Suturing a Fish

[brewmaster15]

Hi all,
For years I always wanted some classic San merahs to breed...not the Rose reddish ones that are common, but those deep deep red ones. I finally raised out a group of youngsters ...got a pair and they have been real beauties for me... great parents, beautiful color, etc..Finally had what i wanted for San Merahs.... and then an accident happened....The pair was on fry...the fry had just gone free swimming and the glass lid on the tank fell in. my fault... It was a heavy plate glass and I was so busy trying not to suck up the fry that I knocked it in. It hit the female a glancing blow off the side...and then clipped her a bad gash behind the tail and completely thru the Anal fin, and into the muscle a good 1/2 inch...

It was devastating...Theres no way that it would close up and the fin repair itself... I'm pretty sure that she'd survive if I kept the tank clean, and it would not affect the breeding at all...though I did have to sacrifice the free swimmers. This made the male mad and he started to harrass her..so I partitioned the tank.

Very very depressing This fish is easily my favorite out of many here.

-al

[Disgirl]

Well that is just such a sad story. So sorry it happened! But she looks better than I thought she would after hearing the story first. I bet she will recover just fine and be a good mother again. Even if she has some scars she will still make beautiful babies . Those are some gorgeous fish Al! We all have our accidents for sure.
Barb

[Cooldadddyfunk286]

ooo, Sorry to hear about that Al, she is a beautiful fish indeed! Im sure she will heal up OK for you...maybe a scar, but either way...thats a beautiful fish, and if you can get them to spawn again, it should all be ok.

sometimes sh*t happens, I think that with your care, that fish will make a nice recovery, and you will be back to where you were soon enough. dont be too bummed!

[brewmaster15]

Now I know some of you may not understand why I did what I did next, some may find it an unnecessary risk and something that I just should not have tried. I am a biologist by education and though I have never sutured a fish before...I have done so to myself and small animals...so I was not exactly flying blind here..

I decide that the cut was fairly clean and that it was worth the risk to try to close it up with sutures. I netted the fish and I cleaned the area with iodine...and since I didn't have a good size suture I bent a sterile one I had.. performed one suture and returned the fish to the tank...let it rest a few minutes and repeated the step for two sutures. One to hold the muscle tissue together, the other to hold the rays together.

I know theres a risk of infection, and doing this on my favorite fish is probably a real dumb thing to do.. but I really hope I can undue the damage I did this fish accidentally.

I have absolutely no idea as to whether this will work as I have never done this before. I have seen discus far less healthy survive far worse...and this discus is in perfect health..so I am hopeful. I'm sharing this with you all so that we can all learn a bit more here..

Heres the patient post-operative.

-al

[William Palumbo]

Hi Al...sorry to hear that. At least she should recover. Bummer about the fry. That is a very nice looking pair for sure, as you probally know by now, those are some of my favorite type of strains. Here I thought I was the only one to knock the lids in. I do it ALL the time. Is why the majority of mine are cracked or broke. Some of my tank tops have several broken peices like a puzzle covering them. Reaching in the tank is like a booby trap! I put a small crack in the side of my 125 from the lid falling, it fell in a sweeping side by side motion, right into the side of the tank. I hate lids myself, but we need them to keep the fish and heat in...One good thing Al, is that she'll be breeding again soon, scarred but breeding...Bill

[poconogal]

Oh Al, I'm so sorry to hear this. When I first started reading your post it made me gasp. Thank goodness she is still alive and I think she will be fine. Maybe a scar or two, but that's better than the alternative. Good stitchwork there, I hope to see pics posted in a few weeks with her all healed.

[Roxanne]

That is devastating Al. I have knocked lids in myself a couple of times now and I always think, damnit that could cut them in half if they were under it...

So, I got lids made up from perspex to fit, I didn't quite get the thick enough one, and it bows a little bit with the water heat, but it's much safer than glass..

...always the favourite as Kacey would say....

Roxanne

[Harriett]

San Merahs are one of my faves and your pair is gorgeous, Brew---I don't think it was too far out there, but of course I'm a nurse and that just seemes to me to be the logical thing for you to do!
I'll keep my fingers crossed that it comes out ok--she's awful fine!
Best regards
Harriett

[brewmaster15]

Thanks everyone, Fingers crossed that it works...I'll be keeping that tank spotless for at least a week... and then I'll try taking the sutures out....I will probably next the fish periodically to see how its healing as well.

So far shes doing very well, given all that has happened to her.

-al

[Roxanne]

...can't believe you'd think anyone would think it was a bad idea... if you have the stomach to do it, suturing it is a brilliant idea Al

Interesting also that you are going to rely on clean water and the fishes own natural healing ability to treat. This will be a testament to the healing power of clean water won't it? If our tanks are clean to start with, an injury has a better chance of healing without infection I guess..Would you move on to an antibiotic if infection manifested itself?

Thanks for sharing Al..

[DiscusKeeper403]

That's too bad. I was going to suggest the possibility of stitches, before I saw that you did it! Keep the water clean and she should be fine. Will you need to remove the thread after the fish is healed, or will it fall out on its own?

[Cooldadddyfunk286]

yeah, great stitchwork Al, jeez. way to go on that one. Dr. Al, medicine-man ..I think she'll be just fine with the way u stitched her up...if anything I think thats BETTER to close to wound than to leave an open wound to heal by itself. like the other said, you had the guts to STITCH up your fish, I like your style

[rickztahone]

sorry to hear what happened Al but you seem to have taken action quickly and provided the best possible care after the fact. your fish is a lucky one indeed and it is jaw-dropping beautiful. please post pictures when she recovers. good luck

[DLock3d]

If she doesn't fair well at least you know you tried everything within your power. She looks great post stitches.

[smsimcik]

Hi Al, Nice suture job. Being the resident vet here on the forum I might mention that you should probably leave the sutures in for at least 2 weeks for proper healing. Fish and reptiles heal more slowly than warm blooded creatures. Also, wet sutures come untied very easily depending on what type of suture material you used. Don't be suprised if one or both come out prematurely. Here's hoping for the best though. She sure is pretty.