[MollyJean]

I had a little mishap with my 29 gallon tank yesterday. It was almost finished cycling and I was looking forward to putting my girls in this weekend when disaster struck. The stand it's been on, a heavily reinforced low bookshelf cracked in the middle. The tank started listing and a friend had to hold it on his knee (thank goodness for strong friends) and my brother and I scooped out the fish and removed the water one bucket at a time. I had all of the fish in a 2 gallon planter hoping to get them set back up before I went to bed.. well.. One of them didn't like the planter. A cherry barb jumped out while I was working on the tank and when I came back.. *hides* I stepped on him. I felt something squishy under the arch of my foot, stepped back and I was sure he was dead. I got a little cup of aquarium water and put him in but he wasn't moving at all, even breathing.. so I scooped him up and gave him a gentle squeeze.. and he swam off! Great! Maybe he'll be ok, right! So an hour later he's on the counter this time and I panic. I can't get him off the counter, he's so slippery and I had to try like 3 times.. I put him in the water and he was breathing but not moving, and I was sure, after all that, he was dead.

This morning he's moving around a lot! He seems a little bloated, his color is off but he's active and I'm thinking he might make it... but his fins are shot, either gone or ripped up, and I don't know what kind of quality of life he'll have like that. I'm not making any choices right now, he's staying in his own 2 gallon tank (since the rest of the fish are back in the 29 gallon) and I'm watching him, but considering euthing him..

How do you go about euthanize a cherry barb? And at what point should I try?

 

[Silverfang]

I believe with other fish baking soda can be used to remove the oxygen from the water. That's what the local pet smart does. I have no ideas if it's a safe method or effective. Try asking at TFK? They might be able to suggest something.

 

[thekoimaiden]

Baking soda is not a humane way and should not be used when better options are available. Finquel (MS-222) is the best thing, but I honestly don't expect you to have any. I think your best bet is going to be the cold water shock method; this is the easiest method for warm-water fish. You prepare a bowl of freezing cold water and then slide the fish in. The sudden shock of the cold will numb the fish as well as send the body systems into failure. I had to use this recently. I got cold water, placed the water in the fridge, and after a few hours I added some ice cubes right before I added the fish.

You can read about different techniques here: Aquarius Aquaria - Exploring Fish Euthanasia
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[MollyJean]

Thanks. I might have to do that, but still crossing my fingers. I'm still watching him. Hoping he'll pull through. I'm about to try feeding him and see what happens. He's been in a warm dark container with lots of soft silk leaves to hide in most of the day. Of course I've had to cover the top.. just in case he tries jumping again. >.<

 

[Romad]

Awwwww... poor fish. Give him a chance to bounce back by keeping him isolated like you are with super clean water. If you know he's not going to make it, you might want to try the clove oil and vodka method.

Good luck with him.

How to Euthanize a Fish With Clove Oil & Vodka | eHow.com

 

[ZackyBear]

Aquarius Aquaria - Exploring Fish Euthanasia
​

Recommended for: all fish

Not recommended for: fish who attend alcoholics anonymous

Humane rating: 100%

I just wanted to point that part out in the alcohol euthanization xD

Also, if you think the he still has a chance then I say give him a chance! He still seems to have a lot of life in him...

 

[MollyJean]

He's not coming up for food. He does know I'm there, because he hid, which is a good sign, right? He'd been swimming in circles so long I thought he had gone zombie fish on me. But he's reacting to my shadow over the water, so I'm going to hang in there and see how things work out over the next two days.

I didn't know if I should add salt, so I just gave him clean water this time with a little stress coat. My water is a little hard so I tend to add just a bit of bottled water, to soften it up some.. My PH can get pretty high. He's accustomed to it, so I'm making sure to add that in as well.

Just.. crossing my fingers. Hoping for the best. *mummbles* I can't believe I stepped on him....

 

[MollyJean]

He didn't make it through the night. Woke up and he was gone. Such a shame, he seemed so active last night. I guess he was in zombie fish mode after all. I feel so bad.. the poor thing.. At least he's not suffering anymore, now that he's dead I can see how bad he was injured.

 

[Romad]

Sorry to hear that he didn't make it