Fish pedicures are the new hot thing in the Washington D.C. area, where a northern Virginia spa has been offering carp pedis for the past four months. John Ho, who runs the Yvonne Hair and Nails salon with his wife, Yvonne Le, said 5,000 people have received this unique pedicure so far.

He said he wanted to come up with something unique while finding a replacement for pedicures that use razors to scrape off dead skin. The razors have fallen out of favor with state regulators because of concerns about whether they're sanitary.  Ok... so what on earth made him think "I think I'll use fish instead?"

According to Ho, customers can't get enough of this wild new pedicure.

Tracy Roberts, 33, heard about it on a local radio show. She said it was "the best pedicure I ever had" and has spread the word to friends and co-workers.

"I'd been an athlete all my life, so I've always had calluses on my feet. This was the first time somebody got rid of my calluses completely," she said.  Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.

First time customer KaNin Reese, 32, described the tingling sensation created by the toothless fish: "It kind of feels like your foot's asleep," she said.

The fish don't do the job alone. After 15 to 30 minutes in the tank, customers get a standard pedicure, made easier by the soft skin the doctor fish leave behind.

Ho believes his is the only salon in the country to offer the treatment, which costs $35 for 15 minutes and $50 for 30 minutes. The spa has more than 1,000 fish, with about 100 in each individual pedicure tank at any given time.

Ho said the hot water in which the fish thrive doesn't support much plant or aquatic life, so they learned to feed on whatever food sources were available — including dead, flaking skin. They leave live skin alone because, without teeth, they can't bite it off.  Um, PETA where are you?

And if that wasn't bad enough... In addition to offering pedicures, Ho hopes to establish a network of Fish Massage franchises and is evaluating a full-body fish treatment that, among other things, could treat psoriasis and other skin ailments.

A note to all my friends out there - if you are ever thinking of getting me a present (and you all know how much I love spa treatments!), please don't EVER give me a gift certificate for a carp pedicure - please give me one of these instead.

- Lani

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