Helllllpppppp! Horrible freak accident!!!!!!!!

[peaches3221]

OMG i feel like the worst fish owner ever! i had my new betta fish (who I have yet to name) in a small betta kit bowl and I was going to move him into a slightly larger critter carrier, (until i can get him something even bigger) which at the time i purchased him, still needed to be cleaned. i had him floating in a zip-lock sandwich bag so the temperature would adjust. so i waited a while and then I went to go let him out of the bag. I started to pour the water out of the bag and into the net to catch him. and somehow I missed the net, and he fell into the sink, and DOWN THE DRAIN!!!!! I started screaming for my dad to come and open the pipe! He finally got a wrench and opened the pipe and lo and behold, there was my poor fishy, stuck in the trap swimming around in dirty disgusting water! I put him into his freshly cleaned tank. it was a miracle he was big enough to get caught in the pipes, but i'm still not sure he will survive this ordeal! someone please help me! i feel soooooo guilty! I should have been more careful! I will NEVER forgive myself if he dosen't make it!!!

[Colibri]

Oohh...that's horrible! I hate when that kind of freak accidents happen. It happened to me once with the first betta I had years ago (I was only 11... how could I've known something like that could happen?) but fortunately he didn't fall to the pipes. There I learned the importance of having some kind of protection in the sink. How long was he in the pipes? Was it a very long time? How was he looking, did he dry a little bit?

[peaches3221]

he was only in there about 5 minutes, and there was water in the pipes so he stayed moist.

[JKfish]

How is he? any extreme signs of stress? breathing heavily and quickly? showing stripes? Is he lethargic?

I'm so sorry this happened. :( I hope he'll be alright. I once had this almost happen to me, though I caught Puffy before he went down the drain. After that, I plugged the sink so there'd be no chances of going down the drain.

[peaches3221]

No, he is acting normal. and i am definitely getting a drain cover!

[Colibri]

If he's acting normal I'm sure he's going to be alright. Just keep checking on him for the next days to notice any changes.

[peaches3221]

thanks! I gave him a bloodworm and he ate it. I'm just worried about all the yucky stuff he was exposed to in the pipes. I feel sooo guilty!

[swoozie13579]

when i clean out my cage i always put a styorphone cup in the way of the drain.
i pour mine back into her cage so if she were to fall out she would just fall into the cup.
hope i helped. :)

[peaches3221]

well, the good news is that he is swimming around, he seems fine. But i still feel horrible for being so careless!

Originally Posted by swoozie13579

when i clean out my cage i always put a styorphone cup in the way of the drain.
i pour mine back into her cage so if she were to fall out she would just fall into the cup.
hope i helped. :)

thats a good idea!

[dramaqueen]

I'm so sorry that happened! Just keep his water very clean and keep an eye on him for now. It sounds like he's going to be ok if he's swimming around and acting normal. And no, you're not a bad fish owner!! This kind of stuff has happened to a lot of us. I've never had one go down the drain but I knocked one onto the floor one time and, like you, just about freaked out! lol I didn't know what else to do so I kept him in clean water and kept an eye on him and he was fine. :)