# fish electrocuted!!



## nwcowgirl024 (Nov 3, 2008)

my heater broke and zapped my poor betta pretty good. he is hiding from me now. he is still alive, but i dont know if he will be ok or not. i have never had a fish get electrocuted before! what do you think his chance of survival is? any experiences with this happening before? thanks in advance! i feel so bad for him


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## kritas (Feb 29, 2008)

If a fish doesn't die instantly from electrocution, then they won't die at all. This goes for all living beings.

Obviously u know you must replace your heater...


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

I agree - if he didn't get zapped or cooked right away, then he's probably fine. Maybe just a little stressed out from the affair. 

When using glass heaters, be sure to follow the instructions very closely. When you buy a new one, place it in the water and leave it there for 30 or more minutes before plugging it in. When you adjust the temperature, do it slowly. Never take the heater out of the water while it's plugged in. These can result in rapid temperature changes in the glass of the heater which can make it shatter. Or, you could always just play it safe and get a shatterproof heater.


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## nwcowgirl024 (Nov 3, 2008)

he is still hiding, like 7 hours later! he will not come out :-?


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

How has he been getting along? Has he come out of hiding yet? Do you have plenty of plants and other decor for him to hide in? The more hiding places he has, the more secure he will feel in his surroundings and the sooner he will begin to act normal again.


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## willow (Sep 9, 2006)

oh dear,that' awful,poor little guy.
lucky you never had your hand in the water.:shock:


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## ilovemybubbles (Jan 30, 2008)

Is he moving? I hope he is not dead and stuck under a plant or something. If he is moving and just hiding he is probably just terrified. Keep the light off (if you have one) and he will be better after he gets over his shock. He will eventually get hungry and come out to find some food. Fish can however live for a while with no food. I'm sure your fish knows this, that is why he has not looked for any food yet. 

Just give him time, he will resurface soon enough. He is just taking a "fishy time out" . LOL


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## SolaceTiger (Oct 4, 2008)

You poor thing, I so know how you feel. I was terrified to find that I had broken my glass heater, not from extreme temp change but most likely because I had knocked it hard against the glass back of the tank when I was cleaning it. Didn't notice it happened until later in the day when I went to check the temp, and it wasn't normal. Adjusted the heater, alas the light didn't go on... lol. Looked in the tank and found bubbles and water floating inside it. That instance in fact, is actually why I joined these forums in the first place to seek help. I don't know if my fish were electrocuted, and I'm sure as hell lucky I wasn't, since I didn't unplug it before removing it from the tank. My tetras are troopers though.  Hope your betta is okay to.


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## mattyphilly (Jun 23, 2007)

maybe he has superpowers now


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## tmz (Jul 3, 2008)

oh no!!
thats terrible =(


oo...superfish!


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## nwcowgirl024 (Nov 3, 2008)

he still hides, but does come out for air naw and again. he looks miserable! he doesnt look too well. its been 2 days now!i dont know if he will ever be normal or healthy again


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## Little-Fizz (Aug 19, 2007)

It could just take some time... If you have ever been shocked you know the discomfort that follows. If he got a good enough zap though I would say its possible he may have fried his little fish brain a little to much... Only time will tell though, good luck with the little guy I hope he makes a full recovery!


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## willow (Sep 9, 2006)

mattyphilly said:


> maybe he has superpowers now


:quiet::rofl:


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## xcracer (Oct 30, 2008)

the more water you have in the tank i think the less the shock would have been..


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## nwcowgirl024 (Nov 3, 2008)

im thinking neurological damage he hasnt come out it atleat 12 hours now. what should i do?


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Is he still eating? Is he showing any other signs of injury other than just hiding? If it's possible to keep him healthy, I don't think there's really much you can do.

However, if he doesn't recover and he's not able to eat and seems to be suffering, you might have to euthanize him to put him out of his misery. He could have suffered permanent damage, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility that he's still just a little shell shocked by the whole experience.


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## Kim (Apr 30, 2008)

I'd give him a little more time. Can he still function normally?


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## SolaceTiger (Oct 4, 2008)

Now I'm curious, hows your betta holdin up?


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## nwcowgirl024 (Nov 3, 2008)

oh my gosh, he is back to normal and eating great and swimming around! thanks! i just baught him some little cory catfish to keep him company, well rather to keep me company cause im sure he loved that 15 gallons to hisself. yay for bruce he pulled through!:-D


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## Nudist (Oct 19, 2008)

that is fantastic news, congrats on him making it and i hope you have many years of enjoyment with him.

Steve


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## SolaceTiger (Oct 4, 2008)

I'm glad he's acting spunky again, thanks for letting us know.


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## nwcowgirl024 (Nov 3, 2008)

*here is a recent picture of him*










this is him now after being shocked....maybe he does have super powers!:lol:


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## SolaceTiger (Oct 4, 2008)

lol thanks for the pic. glad he came through.


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## Nudist (Oct 19, 2008)

he is a beautiful fish, i'm glad to hear he is Super-Fish and he is still with you. 

Steve


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## willow (Sep 9, 2006)

wow!! he;s gorgeous.
glad all is well with him.


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## iamntbatman (Jan 3, 2008)

Good to know he pulled through! Is he chasing the cory in that picture?

Also, your cory would be a lot happier if he had some more of his friends to school with. You should be able to house 6-8 of them total in a 15g with your betta with no problems.


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## nwcowgirl024 (Nov 3, 2008)

i have 7 corys in there with him 5 spotted and 2 albinos


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## okiemavis (Nov 10, 2007)

that gravel is awful rough on the cory's barbs. They sure would appreciate a switch to some soft sand.


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