You arrived at this page by selecting:Sack the suckers (01/02/10)
Have you heard about those poor little fishes stateside who have been given the sack? No? Well let me tell you about it. It's an interesting case and shows how outdated the law can sometimes be.
Apparently in Arizona a beauty therapist's business was doing swimmingly well (pardon the pun) charging the public good money to soak their feet in a bowl while live fish would suck the rough bits off. Yes you read that right. These fish, Garra Rufa carp I think they are called, seem to like nothing more than to nibble away or rather suck away (apparently they have no teeth) at hard skin on peoples feet. I gather Arizona is mostly desert so I suppose it gives them something to do. I'm not sure it would go down at all well in Farsley.
The problem is that the Cosmetology Board (yes they have one of those too, to protect the good folk of Arizona from toe sucking fish) took a dislike to it. The law, however, has as usual not caught up with modern times. Apparently the US Congress has never debated the subject. Now there's a surprise. But the business was told to discontinue the service on the grounds that the service violates the law concerning tool sanitation. The fish were considered a 'tool' and any tool used in a skin exfoliation must be stored in a dry storage and disinfected after use. Well I'm no aquarist or fish expert but I'm pretty sure if you disinfected a fish after it had sucked on your feet and kept it in a dry storage I'm not sure how 'up for the job' it would be the next day. The fish are not very keen on that idea either.
The proprietor isn't going to take it lying down. “Its a free country isn't it,†she says, pointing to the US constitution. She is now suing the regulator on the grounds that it 'affects the economic liberty of every American'. She seems to lack imagination. She should get herself a frying range and a few spuds and she would be up in business again in no time. Like the chippy next door to our Whitkirk office.
Interpreting the law and particularly old pieces of legislation can be quite difficult. Which is why it is important to keep reviewing legislation. For example taxis had to be licensed as Hackney Carriages, referring back to a time when horse and carriage were the norm. This is the problem with out of date legislation and why it's frustrating that the law is always playing catch up.
By John Wilson
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