Beer helps euthanized invertebrates say goodbye in peace

SYRACUSE, N.Y., Oct. 7 (UPI) -- Researchers at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry think research animals should die with dignity -- even invertebrates.

Recently, scientists at ESF set out to make euthanasia as peaceful as possible for invertebrates like snails. Their solution: beer.

When researchers submerged snails in a few ounces of beer, the animals exhibited fewer signs of physical distress when dipped into a life-ending solution of 95 percent ethyl alcohol. A soak in 5 percent ethyl alcohol solution prior to their terminal plunge had the same calming effect.

Scientists say the method is not unlike the use of sedatives in dogs and cats prior to the final dose of a euthanasia drug.

"There are already strict protocols established for research with certain animals. You have to be sure they are not in pain and that they are treated humanely," Cody Gilbertson, a graduate student at ESF, explained in a news release. "There's not much out there regarding the treatment of invertebrates."

"We wanted to see if there was a way to minimize suffering and minimize the tissue damage that occurs when you put them straight into 95 percent ethyl alcohol," Gilbertson said. "We aren't yet certain what pain these animals experience, but veterinarians can look for changes in tissue structure to better understand how the snails are reacting."

Gilbertson's graduate work is focused on the recovery of an endangered population of Chittenango ovate amber snails, endemic to Chittenango Falls in Central New York. Gilbertson has used a related but invasive species of snail to test the efficacy of various snail diets.

Some of the invasive species proliferate so quickly they they must be put down. Now, Gilbertson has a more humane way to do so. She prefers Pabst Blue Ribbon for its ideal 4.74 percent alcohol content, but any light ale will do.

Gilbertson says snail research is underappreciated. The animals provide important nutrients at the bases of many local food chains, and also provide important ecological services like breaking down and incorporating leaf litter into the soil.

"Land snails can be indicator species," Gilbertson said. "If you are monitoring a native population and they start to decline, you know something might be degrading the habitat, which could influence other species' decline. Snails are like canaries in a coal mine."