Least Painful Way To Put My Platty Out Of Its Misery?

[Bambi211]

My platty is really struggling. she hardly eats anymore so shes getting way to thin. her tail is just all shredding off. she constantly look like shes struggling to swin, and for air

All my other fish are fine, the water is fine, its been tested.

I have in my tank:

1 Male Siamese Fighter
1 Female Siamese Fighter
1 Male Swordtail
2 Female Plattys (One is which ive been talking about)
1 Suckerfish
4 Corys
1 Female Black Mollie
10 Black Molly Fry
1 Angel Fish
6 Neon Tetras
2 Clown Loaches

Everything in my tank is really healthy. just this fish ive been talking about. I have had it for a long time though so not sure if its due to age.

Im just wondering if anyone has the best way to put her out her misery

I use to put fish down the toilet (i learnt a long time ago that was wrong and got explained why and never did it again and never needed too)

Ive been told putting a fish in freezing cold water is an option?

I want just a quick, as least painful death.

Please help, i hate seeing my fish unhappy.

xxx

 

[Truck]

the best way to euthanize a fish is to sever the spinal chord and pith the brain

 

[Just_Another_One]

the way I do it and probably the only way I could ever do it is I put a dish of water in the freezer so it gets a thin layer of ice on the top. Crack the ice and u have freezing water underneath. Just drop the fish in. The fish passes pretty quickly within 5-10seconds and there is no mess.

EDIT: You might want to keep the fish in the water for a while because one time I had to put my peppered cory to sleep and dropped it in the ice water and when it stopped moving I put it down the toilet and it started to swim around .....I was so freaked out and didnt know what to do so i just flushed it

 

[WILDER]

How many gallons is the tank.
Water stats in ammonia, nitrite, nitrate, and ph.

Get a jug of very cold water, add some icecubes till the water freezing cold, add the fish, should take about 30 seconds for the fish to die.
Check the gills to see if they have stopped moving, and leave the fish awhile to make sure its passed on,.
If no ice cubes put the jug in the freezer till you can see a thin sheet of ice.

 

[rdd1952]

For a fish as small as a platy, the simplest way, gruesome as it may sound, is to put it in a small plastic bag like a sandwich bag, take it outside and place it on a hard surface, like a concrete drive way, and simply mash it with a brick or stone. Since it's in the bag, it doesn't make a mess. It sounds terrible but it's instant so no pain or suffering. I have had to do that to a couple tetras that were old and not in good shape. Obviously, that won't work with large fish.

From what I have read, freezing is actually not painless as ice crystals develop in the blood stream. That may be a little different from the method Wilder and kiasa mentioned though.

 

[Bambi211]

Thanks for all the advice.

Its horrible having to take there life but sometimes its the best way when there suffering.

The bag idea sounds so grousome though, i dont think i could have the guts to do it, might have to get my dad to do it, if it is the best option.

the freezing water seems not so bad. but now you,ve mentioned the ice crystals in the blood stream im in two minds

ahhh its horrible.

Thanks everyone.x

 

[peteus2002]

I feel your pain. I had to dispatch a dwarf gourami this evening. I feel bad about it, but I'm sure I did the right thing.

If big enough, take your fish... grip it using kitchen towel... and bash its head against the ledge of a kitchen/shelving unit several times.
This will knock the fish out at the very least. To make sure it is dead, take a sharp knife and either slice through the spinal cord or brain.

If small, use the bag and brick method.

It sounds morbid, but it is better to know that you've done a thorough job (causing as little pain as possible) than to have done a shoddy job and prolonged the suffering.

 

[Spanerman]

what about a massive overdose of clove oil?

 

[electric yellow]

oh my god those replies sound horrifying....i would suggest clove oil.

 

[rdd1952]

Clove oil will work but the other methods are just as quick and easy. Just a matter of preference.

 

[electric yellow]

^^
I just dont have that strong a stomach for those methods :\

 

[LauraFrog]

I use clove oil because when you have a slippery, struggling fish it is very difficult to aim properly with a knife, and the whole plastic-bag-squash-it involves it being out of water and unable to breathe for a bit too long IMO. Clove oil takes about thirty seconds but it is not unpleasant for the fish, it's just an overdose of anaesthetic.


I do want to point out though that your tank stocking is a recipe for problems - I would recommend removing the male fighter, as I can't believe he hasn't killed the female yet, and they don't like community tanks much.

 

[Bambi211]

Ah right ok thanks everyone.

With the clove oil do i just put loads into a bowl and the put the fish into it or? wont that suffocate the fish?

and where do i buy clove oil from??

thanks the for advice its really helpful.

Oh god really?

why does the male fighter kill the female?? im getting nervous now? nothings happened as yet, but i only bought her on friday??

xx

 

[rossyboy]

I've used alcohol in the past, it's not the most humane but it's all I had at the time. It was 85% volume, but killed the fish in an instant.

 

[Betta5]

the way I do it and probably the only way I could ever do it is I put a dish of water in the freezer so it gets a thin layer of ice on the top. Crack the ice and u have freezing water underneath. Just drop the fish in. The fish passes pretty quickly within 5-10seconds and there is no mess.

EDIT: You might want to keep the fish in the water for a while because one time I had to put my peppered cory to sleep and dropped it in the ice water and when it stopped moving I put it down the toilet and it started to swim around .....I was so freaked out and didnt know what to do so i just flushed it

I found this to not work so well with things like guppies and platies which can live in cool water. Even the shock from warm to freezing. But that was just me.