The Jaw Snapped!

[Lila]

I was helping my LFS for a couple hours...one of his regulars came in with a clown knife...about six inches long...with it's jaw sticking out the side.

He fed it a comet that was too large for it's mouth. It tried to eat it anyway and it's jaw snapped out the side of it's mouth.

He brougt it back to the store!! What the heck were we supposed to do??

The guy admitted the feeder was too big for the fish!

[Slappy*McFish]

Well....that's not good. Generally, it isn't a good idea to try to work the jaw back into place, yourself. Depending on the severity of the dislocation, sometimes fish are able to work it back themselves. But if it's sticking out past the gill cover, he probably won't be able to work it back by himself. You probably should leave him alone for a few weeks and see what happens...and to see if he still is able to eat...if he isn't then you may try to help him, yourself. Granted, he will not enjoy this at all. It will probably take two people to do it...one to hold him, while the other uses both hands or tweezers to try to work the jaw back into place. Knowledge of the jaw structure would be most beneficial. Try to open the mouth as wide as it will go(again), so it clears the gill covers, then gently slide the jaw back to center while closing it at the same time.

[Lila]

Thanks Slappy!!!