Goldfish surgery saves pet, George, from brain tumor

MELBOURNE -- A tiny patient has taken micro-surgery to a new extreme. An Australian couple spent hundreds of dollars to save their pet goldfish named George.

Have you heard the one about the goldfish with a brain tumor? It's no joke. Over the past year George had developed a large growth on his head.

"Fish was having trouble eating, getting around, getting bullied by the other fish," said Dr. Tristan Rich.

"Didn't join in as much in their afternoon party games and stuff, you know... He never really said much to us," said Pip Joyce, George's owner.

But after an hour-long procedure at the Lort Smith Animal Hospital, George was off the hook.

"Quite intricate little surgery really," Rich said.

Water from his pond was brought to the surgery in buckets, to feed into a tube through his mouth to keep his gills wet.

"Controlling the blood loss is really important in such a small patient... And then closing up did prove quite difficult because there wasn't much skin to deal with," Rich said.

"Just the way he was able to put the fish to sleep i think... And then stitching it up a little bit, minute, little fishy stitches," said Joyce.

George is recovering at home with 20 mates, but don't think he can't remember his ordeal. The theory goldfish only have a three-second memory is wrong. It's actually around three months.

"Yeah, it's a goldfish, all creatures great and small," said Joyce. "A goldfish is a pet, a family pet, just as important really. They bring a lot of pleasure, these fish in this pond, they're beautiful to sit and watch."

The 10-year-old should now enjoy another 20 years of life, Seven News in Australia reports.