Arowana fish is considered a lucky feng shui mascot in Vietnamese homes. The market value of Arowana fish varies widely, from several million to billions of VND. However, the two lines of Arowana fish, Blood Dragon and Golden Dragon, stand out with their perfect beauty.
Arowana players must also be well-off because the more beautiful the fish in the tank, the more it shows the owner's willingness to spend and play. Also because the value of arowana is very high, any defect can reduce its value.
Even the smallest defects, such as drooping eyes or drooping eyelids, reduce the value of the Arowana. Therefore, many Arowana players come to Mr. Ha Nguyen Hoang to perform cosmetic surgery on their fish. Through Mr. Hoang's skillful hands, the Arowana's body becomes perfect and its value increases.
Although he is considered a “cosmetic surgeon” in the profession, Mr. Hoang came to this job by chance. That was 6 years ago, when the Arowana fish farming movement was booming. Mr. Hoang and some friends also learned about and raised Arowana fish at home.
During the process of raising Arowana fish, Mr. Hoang noticed that they sometimes had deformities in their eyes, lips, fins and whiskers due to the influence of the environment and genes.
At that time, not many people in the market knew how to fix the defects on the body of the arowana. From there, Mr. Hoang researched through books and the internet about surgical methods to make the arowana perfect.
Due to the nature of his work, Mr. Hoang performs surgeries very carefully to ensure the aesthetics and safety of the arowana.
In the early stages, not many people knew about it, so Mr. Hoang used his own arowana fish to perform surgery and gain experience. Mr. Hoang sometimes performed surgery on his friends' arowana fish for free.
Only by witnessing a surgery on a dragon fish with a deviated eyelid can one fully appreciate the meticulousness and care that Mr. Hoang must perform. Mr. Hoang prepares the necessary surgical equipment such as scissors, thread, tweezers, light and anesthetics...
Before the surgery, Mr. Hoang explained that the dragon fish had been suffering from a crooked eyelid for a long time due to improper use of the lights in the aquarium. As a result, the fish often moved to avoid the light, causing the eyes to become crooked.
To restore the fish’s beauty, Mr. Hoang first used anesthetics to reduce the arowana’s pain and struggle. On the operating table, he spread out a layer of wet plastic bags to maintain the fish’s body temperature. As soon as the fish fainted from anesthesia, Mr. Hoang focused on trimming and adjusting the eyelids to perfection.
The entire surgical process was carried out quickly but carefully to avoid any unexpected incidents.
For each cosmetic surgery on the fish, he receives a fee of about 500,000 - 800,000 VND. But for Mr. Hoang, receiving the fee after the surgery is not as happy as the customer feeling satisfied when the value of the arowana fish has increased.
According to Mr. Hoang, the profession of cosmetic surgery for arowana fish is very selective because of the high difficulty and unstable income, sometimes high, sometimes low. However, Mr. Hoang has maintained his passion and reputation in the profession so many people trust and seek him out.
(Posted in the Special Publication of Labor in Central and Central Highlands, Spring of At Ty)
