Ray barb trimming - A "how to".

[Zoodiver]

You don't use chain-mail gloves??? You're more courageous than I am, Sir. I got impaled by a massive N. Atlantic stingray about 12 years ago - barely missed a main artery in my wrist and put me in the hospital for 4 days where they proceeded to reassure me it was "no big deal" and "stingrays aren't dangerous"

.......5 months later Steve Irwin dies from a stingray. How's that for irony, right? I'll never touch another stingray out of water again without chain-mail or Kevlar gloves!!! I did get to keep my hand btw. I'm glad, it's kinda grown on me after all these years. lol It totally sucked, man..they had me on steroids and antbiotics and stuff. I guess it was a neurotoxin (?) because my sensory system was all screwed up for like 3 weeks after; everything I ate and drank "tasted" like venom. Any idea why, Bro? I mean I literally had a gourmet grilled Swordfish steak the night I got out of the hospital and I just couldn't eat more than a few bites because of the reaction the venom had to my tastebuds. Is that normal in envenomations?

People each react differently to being stung. I have even reacted differently due to type or ray, size of ray and location of the hit. I've felt everything from "Ouch, that hurt" all the way up to "Please cut my limb off".

I'm curious, having never kept rays; in the wild do they have problems with their barbs overgrowing etc?

Barbs shed, much like shark, ray and crocodile teeth. Some rays will often have a stack of 2,3 or even 4 barbs growing in the wild as the new barbs grow in under the old ones.

 

[batang_mcdo]

up up unable to see the pictures anymore due to Photobucket

 

[AncientFishArk]

Zoodiver,

I just re-read this thread. This is a awesome resource. I just accuried a orange spotted motoro and even though she has been incredibly gentle and I'm not affraid of her stinging me, I do have other people in the house (sister) that I don't trust to keep her hands out of the tank.

So I followed what you had along with a couple of YouTube videos and some buddies in the aquarium near my house. You method has been the best method to doing this and I just clipped her tonight.

She did awesome by the way.
My only concern and I'm sure it's normal/me overacting because this is my first Ray, does the membrane bleed alittle after trimming. She seemed great after, ate right away. Just wanted your opinion.

Attached is a picture of her tail. I left a little on her Barb due to me not wanting to get to close to actual tail.

 

[JK47]

Zoodiver,

I just re-read this thread. This is a awesome resource. I just accuried a orange spotted motoro and even though she has been incredibly gentle and I'm not affraid of her stinging me, I do have other people in the house (sister) that I don't trust to keep her hands out of the tank.

So I followed what you had along with a couple of YouTube videos and some buddies in the aquarium near my house. You method has been the best method to doing this and I just clipped her tonight.

She did awesome by the way.
My only concern and I'm sure it's normal/me overacting because this is my first Ray, does the membrane bleed alittle after trimming. She seemed great after, ate right away. Just wanted your opinion.

Attached is a picture of her tail. I left a little on her Barb due to me not wanting to get to close to actual tail.

View attachment 1299363

Yes a little bit of bleeding is perfectly normal. If it does not stop bleeding you may have gone too far or damaged the skin. If a clean cut is bleeding there is nothing to worry about and will stop after a few minutes.

One thing this thread could really use is the recommendation of a large water change the day before cutting. Clean water is the best preventative measure to secondary infection.

 

[AncientFishArk]

Yes, that was one thing that I did that wasn't mentioned.

Thanks for the reply. She is still doing awesome.