Watch Out For The Flesh Eating Fish Tank Bacteria

I don't think so, Mycobacterium bacteria can be present in any tank, and not all fish who are carriers display symptoms. If you really want the nitty gritty on it, read here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ca/volume_6/volume_6_2/mycobactera.htm

It's a good idea to be careful with your hands and avoid injury. Apart from that, there is essentially nothing you can do since there are no tests for this bacteria available to the hobbyist. The way I see it, I bet you are way more likely to get into a fatal car accident - that doesn't stop you from driving, though! I feel a little uneasy when I fly - then I think about how the trip to the airport is statistically, the most dangerous part.

Risk is a part of life, living in fear of everything that might hurt you is not at all productive.
 
TheFishBoss97 said:
That is scary, especially if you have a cichlid tank with lots of rocks(sharp/edged), then the risk is much higher. I feel better since I have only large smooth river rocks in my tank, smooth substrate, all live plants, and nothing sharp!:)

Wow, but it probably only happened since the water conditions were poor?
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You'd be surprised what you can cut yourself on. I sliced my hand open on a hood lid once.
 
Really, I don't have any hoods on my tanks except my 10G because they all have mounted lighting or high quality wall mounted lights over them. My 72G used to have glass hoods, but 1 end is chipped(1/2") and the auto feeder doesn't fit over the hood, and the glass part blocks the only area where the feeder can feed.
 
It's not just scratching your hand while it's inside of the aquarium. It's having open skin (this could be as small as a fresh papercut) and putting your hand in the tank. If you work at an LFS or have a business servicing aquariums, I would say you have a reason to be slightly worried. Otherwise, put your mind to rest since it's extremely rare for the average hobbyist.

1. Watch your fish,
2. Clean your hands, and
3. Avoid cuts.

That's all you have to do....really, all you CAN do. It can happen to anyone, and just because it happened to someone doesn't mean they did anything wrong.
 
It is so rare I am not even worrying about it. But I feel for that kid.
 
I became vaguely aware of a small cut on my thumb when I was cleaning my tank the other day....by the time it started to sting I figured I was a bit late to prevent fatal infections, but I made sure to clean it pretty well afterwards. Certainly can't see anything now.....

A few weeks ago, however, I got a weird rash on the inside of my right arm, mainly at the inside elbow and spreading down my forearm. I thought it was insect bites at first....then it got really raised and itchy, and seemed to swell up and spread further towards my hand. The itch drove me crazy and it looked dreadful. It wasn't until I had my arm in the fish tank again at some stage, that I realised the rash was right where the inside of my arm rubs on the tank edge when I'm messing around with it (re-scaping, trimming plants at the base, and so on).

I used a simple antihistamine cream for the itch, and antiseptic for the sore skin, and after 3 weeks it went away on its own and hasn't returned. But I do wonder if it was fish tank related.....
 
I agree this is a rare event and nothing to really worry about. Just wash your hands after working in your tank if you are really worried about it. I got a huge splinter in my finger while working in my tank one time. I couldn't get it out until 5 days later. I just kept the area clean and used neosporin, no flesh eating bacteria here.
 
They sell thick elbow length gloves if you guys want some piece of mind. It is scary but when you look at the % it's still really rare. You probably have a better chance of catching the common cold and it turning into phemonia and you dying from that. Like someone already said life has tons of risks, driving to the store is a lot more dangerous then cleaning your fish tank.

Another thing is get a good long syphon and one of those long arm planter things from petco or petsmart. You can go without putting your arm in the tank at all if you have the right tools and stay aware of not putting your arm in.

I haven't put my hand in my tank for months because my rainbows are such crazy eaters they peck at my arm when it goes in. Tank still gets cleaned and fed. Trimming plants on the other hand I think will cause me to dip it in, just glad its low tech and doesn't grow fast.
 
Well, if I'm gonna lose an arm, better to lose it doing what makes me most happy.

@Olivia: You may have a slight allergy to dirty fish water. Whenever I do anything in a tank I break out like that just a little.
 
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