Had to euthanize Pacu's over the weekend

[jagarundi]

It is with a very heavy heart that I post this thread. I also hope that it serves as a lesson to anyone wanting to keep certain types of fish without first doing ALL OF THE RESEARCH pertaining to tank size accomodations, the maximum size the fish will reach at adulthood, etc. I purchase 2 Red-belly Pacu's from Petco 9 months ago. They were no bigger than if you put your middle and thumb finger together to form an 'O' I bought them home and first placed them in a 20 gallon tank. They flourished there, along with baby GT's and Oscars. 2 months later, the Pacu's, along with the Oscars, had to be moved to a 55 gallon tank because of rapid growth. At this point, the Pacu's had grown to small tea saucer size. Each week, they appeared to grow at least half an inch to an inch. The growth rate of these fish can be EXTREMELY RAPID, especially if water changes are frequent. In my case, I was changing between 30 - 50% each week. At the end of the 4th month, these fish had grown so large, I had to purchase a 120 Gallon tank to house them. At this point, size limitations in my home prevented me from buying anything larger. Within 4 months, these fish had reached 18 inches in length and were physically stronger than any fish I've ever dealt with. They were literally moving huge rocks with the current they created when swimming at break-neck speed through the tank. Each day when I awoke, I had to keep adding water to the tank due to the HUGE amount of water that was splashed onto the walls and floors by them. I began going around to various LFS trying to see if anyone would take them and no one wanted to touch these fish. After 2 months of trying to find homes for them went unsuccessfully, I had no choice than to humanely put them down. I chose the quickest method available to me for fish this large. I wrestled them out of the tank, one by one. In the process, the smaller of the two, managed to take out my 32 inch television by sending a huge splash of water onto it with a swipe of his tail. I wrapped them in newspaper and used a cinderblock dropped from the third step onto it's head. Death was instant. I was very fond of these fish and because of my lack of research when I first purchased them, I had to put down two very beautiful fish. I would like for anyone reading this post to learn from my tragic mistake. Pacu's need at LEAST 300 gallons of water to thrash around in. If you can't furnish that for them, or some type of large pond, LEAVE THESE FISH IN THE STORE!!

[Swimfins]

Lesson learned. I like this post. It is honest and you did all you could. There wasn't much else to be done. I hope you feel better and get a new TV too.

[DJSCIASCIA]

I have one in my 125 and he is growing pretty quick also. I hope I dont have to resort to that measure.

[Timmain42]

I feel your pain. Putting down a pet is always hard.

On the brighter side, leave your TV off for 24 hours so that the electronics can fully dry, and try turning it on again. I offer two examples:

1) Moving out of an old apartment, I thought I killed my Xwife's computer monitor because I had accidentally dripped water from the 20 gallon fishtank into the cooling vents on the top. After a day of drying without trying to start it up, it came back with no problem.

2) My brother, who for years was in computer hardware technical phone help, used to get calls from people who had spilled Coke or other liquids onto their keyboards. His solution was to unplug the 'board, pop it into the dishwasher, run with cold water and detergent only, remove and let dry for 24 hours. Lo and behold, it actually worked consistently.

[cdawson]

Very sad, reason #1 I never buy anything over 8". I say make this a sticky for newbies to read. Post it as a sticky in the newbie forum too.

[Dangerdoll]

ugh, so sorry about this painful experience jagarundi....
I agree with Dawson, this needs to be made a sticky as there are so many people who see these fish (as well as others) and are just amazed at the store and "have" to get a couple..... see that they grow quickly and upgrade (or not) each spirt of growth only to find that they just keep on going..... This is a major reason for doing the research first.

[Nuriel]

Sad Story- Good Post.
At least you know now what you didnt before, btw, any plans for new fish?

[AquaGhost]

Sorry for your experience, and thank you for such an honest and very "hit home" post.

IMHO, I think Pacu and fish such as red-tailed catfish should not be offered for sales to the regular public at all. If the fish trade or stores expect all those fish to get killed before reaching full size then we do have another issue with ethics...

Again, it must be very hard and heartbroken for you doing those things...Most people would just go the lazy way of ignoring the fish and let it dies slowly and painfully with either hunger or water poisonning. Regards,

[Beeker]

I'm so sorry for your loss. You did the right thing.

The pet stores shoud post on each tank a sort of species profile for the customers to read so that people can know what they are getting themselves into. I would have great respect for a store that has that. It is unfortunate that many people buy fish thinking that fish are fish. They are all taken care of basically the same. They need water and food. That is it. And, most of the pet stores tend to promote that way of thinking! No mention of the cycle, tank requirements for size, current, tankmates... etc. Important things! And then you are on your own which leads to sadness such as this.

Again, I'm sorry you lost your friends, but you did what you could, and then you did what you had to do.

[zazz]

I'm sorry you had to go through that.
Beeker said it right: You did what you could, and then you did what you had to.
Thanks for posting. I also think it should be a sticky.

[jagarundi]

I'd like to thank everyone here for their kind responses. I find myself thinking about the Pacu's a lot here at work. They were some big sob's, but I was really happy with them and I loved to watch them swim. To answer a few questions:

What are my plans for other fish?
Well, I have other fish that I'm equally fond of so I'm not looking for anything else currently. While I really miss the Pacu's, I just don't have the space for a 400 gallon tank so I won't be replacing them.

How's your television?
I let it sit overnight and this morning, VIOLA!! It came back on like nothing ever happened!

[Timmain42]

How's your television?
I let it sit overnight and this morning, VIOLA!! It came back on like nothing ever happened!

Good, I didn't think you'd be able to get that TV into a dishwasher. :)

[iamchris]

No, if it's just water with no (or little) minerals, just let it evaporate out and it should work fine after a day, assuming you haven't already tried to turn it on.

[Gambusia]

A LFS near me has some huge pacus they keep in a 150 stock tank.

These fish are easily 18 to 25 inches.

Funny thing is they just sit there in the current of the filter and don't move much. I believe they've had these fish a very long time and they are not for sale.

I wouldn't buy a pacu cause like you said they need 250 at least.

They should still be sold to responsible fish keepers with the proper tank.

Banning them would be a dumb thing for the US and Canadian Govts to do.

JMHO.

[lquinsey]

I too was very touched by your sad experience. I can't think of anything harder than kill something you love and cared for. For that you are very brave and conscientous. You did the only thing you could do for these beautiful creatures. Even if you had found them another home, they would probably not be cared for as much as you. Don't beat yourself up over not doing the research. Most of us have not either and have made horrible mistakes, totally unintentionally. That is why we are here, trying to learn from our mistakes and to help others. This is the good that came from your horrible experience. You will certainly save untold others from suffering the heartache that you have. Take care, we all feel deeply for your loss.

[thelemite]

I had 3 pacus in a 180 gallon tank that they of course outgrew. They were magnificent animals that were beautiful to look at. Personalities and a desire to eat ive never seen again. I am building a new home next year and might go for a 500 gallon tank in the basement.

[Debra Mark]

My heart goes out to you....our Pacu is 25 years old and I'm not sure what I'll do when it's his time....

[AquaGhost]

jagarundi, why don't you try the Silver Dollars, sort of a miniature version of the pacus that won't get any bigger than 5 or 6 inches in diameter. I have a couple of them and like them a lo. Just one problem though: they mowed all my live plants to the root!

Hi Debra: Yours fish is 25 year old? Wow...I did not realize a fish can live that long...How big is it now? Coffee-table size? ;)

[Debra Mark]

hey Ghost....he's about 40 pounds.....just another reason for pet stores NOT to sell these fish....

[PurpleSmurf]

I saw two full grown pacu's packed into what must have been 29g - 35g at the most today at PetCo. Poor guys :(

[Lobo.]

dont cry over spillt milk! ...or dead fish...

and if you cant do that- then look at the bright side- you have an excuse to buy a brand new HD tv (or whatever) and you now have an empty aquarium to stock!

[dumber]

jagarundi, why don't you try the Silver Dollars, sort of a miniature version of the pacus that won't get any bigger than 5 or 6 inches in diameter. I have a couple of them and like them a lo. Just one problem though: they mowed all my live plants to the root!

Hi Debra: Yours fish is 25 year old? Wow...I did not realize a fish can live that long...How big is it now? Coffee-table size? ;)

Just a note re silver dollars, there are several species and some can easily hit 8" - 10". I have a red hook (myleus rubripinnis) and 3 regular dollars (metynnis argenteus). The red hook is bigger than the other 3 even tho he's only a few months old. Don't want to sound patronising but as already stated, research the species first to prevent a repeat of the above. ;)

jagarundi, sincerely gutted to hear your story and well done for sharing it.

Here's a pic of a 10" redhook taken at a show recently

[Blinky]

How sad, I'm so sorry.
The store where I work just took in a pacu somewhere around 14" or so (hard to tell, he hides), and he's now a resident of the koi pond. When I saw him, I was thinking they'd made a great decision not to sell baby pacu, and then last Sunday I noticed a baby red tailed shark in one of the tanks! IMHO, stores just shouldn't be selling these fish without HUGE warning labels.

[f8ldzz]

1) Move to somewhere which required LFS' to take in your fish. Here in Hawaii, LFS' / LPS' are all required to take in unwanted fish, no matter what they are or how big they become. This prevents people from dumping them into local water ways.

2) Get your state legislature to pass laws like above.

Sorry to hear you had to take such an extreme measure for a solution.
No one should be forced to do things like that!

[cyberbeer65]

I'm sorry for your loss Jag.That is some sound advice in your post.I'm also glad your T.V.came back to life for you.

[deezdrama]

Sorry to hear.... I too a few months ago bought one red belly pacu, hes in a 20 gallon tank and about 5 inches long. I too thought he would only get 8 inches and my buddy came by and said that pacus get huge...i didnt believe him so he took me to a lfs and showed me a 20 inch pacu in a 260 gallon tank,i about bleeped my pants. I dont think wal-mart should be alowed to sell these to the public and lie about there sizes. I thought about releasing mine in a pond but he would probablly die in the fall/winter. Ive done hours and hours of research and plan to keep him.I cannot afford a glass tank so i plan this weekend to build a plywood/epoxy/glass tank around 240 gallons. I dont have money for fancy filters so im going to use a small pool filter with a makeshift bio-ball overflow resevoir. Hopefully this will serve my pacu for several years. By then i can plan on a indoor pond or something. Very sad post,i hope i can give mine his new tank soon.Ill let you know how it goes.

[Ramirezi]

i dont think forcing lfs to take fish is the way to go. then what will the lfs do? most are struggling anyway and they dont all have to facilities for such large fish. my lfs only sells juvies and babies. their largest tank is about 200 gals.
they have taken in some tankbusters though. they did have a 12" golden algae eater at one time. but they found a home for it....yes those little tiny golden algae eaters that you see at almost EVERY lfs can grow to be a foot long. i was shocked when i saw him.
i've seen people walk in asking if they'll take in a pleco, pacus, or bala that had outgrown it's home. and they almost always say no and they tell them how to euthanize it. and not to dump it in the waterways.

and what happens when the fish store closes? one closed in my town and i knew a guy who worked there, he said all the fish that they couldnt sell they just euthanized.

i think the best idea is to not allow stores to sell these tankbusters in the first place. most people buy fish because they're pretty or cool looking. and most stores like wal-mart dont tell you how big they get or even what they are. our wal-marts here just have a mixture of fish. the tanks are all mislabeled. they have tags that say "guppies" over a tank of danios. and they ALWAYS have pacus! my friend who didnt know any better, wanted a pirahna looking fish..so he got a pair of pacus. i saw them and told him to "take them back!" he said "why?" and i showed him how big they get and he did take them back and complained to the manager. he asked them about the fish and they said they wouldnt get much bigger....at only 3 inches. and he didnt want a huge fish, he just wanted something to put in a 55 gal.

[Seaman]

Yes pacu do indeed get huge, I wanna say this is the current pacu record it was something like high 60's or low 70's lbs!! They should just post a picture of this in all LFS's selling pacu.

http://www.fishing-worldrecords.com/relaunch/icons2/images/black%20pacu%20record.jpg

[Reason]

A LPS near myself display some full grown (yes, FULL grown. Most are about 16" but some look over 20) pacu's in the only way they can really be happily kept. In the middle of the isle, seperating their fresh and salt water tanks is a GIANT Rubbermaid-type tub raised on many cinderblocks. I can't even guess how many gallons it holds..... maybe.... 700? Filtered by some sort of system at one end, it's covered so I can't see it. Anyway, the pacu's have just enough room to turn around widthwise, but they can swim lengthwise to their heart's content. For a buck you can buy a bunch of feeder goldfish and drop them in.

In my life, this is the ONLY situation where I've seen large pacu's and not felt sorry for them.

[Seaman]

thats still no where near full grown. They will eaisly reach 30".

[f8ldzz]

i dont think forcing lfs to take fish is the way to go. then what will the lfs do? most are struggling anyway and they dont all have to facilities for such large fish.
Sorry, I disagree.
Most of them turn around and sell the too-large fish to someone who wants it.
I've seen it happen all the time.
One LFS had 14"+ koi in a 20L!
Egads, the fishes (more than one!) sloshed up a lot of water everytime it turned around!
The next week they were gone.
I asked where the big koi went, and a sales person said someone bought them.

I went to another LFS today, and there was this 12" shovelnose catfish!
I didn't know those things can get that big!
It was sitting there trying to turn around in a 10G!

I know large oscars, cichlids, and catfish routinely get returned to the LFS' I regularly visit.
I saw one large (10") catfish sold to a guy who wanted it for $20.
Sorry, I didn't catch what kind of catfish it was, but the guy was very happy.
I overheard the sale guy mention the fish was a customer return.

The original intent of the law was to prevent alien species from pushing out the native species - a lot of the native wildlife are endangered.
It seems to be working here.

[Ramirezi]

thats cool.
i just am not sure it would work here. the koi and catfish would be sold because lots of people have outdoor ponds here and are always looking for koi and catfish and plecos for their ponds.
but the lfs by me is quite small and caters to the college students. they carry small livebearer fish mostly and dwarf cichlids. i dont know what they would do if they were forced to take on tankbusters. especially since they dont sell the tankbusters to begin with.
i think if they do force the lfs to take on tankbusters it should only apply to the lfs stupid enough to sell them in the first place.

[svtcontour]

I think pacus and other large fish can be sold but there should be some disclaimer as to how large they get. They are very cute when small and thats why people buy them. Even I did that knowing they got large but not realizing how fast.

I ended up with a 18" pacu in less than a year. I took it back to the store and they said no prob, we'll take it. I heard from an employee later that they just bagged him and put him in a black garbage bag and tossed him in a dumpster :( Very cruel

Anyway they are smart and friendly fish. More personality than anything I have owned. I think they are even more personable than Oscars and even more playful. Just wish they didnt get more than say 12-14" long.

[Seattle206]

I can feel you my fellow hobbist.

I had to get rid of my beloved Pacu one month ago. When I first bought my Pacu it was size of a silver dollar, after nearly 7 months it was almosy 14 inches. I fed it 4-5 daily with this specialized commercial diet. I wanted it to grow bigger and faster so that I will have an excuse in buying a larger(500+) aquairum. The Pacu was so skittish, my oscars who were onyl half it size chased it all around the tank splashing water on my hardwood and heaters broken. I had to replace 3 heaters in a period of 5 months. So one day, while doing a water change I decided to get rid of it. Thing was so strong even for a fish at 14 inches. I ended up giving it a fish store.

Maybe one day, I'll keep another Pacu.

[African Dick]

.....just a fish, buy another one.

[jagarundi]

.....just a fish, buy another one.

In the beginning, they are 'just fish' but after keeping them for a while and seeing the individual personalities come out, they become family.

[African Dick]

In the beginning, they are 'just fish' but after keeping them for a while and seeing the individual personalities come out, they become family.

I will never consider a fish a part of my family but you are welcome too. Hell slap him on the grill or something. If you have to get rid of a fish that has grown too large.

[MrAquarium]

I know one thing you get all the time in any fish forums and chats,
People asking for help that are new to the chat are to **** lazy to do the
research and always ask where can I find all the time, sorry, I may hand out some advice to the ones like that but I sure as heck aint doing the research for them to.
IF I try to help them in that maner, i go to Doppile.com, type in what they are wanting to know, and send them the URL for the search results, let them look for the crap themselfs.......you shoulda found someone to take the fish or a LSF to trade them or take them off your hands........

[thesydmonster]

I am sorry to hear about your difficult time :( I also feel that it is partly the stores fault!! I agree that research should be done before a purchase but we all do make mistakes and learn from them.... but why didn't they tell you what the fish would need, for your sake and for the fish??? Isn't that their job? Sorry you had to go through that.

[jagarundi]

you shoulda found someone to take the fish or a LSF to trade them or take them off your hands

It's obvious you didn't READ that I tried unsuccessfully MANY times to find someone to take them off of my hands and THERE WERE NO TAKERS!!

[Matak]

Mr Aquarium & Bambipits: Thanks for coming out. Your compassion is underscored only by your sensitivity.

[AwesomeFish]

Hey Jagarundi, Im so so sorry to hear about this horrible experience. Thank you for sharing your experience with us, in such an honest post. Im sure it has helped some people realise how important it is to find out the proper information before purchasing fish. Im glad your TV is working again and hope you havent beaten yourself up too much about it. You know, eventhough you had to put your fish down and that is unfortounate, its good to know that you really did care about them and tried your best. Once again, thanks for sharing your post

[davematthews]

you shoulda found someone to take the fish or a LSF to trade them or take them off your hands

It's obvious you didn't READ that I tried unsuccessfully MANY times to find someone to take them off of my hands and THERE WERE NO TAKERS!!


Hey, not sure where you live but you could have tried donating them to a local aquarium... I have two within a two hour drive and I never have a problem.

[Ramirezi]

not everyone has a local aquarium...my "local" aquarium would probably be in Miami...unless you count Sea World in Orlando as an aquarium, but thats still over 4 hours away. thats why i would NEVER buy a fish that would outgrow me. but those pacus sure are cool looking...and i do want a tank of bala sharks one day.
in instances like this, euthanization is usually the only solution. this is the same thing that happens to thousands of puppies and kittens everyday...people buy them not knowing or thinking about the long term and the pet ends up in the pound. and the pound euthanizes them. it's very sad.

[MrAquarium]

I didn;t read all the replys here, but I skimmed through some of it, I don;t think of fish as part of my family, But I have a Spotted Rapheal I have had for 12+ years,
It;s not the what we think of our fish, it;s how we take care of them,
How would any of us like to be caged like a lion at a zoo and never have a cage cleaning, the right food, or even fed everyday, or ever worse, just killed when they didn;t want you anymore,
Don;t dare say that;s different, becuase it is not.........
Fish are a creation of life, it;s our job to give them the best living condistions as we can and that fits their needs.
There is always someone someplace who has a bigger tank and wants the bigger fish we don;t have room for.
I don;t trade or sell my fish like cats or dogs, I keep them as long as I can or as long as I can keep them the way they are reqiured to be kept, if I can't I find someone who can.

[fishyman45]

thats horrible! why did that tv have to die! WHHHHYYYYY!*sobb sobb* :sad:
but i hat pacus. i saw 1 of them shatter a 40 gal wall when it ran from 2 end to the other when it was frightened. terrible fish to ever own.

[Emg]

There's one person in this forum who owns 2 fully grown pacus who are very happy....but.....she has a tank that is over 3,000 gallons built right into her livingroom wall. She has another fish in there as well, but I don't remember what kind it is..but it's another big one...lol....

I was at a large petstore in Daytona area recently...called Mr Petman..nice store...LOTS of tanks and fish....they have a line of 200 gallon tanks up near the ceiling that are show tanks and there are a variety of fish, large and small in these tanks. There is one tank with 2 large pacus...but not fully grown yet...along with a bunch of other kinds, types and sizes. They were selling this tank, fish and all..lol...poor saps who end up buying this one !

On a side note...this store had the best variety of fake aquarium plants that I have ever seen !! Very real looking and interesting...and also reasonably priced. Too bad I didn't have room to bring any home...lol....

[Veneer]

There's one person in this forum who owns 2 fully grown pacus who are very happy....but.....she has a tank that is over 3,000 gallons built right into her livingroom wall. She has another fish in there as well, but I don't remember what kind it is..but it's another big one...lol....

To my knowledge said tank houses several other fish, including at least one silver arowana and breeding populations of African Rift Lake cichlids.

[Bronx19]

All these fish with oscars?

I have to ask, what tank are the oscars in?

They require at least 50g each.

[Emg]

Pretty cool tank whatever she has in it....lol.......She posted a pic of it a while back on the picture thread.

[Kasakato]

All these fish with oscars?

I have to ask, what tank are the oscars in?

They require at least 50g each.
Debra has 2 Pacus and like 200 cichlids in her 3200g tank.

[sixx]

My betta that I have have for two years has been sick and I Have did everything under the sun to help him but nothing has helped. It has been 2 1/2 weeks now that he has been suffering, but I just could not bring my self to decapitate him or put him in the freezer like other forums have advised!! Iam very attached to the little guy and I thought I would let nature take it's course. But he has been hanging on and I can't stand to see him suffer any longer. So I am so glad I found your thread Jagarundi, :bowing: about smashing him w/ a rock, for instant death!! Yes you are so right not to let the fish starve to death, which he hasn't ate in about 2 weeks. His quality of life sad. He just sits at the top or bottom and seems to gasp for air or has trouble breathing. He looks so pitiful and I can not take it anymore, so when I am done writing this post I will do the horrendous but necessary task to put Goldie out of his misery, finally!! Thank you again for this not so pretty but informative thread!!! I wish I would have seen this thread earlier. :sad:

[Lobo.]

mmmmm... what would grilled pacu taste like?

[Debra Mark]

but i hat pacus. i saw 1 of them shatter a 40 gal wall when it ran from 2 end to the other when it was frightened. terrible fish to ever own.

Our Pacu has been the best fish we ever had! He has a gentle personality, and after 26 years, he is our baby....;)

[sky.eyes.woman]

Wow...26 years! :eek:
I wish my store didn't sell pacus, not because I don't like them, but because I've yet to talk to someone in there that actually had a big enough tank for them. I try my hardest to talk people with 55G tanks and such out of getting them, but sometimes they just will NOT listen. I printed a copy of the first post in this thread and I sneak it to people when I can.

[starr8]

Very sad story...even more sad is people are not aware of how some fish can grow and from experience I've even had pet store owners who sell fish, when asked how big certain fish will grow to be they state that a fish will only grow to the size of it's tank that it inhabits. What a line.......

[jelkel]

I have to throw in my "two cents" I am sorry for your loss and how you feel about it. It's hard when someone has to do the right thing for the wrong reasons. I'm torn between all of the posts about this. I don't think you were at the end of the rope, and you had a little more time to try to get rid of the fish properly. Also, only one person brought up the "brief" fact that you can
uthenize the fish by putting them in your freezer. A much easier and less
messy alternative. Anyway, whats done is done and at least you didn't release them in the wild. A good learning topic for the newbies in the hobby!!!

[aliasaid]

same thing happened to me, so i too feel your pain. someone splashed water on my tv and it went dead :sad: don't let this happen to you, learn from my mistake, don't let ppl w/ water go near your tv.

[ganjero]

I just would have put him in a lake or river, but killing it?. ANd thenyou had the nerves of posting what you did? :mad2:

[f8ldzz]

I just would have put him in a lake or river...
That's about the most ignorant statement I've ever heard in regards to what to do with unwanted fish...

[Slappy*McFish]

Not to mention illegal and very irresponsible.

[ganjero]

That's about the most ignorant statement I've ever heard in regards to what to do with unwanted fish...
So you call your self a "fish lover" and you rather kill a fish than release it?
Man, I dont care if is illegal or whatever, but I would never kill my fish. I fit came from the nature let it go back to nature, that's all that I'm saying.

[Raskolnikov]

So you call your self a "fish lover" and you rather kill a fish than release it?
Man, I dont care if is illegal or whatever, but I would never kill my fish. I fit came from the nature let it go back to nature, that's all that I'm saying.

You imply that you yourself care about fish, but your ignorance regarding the welfare of aquatic life is sickening.

It's not wrong because it's illegal, it's illegal b/c it's wrong.

Releasing non-natives or even some captive-raised natives into an ecosystem is often detrimental to the inhabitants of that system (plenty of them being fish). Furthermore, the "setting free" of your own tropical fish into temperate waters will result in an unpleasant death of the animal that you so witlessly released in the first place.

[Kasakato]

So you call your self a "fish lover" and you rather kill a fish than release it?
Man, I dont care if is illegal or whatever, but I would never kill my fish. I fit came from the nature let it go back to nature, that's all that I'm saying.
How are you a "fish lover" if you are breaking the law? Have you ever thought about what could happen if you let it go into a lake or something? It could die a very slow painful death of it gets stuck into a water intake, or a sewage outlet. A quick painless death is better then that. IF the fish makes it threw all of that, it may, and I say MAY reproduce. This can create weird fish, or a outbreak of the same one. This could cause problems with a lot of systems.

[f8ldzz]

So you call your self a "fish lover" and you rather kill a fish than release it?
Man, I dont care if is illegal or whatever, but I would never kill my fish. I fit came from the nature let it go back to nature, that's all that I'm saying.
If you had seen previous posts of mine, or have no idea what the laws in the state of Hawaii are regarding aquarium fish, you would understand my position.

The state of Hawaii law PROHIBITS releasing of any non-native species into streams, rivers, forests, ad nauseum...

The state of Hawaii law REQUIRES all fish / pet stores to accept unwanted aquarium fish - no questions asked.

So, you see, your point is moot.
Dude to state laws, it makes it illegal and also shifts responsibility of unwanted aquarium fish away from the fish enthusiasts.

Now, I don't want to get into an argument about fish owners regard to responsibility - that would fill up an entire thread in itself - but, I do have an out of it comes to fish that I can't or don't want to keep.

The state of Hawaii has the HIGHEST number of endangered species of all the U.S. states.
There has already been heavy proliferation of non-native / alien fish species into native streams / rivers habitats.
Of serious note are the armorhead catfish which dig holes on riverbanks when they spawn - this causes erosion and silt introduction to waterways.
I know of a HUGE colony of Kenyii cichlids that inhabit one of the main rivers on the island of Oahu.

Sorry about not making my stance clear...

[jagarundi]

I just would have put him in a lake or river, but killing it?. ANd thenyou had the nerves of posting what you did? :mad2:

I did what needed to be done. YOU have the nerve to post that you would BREAK THE LAW and put fish that ARE NOT NATIVE to these waters in a lake?

[poysen]

How sad.. Makes me feel less dorky that I've been spending weeks trying to find fish that get along, stay around 4 incehs in length and asking every pet store around AND every friend that has tanks about all this stuff. Then I've been spending many hours scouring the net for more info. (that's how I happened upon this forum) I do see a lot of conflicting info but I see a lot that is the same too.. You see.. I worry about fish getting along and being happy too..

In the end.. its a lesson well learned to fully do your homework I suppose.

[sumoschro]

Plus think about what might happen just by introducing the fish into an alien habitat...Assuming you did "save" them by puting them in a lake or river system, what if they survived, reproduced, and ran out all other aquatic life in the area? This has happened many places all over the US, and all over the world, and you wouldn't want this to be another example of alien species introduction.

[Sam G]

Hello,
Sorry about your tragic loss. If I would have know, I would have had you ship them to me. Another very fast as well as fast growing fish is the Giant gourami. I was moving 3 years ago. I had a Diabetic attack and could not supervise the packing of my 2 1/2 foot giant gourami. Her name was Bertha. The guys that loaded her put a tarp over the tank so she would not jump out - needless to say, she suffocated. We had her in a tank by our dining room. We use to clean our plates of into her tank. She would eat anything! I tried her out on some jalepenos - she loved them! She would also come up out of the tank and receive a whole banana into her mouth. She would just gently hover half way out until I placed it into her open mouth. Great pet - highly recommended. I have a new one that I am training now. Again sorry about your loss. Sam G

[Rick Romance]

sorry for your loss. i probably would have done some mission impossible stuff and left them on the steps of local town Aquarium or the pet shop. you know sedate the fish and then drop them off

[Rick Romance]

oops i guess i shouldn't have release those catfish into the lake 3years ago, my bad :dance:

[fish_breeder_05]

At the lfs there is a huge (500gal?) metal ten with a 4 foot alligator, pacus from people who made that mistake, and 1'+ overgrown cichlids. just an example of just how much they can take at that size.

[ghinksmon]

Sorry to hear you were unable to find them a home, but that's not unusual for large fish. The albino channels will likely need the cinderblock next, or a good cajun recipe. The Connecticut State record channel cat was an albino presumably released from an aquarium owner. At 29 lbs and 37 inches it could nearly eat your pacus.

My worst too big fish was a red snake head that ate a few favorite catfish including an albino channel cat given to me because it outgrew the owners 55 gal. The snakehead would swallow the fish as far as it could then simply bite through them, often leaving the head and organs to survive and need to be euthanised. I was only a teen at the time and the snakehead (20" +/-)died of my poor housekeeping.

Today it's a real pet peeve of mine to see pet stores selling animals that virtually no one can properly care for. In addition to those already discussed I'd add about any fish that typically exceeds 18" but certainly anything over 30". As you stated you were admirable and purchased larger housing, about as big as most people could fit/afford, but still it wasn't sufficient. Considering I like reptiles as well, Burmese pythons, Anacondas, Monitor Lizards, etc would also be added to my boycott list if I knew of any stores that didn't offer these animals when available.

Sorry to ramble but as you can see you hit a nerve with your story.

[gottasavebob]

I'm terribly sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing your story. I've never experienced anything like this, but have been frustrated before by not doing my homework and not receiving more information at the point of purchase. Especially since about a week ago I had to take my pleco back to the store after having him for over a year. He had grown to nearly (if not more than) 12" and was terrorizing my tank! Well, that's a strong word, but he was getting aggressive at dinner times and was knocking everything all over the place. I was very upset about it, but we have a great store here and the owner is awesome. When I bought him, I had no idea how large he would get.

[TheMightyQueenPixie]

Sorry to hear about your predicament...Unfortunately very common as many species sold at the LFS are totally unsuitable for the average enthusiast....In the long run it was probably the right move, albeit, a tough one...good luck to you in the future...

[jagarundi]

I'm glad that my post generated such responses. As a matter of fact, the store where I purchased these fish from no longer sell Pacu's. As for the Albino Catfish, they are fast approaching tank buster status but I plan on having my 300 gallon tank in place by then. I hope to have this tank in my possession within another 4 months.

[chadscott]

undefinedI hate to hear what you went through,, unfortunately I just recently purchased 4 red belly pacus and have them in my 150g tank, I guess like you I should have researched them more. I know how hard it must have been to put them down , by far my pacus are my favorite out of all my fish. Then again it gives me the reason to go buy that big 520g tank that ive been wanting. Good for pacus and my neverening growing clown knife.By the way you want some good little tough fish to replace your pacus with get you a school of tiger barbs awesome little fish I have 14 and they do not fin pick if you school them, and they are very cool to watch.... :dog: undefined

[btowntaz]

http://community.webshots.com/myphotos?action=viewAllPhotos&albumID=404349869

My Pacu "Big Fishey" jumped through the top of my tank a few months ago. I always had the lids on but he hit the outside edge of the tank and broke a 10" section of the tank top. Found him on the floor dead as a doornail. He was in a 167 gallon tank and I was on the look out for a bigger tank.

Pacu's are neat fish with pretty cool personalities. Their intake of food starts to get a little expensive when they get big. I had to stop buying the expensive frozen food at Petsmart and started buying beefheart by the pound at the grocery store. But unless you have the means to feed and properley keep them, they are best left at the fish store.

RIP Big Fishy, March 2002 - July 2005

[ofarevolution31]

wow.. wow.. wow... that is some nice writting your given us.... i respect it very much, and i would have seen this before my sitaution i had... but it is very true they r nice loving fish, so peaful and nice. and acually have a personallity... i am really sorry about it.. and i do miss my pacu too.. mine was 8 inches... and now is in a 130g tank at my uncles house.. moved him in a cooler... but i know for sure in 6 months.. 130g tank will b so small for him and there will b a problem, but im sure he is happy in that big tank... sorry agian. and thanks

[lousybreed]

Pacus would really look cool in a old pool or something if you lived in florida or so cal. Imagine a small school in a 7,000 gallon pool. You could go swimming with your fish. Other than that I cant imagine a traditional glass aquarium big enought for one of these guys.

[Ham Ham]

thats so sad

[Lady G]

Oh my gosh that is sooooo sad!! I had a "newbie" experience also, mine fortunately turned out much better, but my Aunt had given us a 30/g tank and my mom took my son to get some fish for it. Anyway they DID tell the sale person the size of our tank before picking out fish (this shows NOT to trust the sale person or the info tickets on the tank), well my son really liked the columbian shark (on the tank it said they get around 6") and got 2 of them then he saw the bala, rainbow shark, neon gaumbie (not sure how to spell that) and the irridesent shark (tank said they get 6"-8") well he ended up getting 2 of each of these and a algea eater and 6 ghost shrimp. The sales person told them they would all be fine together and that was not to much for a 30/g tank. Well the columbian's did say they are BW, when my mom asked about the other fish they were told they could all live in BW, my mom asked what is Brackish and he said you just add some aquarium salt so my mom got the "aquarium" salt to make it BW. After getting the fish and bringing them home we put the salt in and everything was doing fine, then I noticed the columbian looked like they were shedding (that is the only way I can describe it) and is also how I found this site (which may I say is WONDERFUL), in the process of trying to find out what was wrong with them I found out more about all my fish, and that there was NO WAY they could all live together in a 30/g tank. I found out what I thought was BW was not you were suppose to use a different kind of salt for that then the aquarium salt (which thankfully I did not use since NONE of the other fish were suppose to be BW) and most likely that was the cause for the columbians looking the way they did which they both did die within a day or two of finding out more about them, I was going to switch them into my 20/g tank by themselves so they could at least have the right type of water and temporaraly since they can get up to 18"!! I am getting a 55/g and was going to switch them to the 30/g untill I couldn't keep them there any longer, not really sure what I was going to do when that time came. Then I found out that the irridesent sharks could grow up to 3' yes that is FEET not inchs, a very nice person on this site sent me a link to some pictures of a few fully grown irridesents I about died when I saw them, well after loosing the columbians and knowing there was know way I could provide for the irridesents I went to the LFS and took in a picture from the link telling them I wanted them to take the fish back, and asking them why in the world they would say they only grow 6"-8", his response to me "well in an aquarium they will only grow to that size, they wont outgrow their surrounding" I told him that I found out they my not out grow on the outside but their insides still grow and they would die!! They refused to take the fish back telling me they have a 3 day return policy :mad2: Then I asked them why they would say all the fish would be ok in BW when all but the columbians were fresh water and if I was suppose to use BW why did they sell my som the aquarium salt instead of the other, he said they must of missunderstood because the columbian could be FW or BW and that would be why he sold the aquarium salt instead since the others were freshwater fish :confused: Now the irridesents were my fav's I didn't want to kill them, and in no way could provide the gallons they would require I was at a loss as to what to do, heres were the happy ending comes, my cousin has a friend whos mom has a outdoor pond with coy(I think they are called...the HUGE goldfish) and several other fish, well she said she would take them, which made me very happy...only problem she said she couldn't take them until they were at least 1'. Then came the next good thing for my fellows, a friend of mine had just got a 120or130/g tank and said he would take them until they were big enough :dance2: So although my ending was much better I know how you feel!! I have told my son NO MORE unless we know EXACTLY what we are getting and don't depend on what the LFS tells you either!!!!!!!!!!!!! It is soooooooo very important to research first. I do not think they should sell fish that get that big to anyone unless they let the person know what they are getting into EVER!!

p.s I heard through the grapevine that LFS is going out of business so maybe that is why we were SO misinformed but still that is no excuse for such B.S.

[jimangie1973]

Very sad story. I just found this forum and read this.

The really sad part of it is Pacu's are so easy to find at the pet shops. Most of the stores around here have them, including PetSmart. I think it does say they grow to 18" or 2 feet on the labels at PetSmart, but it is in very small print. They are very pretty fish so I'm sure this is a very common story.

[SquirrelOsO]

my old neighborhood petstore used to have huge pacu's. they were so big they could have fit into size 2T childrens clothes.
i can picture a pacu in overalls cant you?

:hi:

[palmbreeze]

That was the most horrible post I have ever read! :sad:

I have just heard of this "euthanize" term today. Someone suggested I do it to my Betta! I could never EVER kill any fish! I'm sorry you had to do it.

[Doitsu]

"I wrapped them in newspaper and used a cinderblock dropped from the third step onto it's head."

i cant believe people are calling this euthanizing, that is a horrible way to put down your fish, in fact it's grizzly. Simple clove oil can be used to put down fish, it is in fact used in small doses to knock out a fish, like a puffer for dentistry after which they revive perfectly healthy, a stronger dose however euthanizes the fish.
ive also heard of vets putting a chemical called Euthanol into the water and that doing the job very peacefully. Also Finquel is another fish tranquilizer, but like any tranquilizer, it is lethal if overdosed and would have down the job in a non butcher like manner of a cinder block.

for all the lessons learned you say happened perhaps a 2 minute google search on euthanizing a fish may have been in order before bashing it with a cinder block!

[FreddytheFish]

"I wrapped them in newspaper and used a cinderblock dropped from the third step onto it's head."

i cant believe people are calling this euthanizing, that is a horrible way to put down your fish, in fact it's grizzly. Simple clove oil can be used to put down fish, it is in fact used in small doses to knock out a fish, like a puffer for dentistry after which they revive perfectly healthy, a stronger dose however euthanizes the fish.
ive also heard of vets putting a chemical called Euthanol into the water and that doing the job very peacefully. Also Finquel is another fish tranquilizer, but like any tranquilizer, it is lethal if overdosed and would have down the job in a non butcher like manner of a cinder block.

for all the lessons learned you say happened perhaps a 2 minute google search on euthanizing a fish may have been in order before bashing it with a cinder block!

There was recently a thread about quick ways to euthanize fish. I think cinderblock dropping would be a good way to do it, think of how quick it'd be.

[Doitsu]

There was recently a thread about quick ways to euthanize fish. I think cinderblock dropping would be a good way to do it, think of how quick it'd be.

i couldnt disagree more, and i mean by light years, 1st, youre removing the fish from the water, second it will most likely be flopping around (ten times more so with a fish this size), and third with a fish this size one drop from a height like that probably is not doing the job (ignoring the high probability of the fish flopping and you missing or you just flat out missing on your own).

pick your death:
1- tranquilized and pass on
or
2- someone drops cinderblocks onto your head until the job is done

fine it is a fish... BUT i know which id choose for something considered a friend/pet/family. but i guess finding clove oil or any other fish tranquilizer just isnt reasonable when cinder blocks are so readily available (sarcasm)

[I_GO_PYGO]

Good job Jag, the availability of Pacus is sad since few of the people who purchase them can house them as full grown adults. They're classified as "tankbusters" for a reason.

[OrionGirl]

The intent of this sticky is to raise the awareness of aquariasts as the difficulties in purchasing fish without adequate research to ensure long term care. Attacking the original poster is NOT tolerated, and NOT okay. Several posts have been deleted for this reason.

[graysilm]

Today I was looking at the fish in walmart (just looking, not buying) and they had some small red bellied pacus. On the description they said that the max size was 10"

[Warmaster259]

MY question is why would places like petsmart and petco even have fish like pacus when the majority of people have no way of housing these fish. They should leave these to special orders. Most people just go in and see a little shiny fish and buy it not knowing that it will become a monster.

[Larissa]

When I first set up my 55g a couple of years ago, I came so close to buying a shoal of red pacus from wal-mart. I came home first and did some research and boy was I glad I did. They're really attractive fish, but there is absolutely no way that I could properly house them :(

[Genral72]

So you call your self a "fish lover" and you rather kill a fish than release it?
Man, I dont care if is illegal or whatever, but I would never kill my fish. I fit came from the nature let it go back to nature, that's all that I'm saying.
Yeah and then the fish will eat all the local fish. Locals fisherman call animal control center massive cleanup costing thousands of dollars. Yeah go ahead and release in a nonnative place

[tyewag]

I don't think that the pet stores should be banned from selling these fish. I don't think that they are at fault either. Other people shouldn't be punished because some people go into a petstore to buy a pretty fish. If you don't ask questions about a fish, the seller more than likely isn't going to insult you by asking you if you know what you are buying. Just like everyone has mentioned already, people need to go do some research before they go to buy the fish. I wish you would have tried to sell the fish on ebay or aquabid or something else before putting them down like that.

[ej1698]

Sorry To Hear About Your Situation. I Just Bought 2 Of Them Myself A Week Ago Before Doing The Research And After Finding Out About The Size They Get I Brought Them Back This Morning And Got My $4.oo Credit At Petland.

Good Luck With The Other Fish

Ej

[Emg]

I was at PetCo the other day and witnessed the oh so common BS sell tactic of telling the customer that every fish they wanted was fine for thier tank.....a mom was in with her son, who obviously got a new tank for Christmas and was picking out his favorite fish. All I heard was..."How bout these here..will they be ok ? I'll take two...and two of those...and how bout these? Ok....2 of those too...."

I didn't hear what size tank this was, but it's in his bedroom and being a new tank I'm guessing 10gallons...I HOPE I'm wrong about that because they picked up a cute itty bitty common pleco.....2 irridescent sharks.......and a few other fish I didn't stick around to find out what. Never mind that the employee never mentioned anything about tank cycling..but I imagine they'll be learning before too long...

I myself at one time...noticed this BEAUTIFUL little black and white catfish at an lfs once. It was about 1 1/2 inches and it had the most eye catching black and white pattern on it. I was tempted....and asked the salesperson about it........she said it was a "RED TAIL" catfish...and to her credit....lol....she looked at me with this nervous kind of look as she told me it need a pretty big tank......I left it there...THANK GOD !! :eek: (my largest tank is only a 29)

[OrionGirl]

I'm locking this for now. Regretfully, too many members are deciding that they get to comment on the morality of the decision, rather than the guidance offered in terms of researching a fish prior to purchase.

[---MR.CLEAN---]

so sorry for what happened I had 2 pacu last week 6 inches both luckily I sold them both for $5 well next time I get pacu I better have a 300 gallon or huge pool in my backyard

[ct-death]

Extremely hard post to read, and I'm sure write... Sorry for your loss and painful experience :(

MY question is why would places like petsmart and petco even have fish like pacus when the majority of people have no way of housing these fish. They should leave these to special orders. Most people just go in and see a little shiny fish and buy it not knowing that it will become a monster.
Simple: They are in the business of making $. No more, no less. Once ppl understand that this is a business for most Pet Stores, and not an animal placement program, all will be far better off.

Fish like these are commonly brought into the store to attract unknowning would-be fish lovers into getting a small tank and a few fish (which they tell you to cycle with). once the first fish die, you buy more, and meds, and chemicals, etc., etc. When you fish outgrow your tank, you get one for a quote: 10" fish , when this doesn't work you get an even bigger tank.....and so the cycle goes :wall:

[BigFishKeeper]

Oh that sucks!!!!!!! Man If you lived in Mass I would Have tank them and put them in my 150!

[Easydoesit]

your 150? that wouldnt be big enough..