If it is going to feel like this....

Mr31415

Mr31415

Active member
... every time I loose a fish I had for a long time, then I might consider quitting....

I just had to put my Lionfish in the freezer... :( He did not recover from his "brain disease" - but now his lips were all bloody from bumping in to everything. He had no chance. I could not let him suffer any more.

I feel so sad... And there was nothing I could do. I hand fed this fish for more than a year. I have seen him grow from a tiny baby to 15cm in length.

It is a terrible day...
 
I am really sorry your fish died, but I am glad to read that people care so deeply about the animals they keep in their tanks.
 
I read this about the freezer method:

Unacceptable Methods for Fish Euthanization:

1. Freezer Method:

Dropping your fish into freezing ice water or putting them in the freezer to slowly freeze (hypothermia method) does not quietly put your fish to sleep. In cold blooded animals, it is believed that the formation of ice crystals in the tissue may create discomfort or severe pain. The hypothermia method is never ok. Rapid freezing may be applied only if the fish is deeply anesthetized prior.

Is this true? At what temperature does the ice crystals start to form? And is the fish in pain up to that point where the ice crystals form?
 
Ice crystals shouldn't begin to form until the water hits freezing, or 32 degrees F. I would imagine tropical fish would be euthanized long before the water approaches that temperature.
 
Well I just checked - at 5.5C he was dead... So I can assume then he did not suffer? I just did not have the heart to cut off his head... And I was afraid for the spines.
 
It's kinder than the alternative. If you've ever dived into near-freezing water, I assure you, numbness soon follows, and that would relieve the pain he was assuredly already in...

You did not do badly for him, and it is good to care.


Do consider keeping some smaller fish: it's so much easier to provide them a healthy environment with adequate room and current for them to exercise and keep fit. They can be quite at home in several tiny territories. I've gone the big-fish route in my fishkeeping career, and while your interaction with the big guys can be rewarding, it's so hard to provide them exercise 24/7...and the chemistry is that much harder to keep; and disease so readily gets out of hand, simply because everything is concentrated around their large size...one little ding becomes a bacterial infection, etc. I feel for you---you get to know them, and it is a painful thing to go through. Do stay with the hobby: there's so much reward in the good days.
 
I actually - specifically for my lionfish - upgraded my old 125g predator tank to a 480g tank with a huge skimmer. The water is so good that in that tank I only had measured 1mg/L Nitrate - ever.

They have 2.7m (9 feet) of swimming room.... Lots of open and rocky places... I tried.
 
Sounds like he was very well cared for, and loved. Please don't beat yourself up, you did your best and tried to end his suffering in the kindest way you could. Sometimes we just can't save them, and for fish lovers it hurts just as much as losing any other pet so my heart goes out to you.

That 480g deserves an impressive centerpiece fish. When you're ready, I hope you consider getting another lion - they really are exceptionally beautiful fish, and it sounds like you really loved yours a lot. :)
 
Thanks for the kind words. But somehow I still feel a bit nauseous... I did not know I would feel like this about a fish that died. But he was my favourite...
 
FWIW the freezer method is one of the better and easier methods of euthanizing you fish. I researched it when I first got into the hobby and it stood out as practical and humane. The fish "fall asleep" as their body temperature drops, much like what would happen to you and I. Death is relatively painless.

About Lionfish, from both personal experience and from reading, it is not at all uncommon for lionfish to go blind in captivity. I am not sure the reason is totally understood but it is believed by some experts to be related to the (relatively) bright lights of aquariums. Sounds like you did you best for this fish both in life and in the end. Stay in the hobby. It is definitely well worth it.

Maybe with that 480 you could get a porcupine puffer. Talk about interaction!!!
 
I do understand that you would feel that way, Lionfish have large brains and sometimes act like,and are lovable as dogs. not to mention that they are very pretty.keep it up, if you feel that it is not worth it then maybe get some smaller fish that you might not get as attached to. It's all up to what you want.
 
I know how you feel. I just lost a blue flasher wrasse, myself. I'd only had him for about 2 months in QT and put him through hypo when he died. I'm still trying to figure out what killed him, if it was my own stupidity, the hypo, or something I couldn't control... It really put me into a funk yesterday when I found him dead... :(
 
Anyone hear the myth that a garbage man died from a lion sting? I heard that someone put it in a garbage bad and when picked up off the curb, a spine came through the bag into his hand.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

wvned
Not sure what to do
Replies
8
Views
1K
OrionN
OrionN
H
25 year old yellow tang dying :(
Replies
10
Views
2K
sallypur
S
J
Pouch emphysema advice
Replies
2
Views
669
vlangel
vlangel
Paul B
Think like a fish
Replies
1
Views
1K
Vinny Kreyling
Vinny Kreyling
Niven
I'm back....and ready to jump back in, feet first in the deep end, speedo, everything!
2
Replies
24
Views
778
griss
griss
Back
Top