TwoTankAmin
Fish Connoisseur
It has been a fairly long time since I had to euthanize one of my fish. For the most part I have had to remove dead fish as opposed to having to euthanize them. I have always read about using clove oil, but it took me 23 + years finally to get a bottle of 100% pure syzygium aromaticum. I had a suffering kerri tetra I needed to euthanize. It is a small fish.
So I found instructions on line and followed them. This was the basic procedure for use with fish 4 inches or less. I have removed the wordy less needed parts :
Catch your fish and place it inside the container. Be gentle and cause as little stress as possible.
I did this.
So, grab a small container – pill containers work great. Fill the container with water from your tank and add 4 drops of clove oil.
Note: This is for fish less than 4 inches in length, increase the amount of drops for larger fish.
Put a lid on it and give the container a good shake, until the water turns a milky white color. Your clove oil is now mixed.
I did this.
After a few minutes, your fish should stop moving. It may even go belly up…
But it’s not dead just yet… It’s simply knocked out. If you look closely at your fish’s gills, you should see them still moving – a sure sign that your fish has been put to sleep.
If your fish is still swimming around after 5 minutes, add a couple more drops of the clove oil mixture.
I did this. But, as soon as I began adding the oil the fish became "excited" and was swimming somewhat wildly. For a bit. I had to make a second mix using only 3 drops and after adding this the fish sank to the bottom. I waited 5 mins. and it was in the same place and its gill flap was moving.
Scoop some water out of the container with your fish and add another 12 drops of clove oil mixture. Just like before, shake it up until the clove oil mixes thoroughly.
Add the clove oil mixture to the container with your fish and wait.
It should take less than 30 minutes before your fish’s gills stop moving. Once the gills don’t move for 10 minutes, the fish has been successfully put down.
If you still see gill movement after 30 minutes, add more mixture.
It may take some time, but many aquatic life experts find this the most comfortable method of euthanizing a sick or injured fish and in accordance to ethical standards.
I did this. But, when I added this stronger dose the fish became allert and begam swimming erratically around the bucket. This continued for a while. Probably under 90 seconds but it seemed like more . Then the fish stopped and sank to the bottom. I waited 30 minutes and there was no gill movement. I waited at least another 20 minutes and still no movement. So I flushed the fish.
My Comments:
The next time I have to try this method I will use 5 or 6 drops to anesthetize. I need to be sure the fish is asleep. I think I also need to add the initial anesthetic dose more slowly. I think the reaction of the fish may have been due to my adding too fast.
There are other options one might choose if you know the fish is out cold. Freezing would be one. This should never be done unless the fish has been anesthetized first. There are two other methods of humane euthanization. It is suggested that even if one opts to use one to condsider doing the clove oil anesthesia first. I am not one who can do the Smash or the Stab method,
I also think I would prefer to do a quick freeze after anesthesia. I would remove the knocked out fish and some of the water to a smaller container and put it into out freezer set to 0°F (-17.78C), The smaller container should drop the water temp pretty fast, so the fish should feel nothing.
Finally. Clove oil is not effective for larger fish. This requires a more powerful anesthetic which means a vet must be involved.
You can read the entire article with full details on doing the Smash or the Stab methods. It also explains what methods for euthrnizing which one should never use and why not.
https
/fishlab.com/how-to-kill-a-pet-fish/
So I found instructions on line and followed them. This was the basic procedure for use with fish 4 inches or less. I have removed the wordy less needed parts :
Method 1: The Clove Oil Bath
This stuff works wonders and is recommended by the American Veterinary Medical Association as a humane way to kill fish. You see, it works like the anesthetics that vets use, which are not available to the public. It puts your fish to sleep before killing it without suffering.Step 1: Catch Your Fish
Fill up your bucket with water from your aquarium – a gallon will do for most fish, although larger fish might need more.Catch your fish and place it inside the container. Be gentle and cause as little stress as possible.
I did this.
Step 2: Mix The Clove Oil
You can’t add your clove oil just yet. You see, it’s an oil. And if you add it now, it would simply float on the surface of the water.So, grab a small container – pill containers work great. Fill the container with water from your tank and add 4 drops of clove oil.
Note: This is for fish less than 4 inches in length, increase the amount of drops for larger fish.
Put a lid on it and give the container a good shake, until the water turns a milky white color. Your clove oil is now mixed.
I did this.
Step 3: Add The Clove Oil Mixture
Slowly add the clove oil mixture to the container with your fish while stirring gently with your hand. You should see the milky mixture spread throughout the container.After a few minutes, your fish should stop moving. It may even go belly up…
But it’s not dead just yet… It’s simply knocked out. If you look closely at your fish’s gills, you should see them still moving – a sure sign that your fish has been put to sleep.
If your fish is still swimming around after 5 minutes, add a couple more drops of the clove oil mixture.
I did this. But, as soon as I began adding the oil the fish became "excited" and was swimming somewhat wildly. For a bit. I had to make a second mix using only 3 drops and after adding this the fish sank to the bottom. I waited 5 mins. and it was in the same place and its gill flap was moving.
Step 4: Add A Stronger Dose
Now that your fish is asleep, it’s time to put him to rest for good.Scoop some water out of the container with your fish and add another 12 drops of clove oil mixture. Just like before, shake it up until the clove oil mixes thoroughly.
Add the clove oil mixture to the container with your fish and wait.
It should take less than 30 minutes before your fish’s gills stop moving. Once the gills don’t move for 10 minutes, the fish has been successfully put down.
If you still see gill movement after 30 minutes, add more mixture.
It may take some time, but many aquatic life experts find this the most comfortable method of euthanizing a sick or injured fish and in accordance to ethical standards.
I did this. But, when I added this stronger dose the fish became allert and begam swimming erratically around the bucket. This continued for a while. Probably under 90 seconds but it seemed like more . Then the fish stopped and sank to the bottom. I waited 30 minutes and there was no gill movement. I waited at least another 20 minutes and still no movement. So I flushed the fish.
My Comments:
The next time I have to try this method I will use 5 or 6 drops to anesthetize. I need to be sure the fish is asleep. I think I also need to add the initial anesthetic dose more slowly. I think the reaction of the fish may have been due to my adding too fast.
There are other options one might choose if you know the fish is out cold. Freezing would be one. This should never be done unless the fish has been anesthetized first. There are two other methods of humane euthanization. It is suggested that even if one opts to use one to condsider doing the clove oil anesthesia first. I am not one who can do the Smash or the Stab method,
I also think I would prefer to do a quick freeze after anesthesia. I would remove the knocked out fish and some of the water to a smaller container and put it into out freezer set to 0°F (-17.78C), The smaller container should drop the water temp pretty fast, so the fish should feel nothing.
Finally. Clove oil is not effective for larger fish. This requires a more powerful anesthetic which means a vet must be involved.
You can read the entire article with full details on doing the Smash or the Stab methods. It also explains what methods for euthrnizing which one should never use and why not.
https
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