Tricane-s

[EMBRYOGUY]

any try to use Tricane-s to put your fish to sleep during treatment?

ive used it on kois during antibiotic injections etc. it might be a good additive to aggressively treat the fish so its not stressed.

in the past i would catch clowns and use an iodine swab to remove touches of fungus growth on the fins. with Tricane-s the clownfish would have no clue it was even out of the water.

anyone with exp on its use with saltwater fish?

here is more info on it.

http://www.betterchem.com/vet/tricaine.htm

 

[JHemdal]

Tricaine is also called MS-222. Commonly used in public aquariums for sedating fish, or as a euthanizing agent. Expensive, but very effective. I once built a table that had two sumps - one with clean water and one with 100ppm MS-222. With two pumps and some valves, I could adjust the amount of MS-222 flowing over the fish's gills to keep them at the proper plane of sedation for lengthy procedures.

Jay Hemdal

p.s. - There is a photo of this table and a description of its design in my "Advanced Marine Aquarium Techniques" book. I should add that I "borrowed" this idea from the Shedd Aquarium - they came up with it before me, I just refined it a bit.

 

[EMBRYOGUY]

jay

impressive

learn something new everyday. just happy to know others have tried it on saltwater fish. sorry for my ignorance. i was just contemplating using it for freshwater dips to reduce stress.

 

[EMBRYOGUY]

jhemdal.

do you think a small amt would work in a reef to sedate and remove an unwanted fish >?>

 

[JHemdal]

Embryoguy,

You know, I said "sedation", but I'm not sure we are using the word in the same way. I used it in the context of slowing a fish down so that they can undergo a procedure, but I'm not positive that it actually reduces STRESS. We studied another agent called metomidate and it seemed that at low levels of induction, the fish was acutely aware of what was happening to them, they just couldn't move. So there was no analgesic (painkilling) properties for metomidate, and the fish actually seemed to become very stressed.
I do not know if MS-222 offers any painkilling (or stress reduction) properties, only that if you use it to make a fish unconcious, they obviously are not aware of what is going on. At low doses, it slows the fish down, but is stress reduced? I don't know. I just read the manufactuer's brochure and it does not discuss this issue. I do know that in order to truly know the answer, somebody would have to do a study where they measure corticoid steroid stress hormones in the fish - something I don't have the resources to do.
I do not feel it is a good idea to dose the whole tank with MS-222, although it does break down over time, I do not know what the effects would be on the tank itself. In the few instances I have dosed a whole tank (like to catch a fish) I follow it up with a 100% water change. The induction time for a low dose is 15+ minutes, and since a FW dip doesn't take that long, I typically do not use MS-222 for that.

Jay Hemdal

 

[EMBRYOGUY]

JHemdal..

you are correct. "sedation" is the more correct word to use instead of stress. just bec the fish is not moving, it does not mean its has no stress. i apologize for not being more careful with the terminology.

you bring up all very good points. my hope with its use is to make the treatment process easier FOR ME but does it reduce the fish s level of stress? I hope so, but it s a big assumption on my behalf. if its not moving, it makes the treatment easier for me to perform, and as a result reduces the duration the fish is outside the aquarium. so if you look at it from this premise, maybe it does reduce the overall stress of the owner and the fish.

with my exp. with kois, i used a stronger dose to sedate the fish within 1-2 minutes. with no negs. effects. this would be my protocol with saltwater fish, if possible. i do not recommend this treatment to most, since the size of the fish, etc are possible variables that are not easily defined by the manufacturer. its intent is prob with larger fish,ie kois etc.

Jay,
when you dosed the entire tank, to catch a fish, and followed up with a 100% water change, what was the outcome?

thank you for your thoughts.