fear factor and piranahs

[mr funktastic]

i was flicking through channels and saw fear factor and that normal terrified look in the contestants eyes when they see a giant tub full of something. so i was naturally interested what was freakin the crap out of these people lol well it was a big tub of about 500 piranahs. now i dont know about u but a bunch of dirty people in water thats not being filtered cannot be good for these fish... then the guy put his foot in and he says "man thats freezing" now it may just be me but arnt piranahs tropical so the water was at the coldest like 78? thas not freezing in my experience. plus these people are jumping on thses fish and hitting all so they can get pig uteruses from the bottom with there mouth. what do they do with whatever fish are still alive in the end? they can be in a healtly state? these stunts dont take like 5 min lol. ok my rant is done but what they did just seems a little inhumane for the fish. whats your opinion?

 

[dskidmore]

I would think PETA would be on this already? Or perhaps piranahs aren't fuzzy enough for them. You can sumit info to them if you want to be active about it. You could also contact the show and find out what is done with those fish after the show, and what was done to protect them during the show.

 

[Devilishturtles]

I'm sure the show took the neccesary precautions with the fish, I would hope so anyways. Also, 78 degree water does feel kinda chilly to humans, so it's entirely possible they were in humane temperatures.

Not condoning the acts, but I don't see too much wrong with it as long as they plan to return the fish and treat them in a humane way.

 

[Mosaic]

Heh, I think the pigs whose kidneys they used probably had it a lot worse.

http://www.nbc.com/Fear_Factor/files/files_408.shtml These look like young pacu, actually. Which is great. All we need is another 500 homeless pacu. I would definately contact them to see what happened to the fish afterwards - it probably wasn't good.

PETA's been all over this show for a long time. But the problem with them is nobody takes them seriously anymore, and they have no real power to do anything besides complain. I would think contacting the ASPCA/HSUS about it would be more effective. I know they have to be on set for movies with animals in them. I'm not real sure about TV shows. Reagrdless, fish generally aren't covered in animal welfare legislation - just certain warm-blooded animals. But still, contacting the ASPCA and producers of the show may affect whether they do something similar in the future.

 

[dskidmore]

Reagrdless, fish generally aren't covered in animal welfare legislation - just certain warm-blooded animals.

The hypocrites... only protect fuzzy creatures. Humans and fish don't count.

Don't get me wrong, I'm against animal cruelty, I just think alot of the big organiztions have odd priorities.

 

[roka64]

The hypocrites

Yeah, wasn't it some PETA folks that were coming back from a meeting and hit a deer and then had the nerve to sue the state, becasue of the deer overpopulation?!?!!?

 

[dskidmore]

The hypocrites

Yeah, wasn't it some PETA folks that were coming back from a meeting and hit a deer and then had the nerve to sue the state, becasue of the deer overpopulation?!?!!?

Oh my! I hadn't heard that one.

I couldn't find the story on any of the familiar news sites, but here's a bunch of editorials on the matter:
http://www.oakdalegunclub.org/press.html
http://www.animalrights.net/archives/year/2002/000064.html
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3775/is_200206/ai_n9109379

 

[roka64]

Yeah, this was early last year or the one before that. I heard it on a local radio morning report, heck, it might not even be true....Actually, that 1st on sounds ALMOST like it. But I can almost swear they were suing over the fact that the State hadn't given out enough licenses to keep the deer population in check.....

 

[Mosaic]

Reagrdless, fish generally aren't covered in animal welfare legislation - just certain warm-blooded animals.

The hypocrites... only protect fuzzy creatures. Humans and fish don't count.

Don't get me wrong, I'm against animal cruelty, I just think alot of the big organiztions have odd priorities.

Well, Congress wrote the Animal Welfare Act, not PETA. PETA (and others) have been working to change it. But many, many species got left out (mice, rats, birds, fish, reptiles) mainly because they are used in scientific research. You're right though, it seems that only the animals we're sentimental about have gotten any kind of protection. I also agree with the big groups having weird priorities. There are lots of good groups out there doing grassroots work, you just don't ever hear about them because they're not out to promote themselves like some others are.

Here's what PETA thinks about us, btw: http://peta.org/mc/factsheet_display.asp?ID=30

 

[mr funktastic]

actually there waya huge thread on this that got locked becasue of a huge argument on it. it was all kinda dumb actually. but people always have opinions right

 

[dskidmore]

Yeah, this was early last year or the one before that. I heard it on a local radio morning report, heck, it might not even be true....Actually, that 1st on sounds ALMOST like it. But I can almost swear they were suing over the fact that the State hadn't given out enough licenses to keep the deer population in check.....

If it wasn't true, it would be on snopes.com. They are pretty good at presenting all the facts, but they wouldn't want to publish a true story with such a conservative bias. (Always read the full scope on Snopes instead of just looking for the True/False line.)

From what I read, PETA seemed to be complaining that the state had been unnaturally bolstering the population for the enjoyment of hunters. I'm not sure how that goes in thier view, deer will populate pretty well in the absence of predators. There are not many wolves left on the east coast...

 

[dskidmore]

Here's what PETA thinks about us, btw: http://peta.org/mc/factsheet_display.asp?ID=30

Well, at least most of what they say after "If you already have fish," is ok. I don't know about the companionship thing, you really need to research individual fish rather than making blanket statements. The pH comment is also wrong, we all know that stability is more important than target numbers in fish health. We also tend to DIY the vet thing unless it's a tumor on a large fish that needs to be operated on.

 

[Mosaic]

I thought the filter comment was kinda weird, but really, I agree with most of it. It seems like they really have problems with goldfish and bettas in tiny bowls, which most of us do too. But you can't tell me that fish that are comfortable enough to spawn in the aquarium are suffering. Ultimately it comes down to the individual to take care of what they have accepted responsibility for.

I always laugh when they complain about breeding varieties that would have never occurred in nature, for any type of pet. Well, in captivity they live much better than they do in nature. While they may not survive out in the wild, they can thrive with us.
I remember they were protesting efforts to breed a cat that wouldn't cause allergies, because breeding for traits also tends to make genetic problems crop up. Well, yeah, but we've only been doing since the dawn of civilization when we first domesticated animals. They're still doin ok.

 

[Jchillin]

actually there waya huge thread on this that got locked becasue of a huge argument on it. it was all kinda dumb actually. but people always have opinions right

You are correct Mr. Funk. It was locked because members decided to argue with each other rather, violating the UA, than simply stating their opinions on the topic in hand.

Looks like this one isn't anywhere near that...keep up the good work.

 

[dskidmore]

I always laugh when they complain about breeding varieties that would have never occurred in nature, for any type of pet.

Some of those varients just look too unnatural to me, like the bubble eye goldfish. Many of these odd breeds do have health problems. I'm not going to tell you not to keep them though, these mutations popped up on thier own, it's not like the first person to have a popeye goldfish inflated him with a bycicle pump. He just provided the poor little mutant with a good home and a mate. That goldfish was lucky, that it was spared as interesting rather than culled as a damaged fish.

 

[greenmaji]

The pacu stunt.. those fish are uber hardy, I wouldnt doubt all of them survived fine but its still no excuse to do silly stuff with them. Or even remove them from south america were they belong IN THE WILD!! Well, Ive seen some oudoor ponds in tropical areas that looked cool with them but thats about it.

I would have thought PETA would want the government to release more wolves and other deer preditors that used to be prevelent before man killed them off rather then issue more hunting licences (or just more deer tags to the hunters)

 

[trotty]

Just my two cents, but did anyone think that the temperature of the water was to maybe calm down the piranahs?
They would not want to eat in these conditions.... hence why the pig guts was still on the bottom. (unless they were fed first)
I'm not agreeing with what they did, nor did i see it to really judge the circumstances.
Yes, i think it should have had filtration but we dont know how long they were in there.
I heard they can get caught and survive in puddles of water?
Yes, i think it should have been at an adequate temp, but does anyone know what these fish endure in the wild? And for how long? weeks? months?

It would have scared the crap out of me seeing a pool full of these fellas, i was scared to put my hand in a tank with two large oscars.

Don't get me wrong i still don't agree with what they did.... JM2c

 

[dskidmore]

I think you're right about the cold water. It would drastically slow thier metabolisim. Not something they encounter in thier native enviroment, but not enough to kill them either.

 

[mr funktastic]

i agree that the situation must have been controlled somehow. otherwise the piranha would have taken chunks out of the contestants. as for how long they were in the water.... i would think a decent amount of time. they had to be placed in the tank and fed then the pig stuff put in then camera crews set up then contestants arrive and then they each have to wait there turn and go in and then the stunt has to be reset for the next person. then after all that they have to be taken out and returned to whever they got them from. i am sure that some of these fish may have encountered something worse in the wild but that doesnt make it any more right. i am sure a dog gets hurt in the wild too but we treat it with love and care in the house but it doesnt make it right to hurt the dog every once in a while becasue it would have had it worse living on its own. trotty - i would rather stick my hand in the piranha tank than the large oscars lol. oscars can be really nasty.

 

[trotty]

i am sure that some of these fish may have encountered something worse in the wild but that doesnt make it any more right. i am sure a dog gets hurt in the wild too but we treat it with love and care in the house but it doesnt make it right to hurt the dog every once in a while becasue it would have had it worse living on its own. .

Can't argue with that!