Family in Australia Spends $300 to Have Tumor Removed from Pet Koi Fish

Thanks to a pet owner’s passion and a doctor’s talents, Bubbles will live to swim another day.

The koi, who’s been a pet of the Dare family of Australia for upwards of five years, underwent a 10-minute procedure recently to remove a large, potentially dangerous tumor, according to the Townsville Bulletin.

“If the tumors are small we don’t do surgery, if they’re large we choose to remove them,” veterinarian Dr. Ingrid Danyiyk of James Cook University told the Townsville Bulletin. Dad Michael Dare noticed Bubbles’ tumor about six months ago, and watched it grow steadily before calling the vet.

The procedure cost around $300, according to the outlet, and the Dare family felt it was worth it for their $30 fish, whose life expectancy could be up to 35 years.

According to Dr. Danyiyk, the fish was anesthetized in the water, then removed from its tank for the quick procedure, as sterile water ran through its gills. It’s a procedure she does “a couple times a year,” the news outlet reports.

Bubbles’ recovery has seemingly made Michael’s son Carter, 4, quite happy, and the fish is back to swimming around its pond at the family acupuncture business.