Ethics question

[abbyn]

So I am very against animal cruelty and really exploiting them in any way for our benefit. I don't buy any animal products or use things that have been tested on lab animals or go to zoos or rodeos or anything like that. So I guess I just kind of feel like a hypocrite because I'm not sure fish keeping is much better than those things. I bought a couple of otocinclus catfish about a year ago with out doing enough to research as to where they came from. Turns out they can only be taken from the wild which seemed wrong so I looked up a video of how they are caught and idk it just really wasn't something that I want to support with my money. Since then I've only bought one fish which is unusual for me haha so i guess I don't really know how I feel about fishkeeping at the moment

Obviously most people have their pets best interest at mind but then there are also people who pay no regard to their requirements and treat them as decorations instead of living things. Fish are advertised as beginner pets for kids or easy to care for and are too often bought by people who will make them live in bowls that are never cleaned and just treat them [badly] in general. Pet stores sell Bettas and goldfish right next to tanks that they claim to be "ideal" and are only about 1/2 gallon, it's ridiculous. And honestly I have no idea how the fish are breed and shipped out to the fish stores but I'm willing to bet there are a lot of casualties. It seems like pet stores like petco and petsmart don't really care about the fish that they sell as you can find dead/injured/suffering fish in most of their tanks. And does anyone know what happens to female Bettas bc I know that they are sold but it's mostly males that people want to buy so it wouldn't surprise me at all if many of them are just killed at some point. Also as someone who doesn't eat meat it feels kind of wrong for me to buy food for my fish that has ingredients like salmon, halibut and shrimp. Even kept in the best possible conditions that we can offer, with proper tank mates and food and an adequately sized tank, they are still being confined and deprived if some of their natural behaviors. I'm sure most of you disagree with me about a lot of these things idk. Sorry this kind of just turned into a rant but if you have any opinions feel free to share




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[Ashenwelt]

So everyone has to live by their own beliefs. If you want to keep fish you may be better off doing fully planted tanks, mainly making the plants a large part. And then possibly picking a non carnivorous fish and feeding non meat based foods. One where maybe you meet the breeder. Possibly live bearers. Then give them the best diet you can give them. Or go invertebrate.

Having ethics impact a hobby is ... well... ethical. I wouldn't stress on it, but you can follow your beliefs and possibly stay in aquaria.

Good luck.

As for easy pet for a kid... that didn't make sense when it was used with me nearly 40 years ago.

 

[Kwakatoo]

Pet stores sell Bettas and goldfish right next to tanks that they claim to be "ideal" and are only about 1/2 gallon, it's ridiculous.

Saw this at a shop was checking out for the first time yesterday, I'll never be returning. Abhorrent to see these poor beautiful bettas on shop shelves next to coloured stones and tiny glass jars, as if you would buy them for pure decoration. Just adding to your rant.. And yes, hate the fact that some fish shops sell fish and accessories, but shop assistants have no idea how advise the right mix/number/tank set up. Grrr.


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[Andy Sager]

This topic has been brought up many time on this site and others. You can do a thread search and find them all however, here's one that may address some of your issues. http://www.aquariumadvice.com/forums/f23/is-fish-keeping-ethical-331964.html

However, there is an alternate view on the subject. In my case, I spent most of my childhood learning about fish keeping, habitat creation, biology and the sciences pertaining to life on Earth because I was a fish keeper. That turned into a 40+ year career in the pet business where I was able to help many other people keep their pets for much longer than those who weren't my customers. Not only that but I also became a commercial fish breeder so I had to know all about the fish I was trying to breed in order to get them to want to breed. To date, I have successfully bred and raised hundreds of varieties of fish, reptiles, birds, dogs and rodents to name a few. Not many people have followed in my footsteps but that's okay as long as there are some.

The real question is is it Ethical to destroy the planet for human gain when it destroys the habitats of the living creatures of the area? Sadly, many wild caught species are facing that situation. Look up the different species of Australian Rainbows and you will find that many of them are extinct in the wild due to habitat destruction by man. In this case, it's a good thing ( short term) that the aquarium hobby has been able to keep the species alive. I could ramble on and on on the subject for many varieties of fish but there just isn't enough space on the page to do that.

What it comes down to is your willingness to do whatever it takes to properly care for the animals you keep as pets. I've run pretty much the gammet of household and non conventional pets so I know it's not always easy. But if you want easy, IMO, you shouldn't be keeping something alive that depends on your efforts.

Not to be confrontational but why didn't you do your research on the Otos you bought before you bought them? That was the time to decide if it was ethical for you to buy them. As for other fish, go to your favorite pet store and look at the fish section. What you'll see are mainly man made variations to the wild fish they started with. Look up the history of Bettas and you'll find that what you see today are not the wild fish. The wild fish could handle a "typical" aquarium setup but the fish we have today were not designed for that. I have posed this question often: How ethical is it to make a fish, laden with long flowing fins or shredded adornments, swim in a tank with currents and water flow when it has to struggle to do so? As for the females, most box stores don't sell that many of them because they are not as flamboyant as the males so they don't carry many but stores do carry them for those looking to breed them and the breeders keep a large portion of them so that they have more breeders to keep up with the demands of the customer. (With Bettas, there is no way to know how many males you will get in a spawn so you need many spawns. )

So while I can appreciate your feelings on the subject, I think you should do some more research before starting a thread like this. There will be many that agree with you as there will be many that don't. That's just the nature of pet keeping. However, man's first introduction to a "pet", based on archival evidence, was the Wolf who came to the early humans. It came voluntarily and stayed. So it can be construed that beast needs man as much as man needs beast.

Sorry for the long post but just wanted to set the record straight.