Smoking Inside With Aquariums

[Kittiee Katt]

We all know the dangers that come with smoking ciggarettes, so most smokers avoid smoking inside with their kids, some even avoid it when they have dogs, cats and birds. But has anyone ever given thought to what it will do to your fish?

Most of us have air pumps or similar contraptions that enable us to get oxygen into the water for our fish, this means that anything in the atmosphere will end up in some quantity in our aquatic friends home. We know to be careful when spraying air freshener, deodorant, cleaning sprays etc around our tanks, because if it lands in the tank it may make our fish sick. But it can also get sucked into the air pump, this is how I believe that cigarette smoke would most likely enter your tank. Fish can't be the only things on the planet that cigarette smoke doesn't harm, I'm constantly arguing with my grandfather about smoking inside with his fish, because I've never heard of a fish asking for a cigarette and don't believe they would even if they could.

I'm wondering if anyone else has thought of this?

Does anyone else feel this way about smoking inside with fish?

Do people smoke inside with their pets?

Is there any health complications to said pets that could be caused by their owners smoking?

I'm just curious to hear peoples opinions on the topic, please keep opinions civil though, no four page arguments. Healthy debates are okay though.

 

[Oddball]

From: Humane Society

Veterinary Medical Association


Secondhand Smoke Harms Pets and Wildlife

by Alexandra Swanson, DVM

October 18, 2013


As veterinary professionals, we should look at animal health and client health in a holistic manner, essentially, from a One Health perspective. The expression, "what is good for the goose is good for the gander" comes to mind. What is good for the pet-owning public also holds true for what is good for those pets of whom we are guardians. Humane treatment of animals should be expanded to include educational outreach to pet owners about the deadly harm inflicted on animals from secondhand smoke (inhalation) and third-hand smoke (toxic residue on the fur and feathers, carpet, and bedding). Environmental Tobacco Smoke is also another term that is sometimes used.

Evidence

There is a vast amount of research documenting the harm of firsthand and secondhand smoke on people; it should not be surprising to learn that the same holds true for animals. Take cigarette and tobacco products, for instance: The residue from cigarette smoke can be re-aerosolized into the air to produce what is referred to as third-hand smoke, posing a danger to both people and pets. The cigarette and tobacco residue which settles on the fur and feathers of animals are ingested when birds preen or pets groom themselves. If aquariums are indoors, the toxic residue from cigarettes and tobacco products settles into the tanks, poisoning the water environment of the fish. Nicotine and ammonia are highly toxic to fish. Individuals with tobacco- and nicotine-stained fingers can unintentionally kill their fish by inserting their hands into aquarium water. Babies and toddlers, just like pets, are also at considerable risk if they come in contact with the clothing of a smoker or lie down on a carpet or bed where toxic residue, known as carcinogenic TSNAs (tobacco-specific nitrosamines), have accumulated.

 

[Cheifwalnut]

I don't smoke myself, but everyone else besides my brother does. We have 3 dogs, 2 cats, a potbelly, and 11 fish all together. We haven't had any problems with any of the pets showing bad signs of health, now I'm not saying that secondhand smoke couldn't hurt them, but I'm unsure as if it can hurt them. As for the fish. 2 are in my room, a strictly no smoking area, and the rest are in the living room. Where everyone sits around and chain smokes most of the time. My fish in my room are just as healthy as the ones in the living room. My tank doesn't run an aerator of anykind, while the living room tanks do. The only way one would find out if fish are affected by smoking I feel they would have to do some sort of experiment, or a series of tests to see if it would harm them in anyway. My experience says it wouldn't, but that's just me.

 

[ehh]

Oddball, thank you for that. Why anyone would smoke with animals in the house is beyond me. Poor animals must be dying from their heightened sense of smell.

Can you give me the link to where you got that from?

 

[ehh]

Nevermind I found it.

 

[Kittiee Katt]

Oddball , thank you heaps, I never thought of the residue it would leave on the pets, I suppose if its on the walls and furniture why shouldn't it leave it on pets. Very interesting info. It gave me even more questions that I plan on googleing.

Cheifwalnut , are you capable of preforming dissection? And are any of the fish in your room of the same species as those in the lounge? If the answer to both those questions is yes can you please do me a favour? When these fish do eventually pass, can you dissect them and report back to me the conditions that the lungs and heart are in, along with other differences between the two fish that you find?

Please don't think I'm calling what you said b******t, I'm just really curious to know what differences there is between the two specimen. Also, if you can't preform a dissection don't worry, neither can I!

 

[Kittiee Katt]

Why anyone would smoke with animals in the house is beyond me. Poor animals must be dying from their heightened sense of smell.

I argued this with my mother in law and her cats. They've never asked for a cigarette so she shouldn't force them to smoke. I was curious as to how many people shared my view on this. And if anyone actually knew what it does to your fish.. Its nice to see I'm not the only person who sees it this way.

 

[Cheifwalnut]

Oddball , thank you heaps, I never thought of the residue it would leave on the pets, I suppose if its on the walls and furniture why shouldn't it leave it on pets. Very interesting info. It gave me even more questions that I plan on googleing. I can dissect, I actually do it all the time( don't freak out.. My stepdad teaches me. And we do it to our farm animals that drop dead without signs of illness). A fish may be quite challenging compared to chickens and pigs, but I can give it a shot. I have two Jack Dempsey cichlids in my room, and one in the living room. So when the living room one passes, and one of mine pass, I'll give it a shot and I'll make a post about it on here.

Cheifwalnut , are you capable of preforming dissection? And are any of the fish in your room of the same species as those in the lounge? If the answer to both those questions is yes can you please do me a favour? When these fish do eventually pass, can you dissect them and report back to me the conditions that the lungs and heart are in, along with other differences between the two fish that you find?

Please don't think I'm calling what you said b******t, I'm just really curious to know what differences there is between the two specimen. Also, if you can't preform a dissection don't worry, neither can I!

 

[Kittiee Katt]

Cheifwalnut , I'm assuming your post was supposed to contain more than just the quote.. Lol

 

[Bottomfeeder]

My friend's parents are chain smokers, and the rooms they smoke heavily in all have nasty brown stains on the walls and ceiling. I realize that's an accumulation over time, of course... but I would never expose my animals to that... I wouldn't let anybody smoke anything around my animals.

Why take the chance?

We see what cigarette smoke can do to human bodies... imagine what it'd do over time to an animal's little body.

Not to mention, we have the ability to weigh the risks of putting substances in our body and decide accordingly. The animals that share your house do not have that ability.