World's Oldest Aquarium Fish Was Euthanized

Granddad was a lungfish who lived at the Shedd Aquarium. He was no spring chicken when they acquired him back in the 1930s; he was believed to already be in his mid-90s then!

Anyhow, after all those years on display, he lost interest in food and showed signs of organ failure, so he was euthanized.

merry Christmas granddad

What the my black daughter? Just no.
It should have been allowed to die on Nature's terms.
You dick.

originally posted by: skunkape23
What the my black daughter? Just no.
It should have been allowed to die on Nature's terms.
You dick.

Wouldn't that be more painful for it? A quick painless death isn't so bad, I think he had a long enough life.

a reply to: skunkape23

What?

Slowly and painfully?

You dick.

Fish do not feel pain.

Do fish feel pain?

a reply to: skunkape23

It was showing the classic signs of old age in fish.

They generally decline and lose interest in food and start showing signs of organ failure.

I wonder if it was showing signs of dropsy which is basically kidney failure.

originally posted by: Tophat21
Fish do not feel pain.

Do fish feel pain?

I see your link from 2013 and call with a link from 2017

It may not be the same as we feel pain, but they certainly do feel some pain.

As for Grandad...RIP buddy, you had a good run.

originally posted by: ChaoticOrder

originally posted by: skunkape23
What the my black daughter? Just no.
It should have been allowed to die on Nature's terms.
You dick.

Wouldn't that be more painful for it? A quick painless death isn't so bad, I think he had a long enough life.

Given that fish have really awful memory capability, he probably thought he was just a big kid.

I wonder...

...deep fried and breaded...

originally posted by: abe froman
a reply to: skunkape23

What?

Slowly and painfully?

You dick.

Yeah, where would nature be without mankind to come along and decide for it?

Oh wait, probably immensely better off!

a reply to: madmac5150

cast-iron Pan cooked with some butter and lemon.

A glass of white wine to toast his long life, and fond memories.

originally posted by: madmac5150
I wonder...

...deep fried and breaded...

I was wondering what kind of industrial sized toilet was required to dispose of the remains?
A 150 year old lungfish isn't like your typical goldfish.

a reply to: NarcolepticBuddha

In nature he likely would have died before beginning to suffer from old age. That is the normal way of things.

Toss it in the gumbo.
High class vittles.

a reply to: ketsuko

They should have released it and let it die in peace.

originally posted by: tadaman
a reply to: ketsuko

They should have released it and let it die in peace.

If this is the type of lungfish I think it is, then he most likely would have formed a mucus casing for himself in the mud at the beginning of a long dry season and gone into a hibernation from which he never would have emerged.

Not unlike being put to sleep unless something ate him before that happened.

So what happened is not terribly dissimilar from nature.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: NarcolepticBuddha

In nature he likely would have died before beginning to suffer from old age. That is the normal way of things.

Yep that was my point. Nature is nature. Nature don't need human intervention.

a reply to: NarcolepticBuddha

Yeah, but when you have him in an unnatural environment to begin with, providing him with the very optimal of conditions and no predators, things like this will happen. You will see animals reach their maximum span of years and die of old age.

We see it in human beings all the time.

originally posted by: ketsuko
a reply to: NarcolepticBuddha

Yeah, but when you have him in an unnatural environment to begin with, providing him with the very optimal of conditions and no predators, things like this will happen. You will see animals reach their maximum span of years and die of old age.

We see it in human beings all the time.

Look, I'm not saying they should have tossed the fellow out to the alley cats.

But I guess you raise a good point. If fish is going to have an 'unnatural life,' I guess it can have an unnatural death as well.