Catfish Stung Me!

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Sarcosuchus

Candiru
MFK Member
Oct 28, 2006
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So I held this 2 inches or a little over catfish's tail to remove it to another tank which was when it turned its head toward my right thumb and gave me a bloody painful stung!

It drew a little blood but the pain was crazy. I could bear it but never expected it could be that painful. This catfish is in brown colour with black pattern on its body. It would hide under the gravels all the time.

The pain was :eek:

Are Catfish poisonous? It happened yesterday and I can still feel the stress and a slight pain in my thumb. It felt like having a razor blade and cutting your thumb deep enough that it cuts the flesh too. And then it felt like having a little sharp glass buried in your thumb.
 
Hehe, welcome to the club, catfish have spines in their pectoral and dorsal fins in most cases with a few exceptions. They have some sort of toxin in those spines that causes a iching/burning sensation for a while after being stung on top of the initial wound from the spine itself. It sucks but almost every catfish keeper or catfisherman has dealt with it before. Best advice when you need to grab your catfish again place your hands right behind its pectoral fins, keeping them straight out to the sides and keep your palm in front of or pinning down the dorsal fin so they can't get ya with that spine either and you should be in the clear ~Trent

BTW: when my buddy got stabbed by my lima catfish, his finger was sore for about 5 days...
 
Infection?!:eek: Am I supposed to see the doctor or something here? My thumb looks fine but there is slight pain when I press it.

Amazonfishman, yes obviously those who deal with Catfish must have felt it so I didn't take it seriously. I mean obviously it can't kill a human...so I didn't bother and told my mom not to worry. Imagine the pain an adult catfish can cause!
 
just kidding. it will hurt for a day or two. keep it clean and you'll be fine. i go catfishing all the time and when you have to skin 50+ catfish, you get stung a few times. i never lost any body parts or died. you'll be fine.
 
Hahaha Toehead I knew you were just trying to scare me!:D You should get one in your dick! lmao. Man you guys must have experienced crazy pain from Catfishes!
 
stone cats, and madtoms have to be the most painfull right next to my planiceps. I have to grab that guy everytime I move him, there's no netting him, he jumps out on the floor, but he will let you get close enough with your hands to grab him, or just get a hell of a whollop on the hands or arms. The only thiing I think you should be worried about is, did any of the spine break off in your arm? The spines are serrated, and have breaking points underneath each serration. They are made to break off. So if all of the spine is still on the catfish and not in you, you are golden!
 
necrocanis;787131; said:
stone cats, and madtoms have to be the most painfull right next to my planiceps. I have to grab that guy everytime I move him, there's no netting him, he jumps out on the floor, but he will let you get close enough with your hands to grab him, or just get a hell of a whollop on the hands or arms. The only thiing I think you should be worried about is, did any of the spine break off in your arm? The spines are serrated, and have breaking points underneath each serration. They are made to break off. So if all of the spine is still on the catfish and not in you, you are golden!
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Yea that is the only thing I would be worried about, some of the spine left in you, kinda like a bee sting when they leave the stinger.....I got it from my lima shovelnose and didn't know till two days later when it was infected that some of the spine was in there, all you have to do is get it out with tweezers though.......
 
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