Oscarfishlover.com

Like most animals, it is sometimes necessary to end a fish's life prematurely because of illness or disease.  There are many ways to kill a fish which I am not going to go into because I believe 99% of them are not humane. Obviously, dealing with a tiny little Tetra is a little easier than dealing with a large Oscar. If you do need to euthanise your Oscar then the method on this page is probably the best way of going about it.

Clove oil is readily available at various outlets such as Boots. I think I paid about £1.30 for my little pot. Sometimes people use a drop for toothache as it numbs the area.

Firstly, move the fish into a smaller tank, a baby bath or bucket - something that can be thrown away or easily cleaned. If you do this proceedure in a large tank i wouldn't know how much clove oil to use and also you will end up with a very potent smelling, greasy poisonous tank (the smell takes a while to go) Clove Oil, or "Oil of Cloves" is an essential oil used in foods to flavour and used as a "natural" anaesthetic.

Put 3 drops with a half pint of water and shake very well, so the oil and water make a fusion - otherwise the oil will just float on top of the water and for the euthanasia to work the fish has to get the oil into its system. Add the mixture to the water that the fish is in (1 gallon of water should be more than enough) and stir it around slowly with your hand. The fish should become lethargic and sleepy. Add another mixture of 2 to 3 drops of oil in water. When the fish goes "belly up" it is asleep - not dead. Then add 3 more drops of clove oil.  The fish feels nothing, it is very peaceful and humane. It seems mad that a few drops of something can have such an effect, but it IS very strong. Don't make the mistake of thinking that if you initially put more in it will act quicker - it will only freak the fish out - it has to be done gradually so the fish doesn't notice the change in the water.

The whole proceedure should take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour.  You will know when the fish is completely dead because there will be absolutely no movement  of the gills.  If after an hour the fishes gills are still moving you could add a couple more drops of clove oil. Sometimes it does depend on the size of the fish to how many drops of clove oil are needed.