Don't release pets in the wild...Pacu, pirahna cousin in Lake Carlos

[ghotierman]

Here's the article from the local paper:

http://www.echopress.com/article.cfm?Article_ID=42883

We don't need more exotics to worry about...

Great adventure for a young angler though....

[stmichael]

It states to bury your pets in the yard is that legal anymore? Is that only in the suburbs?

[The Grebe]

Some people get goofy when it comes to releasing "Pets"! A fella caught an allligator out of the Mississippi a year or two ago...it was just about kaput anyways.

Pirhana turn up all over the place...I found one that had washed up on the shore of Crystal Lake in Robbinsdale, years back.

If the people that have the exotic imports are to lazy to take the time to try to understand the creature that they have and realize that the critter would be out of it's element if released, they shouldn't have it!

Bring it to the Humane society, bring it back to the pet shop, bring it somewhere, but don't let it go in the wild, for crying out loud.

If the person is to cheap to spring for a few bucks to have Muffy the Pirhana, Cuddles the Croc, or Huggie Poo the 20 foot Python, taken care of, tell whomever that you found them walking around the neighborhood....!

If that is still to much of an effort for them, maybe they could get the neighborhood grump to knock the critter in the head with a shovel!

[JollyT]

If it's a fish, put it in a bag and put it in the freezer! You can also euthanize fish with carbonated water. Pacus, oscars and other large tropicals won't survive winters up here, but they have breeding populations in the wild in Florida!

[fishlips]

You hear that the released tropical fish won't survive the winter, but judging by the size of the Pacu being caught (this is the 2nd one I've seen this year), they are either surviving the winter or have an unbelievable growth rate. Hard to tell how big they were when released though.

[JollyT]

I'm guessing what happens is when the pacu gets overs 12in or so it outgrows the 55 gallon tank he is housed in. (The 55 is the cheapest of the 4 foot tanks.) Mr. macho "I need a mean fish for a pet" decides to get rid of him, but can't stand killing "Fluffy" so throws him in the lake. Some of it may be joke factor,"Wait'll someone hooks him!" or "Maybe he'll swim to the beach!"

Pacus aren't piranah, they are mostly vegetable and fruit eaters. Those teeth are for biting through figs and mangoes and stuff. Of course if they are hungry, they'll eat feeder goldfish etc. I've seen pacus in aquariums over 18in long.

[Bubbadust]

I've seen many 15"-20" pacus at the pet store I used to work at. People would bring them back in when they outgrew their aquariums and give them to us to dispose of...

You must have worked at a pet store at some point Jolly?

[Maashkinoozhe]

Theoretically, I suppose it's possible for some tropicals to overwinter if they are released in a river where there is warm water effluent from either a power plant or treated sewage. Quite a number of different fish like to stack up in those currents in the winter. The midwinter temps of those waters can be in the 60s!

Non-native fish becoming invasive is just part of the problem. Sometimes the water or scales these fish have may contain parasites, algae or plants that may become a problem. Caulerpa taxifolia is an invasive seaweed in saltwater that was an aquarium release. Now it's a worldwide problem.

Dave D

[tonyjor]

I had a 55 gallon with a couple Oscars that were around 7" or so. They are very aggressive fish!. Long story short, the pet store wouldn't take them until I told them I was going to flush them. They were good fish and I didn't want to get rid of them but the aquarium had a "malfunction" in the form of a nice chunk taken out of the side about 4" from the bottom. That was a fun day

[JollyT]

No never worked in a store,but I was bitten by the aquarium bug years ago. I'm a long time member of the Minnesota aquarium Society. At one time I had 70 tanks, only have 4 now.(With water ) I never kept either oscars or pacus, but saw all the trouble they caused the store owners I was friends with.

[united jigsticker]

Quote:

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If it's a fish, put it in a bag and put it in the freezer

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That's the most absurd thing I have ever heard!

Even if it is true (no, I don't have time to research "the humane way to kill a fish) it's still rediculous and outrageous.

And further more, how would anyone know if it's true?

I'd like to beleive our government is spending our hard earned tax dollars on more relevant issues then the intrical details of preparing fish for a painless death.

Why not get it a prescription of morphine and let it die a high and happy fish?

If that isn't good enough, maybe you could shoot it out of a slingshot into a brick wall. Probably would be more painless and alot quicker then suffocating and freezing to death...And it would bring a whole new angle to the term "flying fish".

Tough love, baby!

If putting it in a bag and sticking it in the freezer is a good idea, then why are people so worried about falling through the ice and drowning?

Same thing: It's cold and you can't breathe.

[JollyT]

Well, you can throw them on the floor and stomp them, or rip their gills and let them bleed out. But, being as these are people euthanizing their own pet fish I thought I would recommend some less drastic methods.

Fish being cold blooded shut down quickly as the temperature drops. Very much like rapid onset hypothermia. "I'm tired and going to sleep." They just never wake up.

[Trouthunter]

how about with some shorelunch and a sesame seed bun!

[caseymcq]

Quote:

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how about with some shorelunch and a sesame seed bun!

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I don't care who you are, that was funny right there.

[JollyT]

That's what I tell discus keepers. You judge them by how well they fit on the bun!

[Cyberfish]

I euthanize lots of fish with a fillet knife!