the best thing to do is to "put down" your barb.

The most humane way is to freeze it. Just put a couple of cups of the tank water in a standard sandwich bag and net the fish. Put the fish in the bag, seal it and put it in the freezer.

As the water in the bag cools, the fish's heart will slow and finally stop. The Barb will essentially go to sleep. No pain at all.

The next time you have your trash picked up, just toss the bag in too.

I've done this a number of times with old or sickly fish.

B

 

[Bud]

I tried catching her for a half an hour or so... She isn't paralyzed when she does the nose down thing. She's a quick little fish. I was going to move her to a QT for observation, but I guess she's staying where she's at. lol

 

[eco23]

Hello Bub...

From your post, it seems obvious to me the fish is suffering and the best thing to do is to "put down" your barb.

The most humane way is to freeze it. Just put a couple of cups of the tank water in a standard sandwich bag and net the fish. Put the fish in the bag, seal it and put it in the freezer.

As the water in the bag cools, the fish's heart will slow and finally stop. The Barb will essentially go to sleep. No pain at all.

The next time you have your trash picked up, just toss the bag in too.

I've done this a number of times with old or sickly fish.

B

Wait, wait, wait! This is a myth for freshwater fish and is not even remotely humane. The proper way to do it is to prepare an ice bath. When necessary, I fill a bowl with ice water, wait until most of the ice melts so the water is super cold, stick the bowl in the freezer until it forms a thin layer of ice on top, break up the ice...and drop the fish in only at that point. It is an instant shock to their system and puts them out immediately. Simply putting them in tank water then into the freezer causes ice crystals to form internally, and they suffer as they freeze to death. This is bad information that's been floating around forever and is not considered an option.

 

[HUKIT]

Hello Bub...

From your post, it seems obvious to me the fish is suffering and the best thing to do is to "put down" your barb.

The most humane way is to freeze it. Just put a couple of cups of the tank water in a standard sandwich bag and net the fish. Put the fish in the bag, seal it and put it in the freezer.

B

I couldn't disagree more with the method for euphanizing your fish and your advice to put down the fish. There's proper ways to euphanizing like the use of clove oil, there's a list in this section stickied to the top.

You may have a mild case of dropsy, I would fast the fish for 3 or 4 days then try to feed a deshelled thawed pea. This doesnt sound like a situation to terminate life.

 

[BBradbury]

Your Tiger Barb

Hello again Bud...

The inability to swim properly can be a swim bladder problem. Water that's too cold can cause swimming problems too.

Sounds like your Barb just isn't ready to go yet. I guess the only thing to do is continue to feed a varied diet and keep the tank real clean and hope somehow the fish recovers.

B

 

[eco23]

...This doesnt sound like a situation to terminate life.

Agreed...I got so caught up disputing the listed euthanizing method that I forgot to mention the most important aspect...not doing it.

 

[Bud]

Thanks, folks. I'm gonna watch the girl and see how she does. She's staying with the rest of her school and doesn't seem to be causing the other fish problems. I wish I knew what was wrong. To put her on a fast, does she need to be moved to the QT? Can't think of how else to keep her from eating.

 

[HUKIT]

I would put the fish in a QT if possible to fast her, otherwise it's very difficult to keep it from eating.

 

[HalfMoon B]

Hello Bub...

From your post, it seems obvious to me the fish is suffering and the best thing to do is to "put down" your barb.

The most humane way is to freeze it. Just put a couple of cups of the tank water in a standard sandwich bag and net the fish. Put the fish in the bag, seal it and put it in the freezer.

As the water in the bag cools, the fish's heart will slow and finally stop. The Barb will essentially go to sleep. No pain at all.

The next time you have your trash picked up, just toss the bag in too.

I've done this a number of times with old or sickly fish.

B

I'm quite shocked that you would even suggest this without even first trying to diagnose or treat the barb.
fish are no different than any other pet. Would you put down your dog or cat before even trying to assist them with trying to get better first??

 

[BBradbury]

Sick Tiger Barb

Hello half...

I wouldn't put a fish on the same level as a cat or dog, but a fish unable to swim upright likely has a swim bladder problem and I thought it best to put the fish down.

In my later post, it was apparent the fish still had some life in it, so I suggested a healthy diet and to maintain good water conditions. To my knowledge there's no way to treat a damaged swim bladder and letting the fish suffer through an inability to swim just didn't seem right to me.

Thanks for taking the time to comment.

B

 

[eco23]

Hello half...

I wouldn't put a fish on the same level as a cat or dog, but a fish unable to swim upright likely has a swim bladder problem and I thought it best to put the fish down.

In my later post, it was apparent the fish still had some life in it, so I suggested a healthy diet and to maintain good water conditions. To my knowledge there's no way to treat a damaged swim bladder and letting the fish suffer through an inability to swim just didn't seem right to me.

Thanks for taking the time to comment.

B

I think besides the euthanize / not to euthanize issue...most people simply ask you research the method you suggested for putting fish down before recommending it in the future. There's a great sticky in the unhealthy fish section of the site which details the different methods and the pros and cons of each. The one you mentioned, although commonly mentioned, is not even remotely humane and is a myth that is unfortunately passed along.

I would always recommend quarantining and attempting to treat or at the very least simply isolating the fish to follow their progress. I only euthanize when it is obvious there is no chance for the fish to recover and it is certainly suffering.

I've had fish in the past who have done crazy things like cartwheels or continuous rolling for unexplained reasons...only to recover like nothing had happened after hours or a couple days.

 

[HUKIT]

The reaction of a fish in cold water is no different to a human slowly freezing to death, humans cant survive more than 3-5 minutes without proper gear on average and certainly no more than 15. My first recommendation for euphanizing is always clove oil.

 

[jetajockey]

I prefer using salted ice water, knocks them out instantly and leave them in for an hour or so to make sure.

But yeah, i'd wait to see if the fish makes a recovery first .

 

[Bud]

Tried to catch her a bunch of times to QT her and couldn't get her. Was going to try again today, but she has completely regained her color over the last 24 hours! Not sure what she had going on. Thanks for all of the suggestions, folks. I now have an idea of what I need to do for a terminally ill fish, when that time comes. This one is doing great though.

 

[eco23]

I'm glad you didn't jump to any conclusions and she's doing better.

Not to drive us off topic, but jeta, is the salt to lower the freezing temp of the water so it can actually be colder before solidifying?

 

[BBradbury]

I think besides the euthanize / not to euthanize issue...most people simply ask you research the method you suggested for putting fish down before recommending it in the future. There's a great sticky in the unhealthy fish section of the site which details the different methods and the pros and cons of each. The one you mentioned, although commonly mentioned, is not even remotely humane and is a myth that is unfortunately passed along.

I would always recommend quarantining and attempting to treat or at the very least simply isolating the fish to follow their progress. I only euthanize when it is obvious there is no chance for the fish to recover and it is certainly suffering.

I've had fish in the past who have done crazy things like cartwheels or continuous rolling for unexplained reasons...only to recover like nothing had happened after hours or a couple days.

Hello eco...

The freezing method is a recognized means of "putting down" a sick fish. If you read any of the fish books by Spencer Glass, this is the method he recommends. I wouldn't recommend this method if I was unable to back it up.

The procedure is centered around the fish's metabolism. Cooler water will slow the fish's heart rate and it's metabolism. Slowly freezing the water slows the fish's heart rate to the point the fish simply goes to sleep. I can't think of a more humane procedure than this. Sometimes, it's important for the fishkeeper to realize their limitations to treat a sick or injured fish and just let it go.

Thanks for input,

B

 

[eco23]

Hello eco...

The freezing method is a recognized means of "putting down" a sick fish. If you read any of the fish books by Spencer Glass, this is the method he recommends. I wouldn't recommend this method if I was unable to back it up.

The procedure is centered around the fish's metabolism. Cooler water will slow the fish's heart rate and it's metabolism. Slowly freezing the water slows the fish's heart rate to the point the fish simply goes to sleep. I can't think of a more humane procedure than this. Sometimes, it's important for the fishkeeper to realize their limitations to treat a sick or injured fish and just let it go.

Thanks for input,

B

I believe you are referring to cold water fish as opposed to tropical. Here's a few sites to support my information of it not being a viable or humane option for tropicals-

http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f17/an-overview-of-euthanasia-73775.html (sticky here on AA)
http://www.ponddoc.com/WhatsUpDoc/FishHealth/Euthanization.htm
http://homepage.ntlworld.com/faustus/nicoldaquaria/euthanasia.htm
http://nippyfish.net/2007/02/12/euthanizing-aquarium-fish/
http://www.wikihow.com/Put-Down-a-Fish-Humanely
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/5441822/how_to_euthanize_your_fish_humanely.html
http://www.guppylog.com/story/2004/6/21/213826/027

I've got a few more if needed from other sources. I don't mean to start a debate about this, I simply believe you have out of date or incorrect knowledge in regards to euthanizing tropical fish.

 

[Sssea]

I'm glad you didn't jump to any conclusions and she's doing better.

Not to drive us off topic, but jeta, is the salt to lower the freezing temp of the water so it can actually be colder before solidifying?

Salt lowers the freezing temp of water, making it colder without solidifying, therefore minimizing the time it takes to euthanize the fish. Longer time = less humane. I think we can all agree that a slow death is not the best way for any creature to go.