Covering a stingray barb...

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arowfan;4106686; said:
ok, so i guess i'll give it a shot this weekend and see how it goes...
are these things generally on there really tight or what? i'm not going to pull if off, rather just hold the cover for a bit, and let him pull a bit i guess, right?

and now im going to play the "what if" game:
what if the barb falls off? is that really bad?

and i've added a little stress coat to my water before when introducing a new ray, i would imagine if the cover comes off, i can add stress and salt...or just do salt?

thanks guys!
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You wont be able to pull it off, you'll rip the stinger right off... You'll have to slice it off with a razor... Probely better to wait until the ray sheds the barb on its own...

Cakilla;4106700; said:
I honestley have no idea, I have wondered this myself quite a bit lately, my wife wants me to get a couple rays but has been worried thatthey might hurt the other fish or might end up stinging us ...
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What your worried about is generally something that doesnt hapen too often... chances of you being stung are very slim if you respect the ray.
 
This is an interesting post as I thought you could pull off the cover, how would you safely cut off the cover (for you and the ray) would it not thrash about?
 
I pull them off most of the time. I use a pair of needle nose pliers, and flatten the tube. Usually it's enough to clear the serated edges of the barb. If it's not, use a razor or other sharp blade and run the length of the barb to cut the tube off.
If all else fails, trim the barb off. I'd rather do that than risk the infections that a tube left on can cause.
 
Zoodiver;4107253; said:
I pull them off most of the time. I use a pair of needle nose pliers, and flatten the tube. Usually it's enough to clear the serated edges of the barb. If it's not, use a razor or other sharp blade and run the length of the barb to cut the tube off.
If all else fails, trim the barb off. I'd rather do that than risk the infections that a tube left on can cause.
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Exactly my way of doing it too.
Great piece of info!!
 
ok lol so the tools i'm going to need are needle nose plyers and quite possibley a razor...that cover looks thick...
and i'm assuming that i should take the ray out of the tank and do it in a bin i guess for easier handling (hes in my 150 at the moment)
thanks zoodiver

i smell sticky...maybe?
 
ok, so I'm not sure if this is supposed to be like this or not, but the cover is on the top barb...not the bottom...is this supposed to be this way? and the top barb doesnt shed does it...
 
arowfan;4108000; said:
ok, so I'm not sure if this is supposed to be like this or not, but the cover is on the top barb...not the bottom...is this supposed to be this way? and the top barb doesnt shed does it...
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The top barb is always the next to shed!!!
Rather than using a razor i use safety blade to cut deeper into the sheath......be very careful not to slip!!!!
 
what kind of stress can this cause the ray is my main concern-right off the bat I would have to take it out of the 150 into a bin, and then do it there

just talked to the breeder-mike at h20, and he said just leave it on...im stuck!
obviously i want the best for the ray-
opinions?!?!?
 
PeteLockwood;4108685; said:
My Hystrix just shed a bottom barb. Just depends if the new one grows over or under. But top is probably more common.
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Yeah, most of the time the top is the old one... but I have an eagle ray that just had the new one grow in on top.
 
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