First in the world: a goldfish was operated on for a tumor on the head by an Australian veterinarian. The intervention went well and could allow the fish to live another 20 years.
George is a brain tumor survivor. No, George is not a man. It is a 10 year old goldfish that lives in Australia. As he tirelessly paced the water in his aquarium, his owner, Pip Joyce, noticed a disturbing lump. The latter therefore drives her pet to Lort Smith’s veterinary clinic in Melbourne. The doctor Tristan Rich then decides to operate.
45 minutes of operation
But how do you operate a fish? As Dr Rich explained in Herald sun from Melbourne, “the operation lasted 45 minutes and removed the marble-sized tumor, which kept little George alive.”
To do this, George was placed in a basin of water mixed with an anesthetic that allowed the fish to sleep during the operation. During the anesthesia, Dr. Rich attacked the tumor with a gelatin sponge. The fish was able to breathe thanks to a tube connecting it to the water in its pond (see video) The operation cost 200 dollars (about 150 euros.)
20 more years to live
Conclusion: with four stitches on the scales, Georges is doing quite well. Dr. Rich still kept him for observation, in a basin filled with painkillers and antibiotics. The vet is optimistic about the recovery of the golden cyprin. He even estimates that George could live for another 20 years.
On average, the life expectancy of a goldfish is 5 to 10 years, depending on their quality of life (more likely to live a long time in an aquarium than in a jar.) But some also live for more than 20 years. . A British fish even lived to the age of 43! A record that George may one day break.
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