The most humane thing to do....

[ScorpiosWife]

I'm having an internal battle that's gone on for 3 days now so I wanted to get yall's opinion.

I have a very large Molly, new to the tank, who tried to eat a juvie Red Wag Platy, side first. The result wasn't pretty. She broke his back & now he's L shaped. His rear does not move at all, but he's still alive, picking at crumbs on the bottom & swimming around. I have to admit I haven't seen him poop since.









I've given the little guy the benefit of the doubt so far & put him in his own holding tank, but I'm starting to feel cruel thinking he's starving to death and knowing he can't use his back half. He's not going to get any better & can't navigate, hence my internal battle.

Should I let him try to make it with the possibility of starving to death over the next few days or do I end it quickly by feeding him to my Oscars? More & more each day I'm leaning toward the latter.

What would you do? Discuss.

[TexSun]

Re: The most humane thing to do....

I would cull the lil guy & let the oscars have a red wag ala carte. This is survival of the fittest. The lil guy was probably destined to be your mollies dinner, just didn't happen the easy way. He was slow or something & the molly caught him that's life. Don't cause the lil fish more hurt than its worth. If he's struggling, he's not comfortable.

Post a video of your oscars enjoying the platy!

[TexSun]

Re: The most humane thing to do....

Maybe in the future, seperate the fish, so that no one can fit in one another mouths.

[ScorpiosWife]

That's what I'm leaning toward.

When your little boy looks at you with those big brown doe eyes and screams in a paniced voice, "NO mama! He's still alive" it's hard to do what needs to be done right at that moment. The mama heart kicks in & survival of the fittest goes right out the window. I feel like Mr. Zuckerman with Wilbur from Charlotte's Web.

I wanted another opinion before I toss him in with the O's while the baby is at school. I know some of us have fish that have survived horrific things. Not sure if a broken back is one of them, but needed someone to push me all the way in the O's snack corner.

Thanks, Tex.

[SunnyHouTX]

Re: The most humane thing to do....

I think this a great time to tell your child about "quality of life" and survival of the fittest as it happens out in the wild. No point in letting him think the world is fair

[Fancyfish]

And point out that the fish is suffering. It is kinder to not let it suffer.

[TexSun]

Re: The most humane thing to do....

I think this a great time to tell your child about "quality of life" and survival of the fittest as it happens out in the wild. No point in letting him think the world is fair

+1. Perfect learning experience!

[mistahoo]

I think it's snack time!

[Geral]

Time to feed the Oscar , better than slow death

[ScorpiosWife]

With Autism, things are different. Death is not at all real to him, which was a great reason to use the fish as teaching tools. He still hasn't quite grasped it yet. If a fish dies, he wants me to put it back in the tank so it can come back to life. In his mind, there's an endless supply of lives and all you have to do is start over. How do fish start over? In the tank.

This one isn't dead, so not only is it difficult for me to explain in a way that he understands, it's difficult for him to grasp why it has to die. I've got a challenge ahead of me this afternoon. It's going in the O tank when the baby gets home.

[mistahoo]

Dealing with autism is not an easy task! Good luck! :emt_thumbs:

[barrettsline]

The most humane thing to do....

I would put it in the freezer. This could be extremely traumatic to him seeing it killed. Or take it out now and tell him you released it in a stream or something. Could be playing a dangerous game by having him watch.

[ScorpiosWife]

Thanks. Dealt with it for 12 years now. It's a challenge but the payoff is SO awesome. One day death will make sense to him. He's been to funerals, we've buried pets, flushed dead fish, etc. I haven't sheltered him from any of it. It just isn't permanent in his world. What I'd give to spend a day in his brain...

[mistahoo]

12 years is indeed a great feat! I only dealt with a kid with autism for about a year. It takes a lot more work, but indeed, it does pay off.

[ScorpiosWife]

I would put it in the freezer. This could be extremely traumatic to him seeing it killed. Or take it out now and tell him you released it in a stream or something. Could be playing a dangerous game by having him watch.

I'm fairly certain he's safe from trauma. His reaction to something being eaten by something else is laughter. With Autism, his emotions are sometimes displaced. He seriously belly laughs to the point of running to the bathroom when his puffers rip apart a snail. Bloody water and all, he laughs. Autism is a funny animal. We will work it out somehow. Perhaps I'll explain that we have to put it down & give him a choice of how he wants it to go.