When to euthanize or not...

[GK805Ojai]

Needing some advice about whether to euthanize my Royal Gramma (or not). I have had this fish in my tank for well over a year and have not added any fish for more than 6 months. Several months ago the fish started to act strangely and I thought it was not eating but it must have been because it is still alive. No visible marks on its body and at the time saw no signs of aggression from my other fish( 2 clowns, green goby and a high fin banded goby/ pistol pair). A few weeks ago I noticed the Gramma had moved from it's usual cave into another spot and the clownfish started to hang out really close to the new spot. One morning I found the Gramma lying on its side in the corner of the tank and thought it was a goner but I put it in a large breeder box and it seemed to recover but is clearly stressed and not eating. I set up a new 40 gallon tank and it is now cycled so I released the Gramma in the new tank hoping that might help calm it down and allow it to recover but I am afraid it is just suffering and will eventually die. So...should I humanely end it's suffering? Any advice would be appreciated. TIA

 

[bluemon]

You already have the basslet in a hospital tank.

Won't hurt to give it a chance by posting some pictures so maybe the fishmedics can chime in.

It sounds moribund at first glance but then you say he's been at this stage and alive for 6 months?

 

[Timfish]

Sorry to hear about your Gramma. Hard to say when to euthanize a fish but clove oil works well should you decide your need to.

What is the most humane way to euthanase aquarium fish? – RSPCA Knowledgebase

 

[Jay Hemdal]

Needing some advice about whether to euthanize my Royal Gramma (or not). I have had this fish in my tank for well over a year and have not added any fish for more than 6 months. Several months ago the fish started to act strangely and I thought it was not eating but it must have been because it is still alive. No visible marks on its body and at the time saw no signs of aggression from my other fish( 2 clowns, green goby and a high fin banded goby/ pistol pair). A few weeks ago I noticed the Gramma had moved from it's usual cave into another spot and the clownfish started to hang out really close to the new spot. One morning I found the Gramma lying on its side in the corner of the tank and thought it was a goner but I put it in a large breeder box and it seemed to recover but is clearly stressed and not eating. I set up a new 40 gallon tank and it is now cycled so I released the Gramma in the new tank hoping that might help calm it down and allow it to recover but I am afraid it is just suffering and will eventually die. So...should I humanely end it's suffering? Any advice would be appreciated. TIA

Sorry to hear. When to euthanize a fish is a personal, subjective decision. Here is a post I made about the more clinical aspects of the process:

Fish Euthanasia

Euthanasia Euthanasia is a word derived from two Greek words that roughly translates to “good death”. In other words, euthanasia is the painless killing of an organism. In general usage, there is also the underlying understanding that euthanasia is performed on terminal patients only. This...

www.reef2reef.com

Jay

 

[GK805Ojai]

You already have the basslet in a hospital tank.

Won't hurt to give it a chance by posting some pictures so maybe the fishmedics can chime in.

It sounds moribund at first glance but then you say he's been at this stage and alive for 6 months?

Started acting weird maybe two or three months ago. Externally, the fish looks fine other than skinny. I believe the clowns have been bullying it.

 

[GK805Ojai]

Sorry to hear. When to euthanize a fish is a personal, subjective decision. Here is a post I made about the more clinical aspects of the process:

Fish Euthanasia

Euthanasia Euthanasia is a word derived from two Greek words that roughly translates to “good death”. In other words, euthanasia is the painless killing of an organism. In general usage, there is also the underlying understanding that euthanasia is performed on terminal patients only. This...

www.reef2reef.com

Sorry to hear about your Gramma. Hard to say when to euthanize a fish but clove oil works well should you decide your need to.

What is the most humane way to euthanase aquarium fish? – RSPCA Knowledgebase

Thanks. Honestly, if this was one of my freshwater fish I would have already put it down. Being a saltwater fish collected and not tank bred makes me pause. I hate to see it suffer if there is no chance that it will recover. Going to give it a couple more days and if I do not see any improvement will end it's suffering.

 

[GK805Ojai]

Needing some advice about whether to euthanize my Royal Gramma (or not). I have had this fish in my tank for well over a year and have not added any fish for more than 6 months. Several months ago the fish started to act strangely and I thought it was not eating but it must have been because it is still alive. No visible marks on its body and at the time saw no signs of aggression from my other fish( 2 clowns, green goby and a high fin banded goby/ pistol pair). A few weeks ago I noticed the Gramma had moved from it's usual cave into another spot and the clownfish started to hang out really close to the new spot. One morning I found the Gramma lying on its side in the corner of the tank and thought it was a goner but I put it in a large breeder box and it seemed to recover but is clearly stressed and not eating. I set up a new 40 gallon tank and it is now cycled so I released the Gramma in the new tank hoping that might help calm it down and allow it to recover but I am afraid it is just suffering and will eventually die. So...should I humanely end it's suffering? Any advice would be appreciated. TIA

UPDATE: The gramma has recovered! One of the guys at my LFS suggested as a last effort to put the gramma in a bucket with an air stone and pump for a day or so and treat with stress guard and possibly Paraguard. Treated with the stress guard for 48 hours and a one hour bath in Paraguard. Put it back in the tank and it went straight into the rock work instead of bouncing around at the top like before. This morning I saw it digging in the sand and eating.