Court Ruling Expected Soon on If Arizona Fish Police Can Prohibit Carp Pedicures

Despite the huge budget problems facing Arizona, the State has dedicated valuable resources to protecting the citizens of Arizona from a dangerous procedure that threatens young and old alike – serious bodily harm inflicted by carp fish.  The Arizona fish police, aka the Arizona Board of Cosmetology, busted Phoenix salon owner Cindy Vong for using carp fish to give her customers pedicures.  Perhaps the carp were underage or maybe Cindy was treating them as independent contractors when the carp were clearly employees.  The breed of fish Cindy used was  the Garra rufa fish, and they possibly were undocumented workers.   Nevertheless, the Arizona fish police said Cindy could not give customers pedicures by immersing their feet in water while the little fishies gobbled away dead skin.  The Goldwater Institute came to Ms. Vong’s rescue and filed a lawsuit on her behalf challenging the fishy fish police order.  The Maricopa County Superior Court is expected to rule on the case in the next two months at which time we will know if carp pedicures are banned in Arizona.