Aquaculture

Farmed Fish Anaesthesia: Welfare in Routine Procedures

Fish anaesthesia for routine husbandry procedures including vaccination and grading significantly reduces welfare compromise.

Key Facts

MS-222 and AQUI-S are licensed fish anaesthetics reducing stress during handling
Anaesthetised fish show significantly lower cortisol responses to handling than unanaesthetised fish
Recovery from fish anaesthesia typically occurs within 2-5 minutes in clean water
EU regulations require anaesthesia for some fish procedures but not all routine husbandry

Welfare Considerations

Fish without anaesthesia during invasive procedures experience acute stress and pain. Anaesthetic use is commercially feasible and significantly reduces welfare harm during vaccination, grading, and sampling. Extending its use to all intensive handling procedures reduces cumulative welfare cost.

What You Can Do

Support aquaculture standards requiring anaesthetic use for all intensive fish handling
Advocate for EU welfare regulation extension requiring fish anaesthesia for routine procedures
Choose fish from certified producers using anaesthesia during husbandry procedures