# Why do people think fish dont like swimming?!?!?!?!



## celine18 (Sep 25, 2010)

so i came to babysitting today, and, out of the corner of my eye, i see a cup, with a fish net in it. i think "oh god, they got a fish". they 6/7 year old boy had been talking for awhile how he wanted fish. so i immediately run around, looking for a tank. i run all over the house, and can't find one. then i come back in the kitchen, and there, on the counter, is this little THING. i look in it, and it's split, with 2 fish. one of which is dead, and growing white fungus looking stuff. 

i knew this would happen if they let this child have fish. i mean, this "tank" isn't big enough to keep an ant in!!! GRAAAHHHHH!!! :evil::evil::evil:

and i talked with the boy, and he "changed the water" yesterday, AND DIDN'T PUT DECHLORINATOR IN IT!!!!!! no wonder the poor thing kicked the bucket!!!!!!

and i just talked to the mother and insisted that she get a larger tank!!!! and heater!!!!! ugh. we'll see if it happens.

i'm off to clean the water (which is white and cloudy.). rant over.


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## Luimeril (Dec 29, 2010)

that tank..... is about the size of the Kritter Keeper i keep my Marimo balls in. .____. that's ALL that will EVER go in a tank that size.


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## CyerRyn (Apr 8, 2011)

Ugh! I would only get one of those for a QT tank. My son wanted a fish and he's 7yrs old so I got him his first one. I take care of the fish though... the parent/s of that child should have researched it. I did "some" research when I got my son's Betta, though the information I got was wrong I still understood enough of the basics that his fish lived for 5mo and was happy before I happened onto these forums. Poor fishies. :<


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## Tisia (Mar 15, 2011)

when I got Sven, there was a mom letting her 6ish and 8ish year old kids pick out bettas, made me sad since I figured they wouldn't have very long lives ahead of them, and one of them I had actually been considering getting myself >_<


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## roadrunner (Apr 3, 2010)

Unfortunately it is society we live in. Kid wants a fish, kid gets a fish. Parents secretly think "thank godness he/she did not ask for a dog!" My previous coworker bought a betta for her grandson (4-5 at the time). Couple of days later she is telling me that fish is gone. Her grandson dropped the penny in the water so "fish can sleep on it" What a great idea to teach your kids! I never told her, they usually have guarantee for few days so she can go get new fish.....


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## Arashi Takamine (Mar 3, 2011)

I can honestly say I was the only kid I knew who kept my goldfish in a filtered tank and did regular waterchanges....I was 7 however and didn't know jack about goldfish and the poor thing never grew and lived for three years....Least it lived longer then the other ones in my care. T-T; I didn't make that mistake with my betta's.


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## celine18 (Sep 25, 2010)

i wouldn't even use it for a qt tank!!!! it's rediculously small!!! and has no heater!!!!!!!!

i have left them a 3 page long betta fish care manual. and it just irritates me, cause i know, after a month, he's going to be tired of fish, and the parents are going to take care of it! uuughhh!!!!


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## LolaQuigs (Mar 28, 2010)

I think a lot of it comes from the fact that these death traps are made and sold in the first place. People don't even think to do outside research because these things are sold and marketed as ideal betta homes. Implicit is the logic that"if it's made for bettas, it must be safe for them." Sadly people have too much trust in companies and believe their marketing rhetoric.


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## tangisbeast (Apr 28, 2011)

:-(that is wrong nobody should treat a wonderful fish like that and if you dont clean the tank properly of course their going to DIE!!!:shock:


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## Gnome507 (Feb 21, 2011)

Poor guys!


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## Blazer23 (Apr 21, 2011)

roadrunner said:


> Unfortunately it is society we live in. Kid wants a fish, kid gets a fish. Parents secretly think "thank godness he/she did not ask for a dog!" My previous coworker bought a betta for her grandson (4-5 at the time). Couple of days later she is telling me that fish is gone. Her grandson dropped the penny in the water so "fish can sleep on it" What a great idea to teach your kids! I never told her, they usually have guarantee for few days so she can go get new fish.....


I cracked up when i saw your post :rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:


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## tracyalexa (Mar 29, 2011)

I was in petco the other day. A couple, maybe college age were picking out a betta. Also a mom and a 10 yr old were picking one. Well at the counter we are all in line. The couple picked a maybe half gal thing and the mom picked a fish bowl. They asked the petco employee if they needed anything else. She said NO. I was sooo mad. I told them everything they needed ... the mom went and got water conditioner and that's all. The couple, nope....the guy looks at his girl and says I got one at the jersey shore that lived like 2 yrs in regular water in my bathroom. Ugggghhh. I feel your pain.


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## tracyalexa (Mar 29, 2011)

Oh yeah then the female said, well its only a 3.49 investment anyway. Meaning the fish.


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## TheCrysCat (Mar 14, 2011)

ugh, I hate things like that. Yeah, maybe fish aren't as "interactive" as, say, a dog or a cat, but they are awesome in their own way. You can't keep a dog in a 5 gal with cute decorations, can you? But how is a living animal "disposeable?"


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## LittleNibbles93 (Feb 7, 2011)

I never wanted a fish when I was a kid, UNTIL I went to the county fair, and won a goldfish. Just a cheap little goldfish, so mom got out her old 10g tank, we put him in it, got him 2-3 friends. Vio-la, my life of fishness began. Of course, I was about 5 and mom and me didn't know what we know now thanks to this site.

I feel, very, very sad for two goldfish I know across the street (if they're alive), they're son (who's about 6) wants an aquarium. His parents said they'd start him off with goldfish. I go over, and I see two goldfish in what looks like a 2 gallon fishbowl.
I didn't say anything, I don't really know them enough to stop on they're toes on anything, but I may be they're babysitter this summer, if I am, I'm gonna save any fish that may be there.


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## TheCrysCat (Mar 14, 2011)

*headdesk* yeah, and I thought the stereotype of goldfish living in bowls was just about passed.


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## brewerfan (Apr 27, 2011)

That's almost exactly the tank mine was in when I saved him from the final flush. The friend I took him from said she had had him almost a year...she did weekly water changes. Ugh.


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## Harley (Mar 20, 2011)

LolaQuigs said:


> I think a lot of it comes from the fact that these death traps are made and sold in the first place. People don't even think to do outside research because these things are sold and marketed as ideal betta homes. Implicit is the logic that"if it's made for bettas, it must be safe for them." Sadly people have too much trust in companies and believe their marketing rhetoric.


That is so true. Anything to make a buck. I'm sure almost everything in a LPS has pretty good profit. Maybe have sales people that don't work on commision and actually care enough to educate people before buying a fish. They'll probably end up spending more and have a happy, healthy pet that will actually last a while.


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## dramaqueen (Jul 7, 2008)

I would never let a child that age have a fish.


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## Burd (Apr 10, 2011)

tracyalexa said:


> Oh yeah then the female said, well its only a 3.49 investment anyway. Meaning the fish.


That's like saying "Oh, my cat that I got from the shelter was only a $23 investment because that's what she cost me." 

People have lost touch with nature and thusly don't respect it or it's animals. It's a decoration or something to serve them - not a friend and certainly not a person. They don't share our views that all living things deserve the chance to not only live out their lives to the fullest but that they are in fact serving us their entire lives and we owe them, at the least, respect for it.

That's why I go out of my way to make sure I spoil the crap out of my pets and take the utmost care of them that I possibly can.


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## Blazer23 (Apr 21, 2011)

*SIGH* Society these days doesnt care about living things


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## iheartmybettas (Jan 31, 2011)

My daughter is 3 and has a 29 gallon fish tank with 2 goldfish and some neons (when the goldfish get bigger they will get a bigger tank) BUT I take care of it. I do let her feed the fish but I hold the container and watch how much she puts in the tank. She knows how much she is supposed to give them. If she decides to go crazy with the food then she gets banned from feeding them for a couple of days. Same thing with our dogs. She can feed them as long as she only give them as much as I tell her too or she doesn't get to help. She is at the age she likes to help! Lol! Most kids just can't handle that kind of responsibility. All kids are going to want some kind of animal but I guess some parents don't realize that really the animal you get for your child is your responsibility. Of course their are the rare exceptions.


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## CyerRyn (Apr 8, 2011)

iheartmybettas said:


> My daughter is 3 and has a 29 gallon fish tank with 2 goldfish and some neons (when the goldfish get bigger they will get a bigger tank) BUT I take care of it. I do let her feed the fish but I hold the container and watch how much she puts in the tank. She knows how much she is supposed to give them. If she decides to go crazy with the food then she gets banned from feeding them for a couple of days. Same thing with our dogs. She can feed them as long as she only give them as much as I tell her too or she doesn't get to help. She is at the age she likes to help! Lol! Most kids just can't handle that kind of responsibility. All kids are going to want some kind of animal but I guess some parents don't realize that really the animal you get for your child is your responsibility. Of course their are the rare exceptions.


+1
That's how it should be with children and their pets, at least until their old enough to take on the responsibility themselves. I bought my son his fish with the sole intention that I was going to be the one feeding it and doing water changes. He loves our 3 fishies and can't wait for more, and neither can I! It's really become something that we can 'bond' with. I teach him a lot of things that I learn off these forums and he's already shown me that he know's that fish can't be overfed or they get fat and that they have to be in water in order to live. It's a nice way to teach your children the facts of life (in regards to that fish live, die, get sick, need caring). It's a real shame that some people think of animals as just another form of entertainment and if it doesn't meet their expectations these animals get neglected and die. If I could adopt every fish that people realize was a mistake to get their child, I'd advertise to take them in in a heart beat. I just don't have the room. I'm curious if my LFS's do this, I should ask the next time I'm in there.


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## Luimeril (Dec 29, 2010)

my niece is 7, and has her betta, King Steve. while King Steve was in his 1 gallon "QT" tank(aka, he was in my room, under my care, until i was sure he was healthy), she fed him. she feeds my bettas sometimes, and knows how much to give them. now, King Steve is in a 10 gallon, awaiting tankmates(either Neons, or Cory Cats), but she still feeds him his pellets.

when i was 4, i won a goldfish at a fair. he went into the 29 gallon community tank my mom had, and he was my fish, only in name. eventually, he outgrew all his tankmates except the Pleco, and ate them. .___o he lived about 11~13 years with that pleco.


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## TheCrysCat (Mar 14, 2011)

Plecos are monsters. I've seen some pretty huge ones.


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## shinybetta (Jul 3, 2010)

I love huge common plecos! But the more practical to keep plecos are the small (2-3 inches) to medium (4-6 inches) species, like Bristlenose and bulldog.


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## TheCrysCat (Mar 14, 2011)

They are pretty cool, just some of them are scary big.


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## Burd (Apr 10, 2011)

On the original subject...

I don't have the space for another male or I'd have brought at least one home with me last night... we were in a super mega omgwtfbbq wal-mart last night and while walking around came across the bettas. They were all in bad shape needless to say but one was in less than half an inch of water. HALF AN INCH. It had no choice but to just lay on it's side to keep in the water. 

Meh.


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## Neil D (Apr 10, 2011)

These stories literally almost made me barf.(or it could be the migraine) Do any of u ever get the feeling that if it's not u having the fish, it's gonna die? I care so much about Josh(see avatar), my guinea pig, Splee, and my cardinal tetras. (although I'm mad at my tetras cause they nipped Joshs fins) >.< Anyways, how can people just, you know, not care about animals? They are so helpless (compared to humans) and loving. Jeez, I'm the only one who takes care of all the animals at my house. (because I don't let anyone else) and I'm only 13 so I'm proud...haha. Poor bettas...


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## ollief9 (Mar 16, 2011)

I'm 13 too.


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## ollief9 (Mar 16, 2011)

TheCrysCat said:


> They are pretty cool, just some of them are scary big.


i.e mine :lol: my 1 year old cousin ran away from the tank when she saw gollum (12 inch common pleco)!


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## kalae (Feb 13, 2011)

At my lfs the other day I saw a 'tank' labeled as a 'kids fish keeper'. I literally could not fit my hand in it, and I have pretty small hands
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## strangegoose (Jul 4, 2011)

i got my first goldfish when i was 3 yrs old. That goldfish lived to be 24yrs old, i still miss him. Oldest in my tank at the moment is 16yrs.

I am new to bettas , i love them. Just got 2 vt. I will get a crowntail soon .


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## BettaRepublic (May 22, 2011)

I am probably the only guy in my neighborhood that hasn't killed all of his/her fishes. >_<


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## Neil D (Apr 10, 2011)

Lol, my neighbor is gonna get a dwarf gourami soon, and is doing everything right he has me and indirectly the forum to help out:-D


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