# Can fish get drunk?*



## tntristan12 (Jun 10, 2014)

* I AM NOT ACTUALLY THINKING ABOUT TRYING THIS. I AM IDLY CURIOUS, BUT AM FULLY AWARE THAT ALCOHOL IS FATAL TO FISHIES. PLEASE DON'T SET MY HOUSE ON FIRE.

Ahem... That said, I was wondering if you put alcohol in your tank water, and got the concentrations just right, is it theoretically possible that you could give your fish a pleasant buzz high?

Discuss!


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## tiffanylucky (Nov 6, 2013)

Wow that's random, maybe I guess.


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

There was this article recently. 

http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=6389

But I think being inebriated would be more confusing than pleasant for fish as they have no idea what is happening to them. 

I'd also not recommend just pouring alcohol into your tank to experiment.


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## ZZD (Jan 13, 2013)

My aunt once did a science experiment in school putting alcohol in a goldfish tank. (this was like 40 years ago) They then had to run a maze she made in another tank. Then she had a group that ran without alcohol. When it was over she stopped with the alcohol and apparently the fish kept jumping out during the withdrawl period.


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## myexplodingcat (Apr 9, 2014)

LittleBettaFish said:


> There was this article recently.
> 
> http://www.practicalfishkeeping.co.uk/content.php?sid=6389
> 
> ...


I'm with the single commenter on that article: "Why?"

I hope that study wasn't government-funded. I'm guessing not, though, it sounds like a couple of grad students going, "Hey, let's try this and see what happens!" Probably one of them was wearing a mad scientist wig.

...I need to stop letting my imagination go on walks. *facepalm* You can be sure this is going into one of my steampunk novels, guys.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

I saw a documentary in which they got fish high on THC. They certainly looked high swimming around and after a period of time they returned to normal.


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## iElBeau (Feb 20, 2012)

It's a good way to kill a fish, I know that much! My understanding is it's a way to euthanize a fish (it will just go to sleep). 

My friend's brother had a party once, and someone poured some vodka into her fish tank… poor guy. He was like an 8 year old goldfish.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Sure alcohol will euthanize a fish, if in high enough of a concentration (whatever that level may be). It can kill a human too. There are many things that are relatively safe at low dosages and lethal at higher dosages.


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