# Do you eat fish?



## TheTrojanBetta (Jul 4, 2013)

I'm a vegetarian myself so I wouldn't eat fish regardless, but the idea seems even more unappealing now that I have owned fish myself.
What about the rest of you? Do you eat fish? It's just something I've always wondered about.


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## shannonpwns (Jul 15, 2013)

I do eat fish...not betta fish though lol. That never even crossed my mind to be grossed out by eating fish, after owning them as pets. I love cows and I think they are super cute, but I still eat them. I've owned chickens before, and I'd never ever eat chickens that I knew personally, but I eat them from the store! Maybe chickens don't bother me to eat because I remember getting attacked my by chickens on a daily basis haha.


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Yeah I eat fish. Mostly sushi and flake when we get fish and chips. I also sometimes eat it in front of my fish because they live in my room. 

My poor fish probably need counselling haha


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## Actress101 (Aug 4, 2013)

Hahaha I love catching fish from a lake but am picky when it comes to eating them however I would never eat pet fish!


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

I'm actually allergic to consuming any and all seafood, fish is okay to eat sometimes but I still get rashes from it but I do still eat it on occasion because it's yummy ^_^ I think no different of eating fish though since we've got fish. Having a pet fish and eating other fish seems no different from me. Besides, Betta's don't have enough meat on them ;-) haha


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## blufish425 (Jul 29, 2013)

This is funny, I was thinking about this like 2 days ago. I have never liked fish, but now that I own fish there is no way, just yuck.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

I am not a big sea food eater. I want a pot bellied pig, but I will still eat bacon and other pork based products


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## shellieca (Jul 12, 2012)

Yes, I do but not with any regularity. While I am in no way a vegetarian I believe ALL living creatures should be treated humanely regardless of whether or not we are going to butcher them for food, collect their eggs or milk them.


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## Lights106 (May 16, 2013)

Nope. Ive never liked fish. I have some shrimp, and I've not liked eating them lately. I also have a bird and am not eating a ton of chicken now.


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## Lichen7192 (Jul 9, 2013)

Yes, I actually do eat seafood fairly often but I always make sure it's wild caught. I believe that there's a difference between pets and food-- as a result, I keep fish, I fish fish, and I eat fish (not the same ones of course).


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## LaLaLeyla (Aug 17, 2011)

Yeah! I really love seafood to be honest ; o ;


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## cowboy (Apr 14, 2013)

I used to only have halibut and chips once in a blue moon but I have suddenly taken a liking to calamari. Yes, it sounds silly but I did actually have the "what the hell am I doing" thought for a minute lol I'm over it. Calmarai is too good.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Not only do I eat fish, but I work on a fishing boat.


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## kjnewcome (Jul 25, 2013)

I sure do, but nothing we raise or catch. My husband is an avid fisherman but he always throws them back. We don't have the heart to kill them ourselves. I always eat already dead store fish. lol


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## bambijarvis (Jul 15, 2012)

I do eat fish.

I also eat bacon and chicken, having raised both 2 chickens and a pig back in highschool. xD


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## GinjaHaZ (Jun 29, 2013)

I do eat certain fish, and I love seafood especially sushi; however, I don't eat it regularly since no one else in my family cares for it too much.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

Ok, I love blackened catfish and blackened swordfish.


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## Skyewillow (Dec 28, 2012)

I grew up on a farm, my brain came fully equipped with a food and pet boundary line. I raised steer, pigs, chickens, goats (for milk), I like to fish, and as long as I don't have to be swarmed by flies during the cleaning, I'll eat them. And I currently raise meat and pet rabbits.


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

What does rabbit taste like?


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## tngirl92 (Jul 16, 2012)

I'm a vegetarian too, but even before, seafood kind of grossed me out. My boyfriend's family essentially forced me to try some shrimp at the beach this summer, and I was tummy-sick for days.


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## Skyewillow (Dec 28, 2012)

xShainax said:


> What does rabbit taste like?


very lean chicken. A lot of meat producers use it in lieu of chicken because you can't get much better than raising it in yourself, and there's less regulation on property size for rabbits than chickens.


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## majesticstorm (Dec 8, 2012)

Yup, I love eating fish (not pet fish, of course). My friends always say, "don't let your fish hear you!" when I tell them how delicious the fish is during meals.


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## Polkadot (Feb 10, 2013)

No I'm a vegetarian too.


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## IndigoChild311 (Jun 26, 2013)

Can one eat a betta fish? Just out of curiosity. Humphrey and Mojo are safe from my mouth, (unless I give air kisses)


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

I'm sure you could Indigo but it would most likely be mostly bones, very little meat on them at all.


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## Lamb (Jul 9, 2013)

I eat salmon. At least twice a month, but I can see how that might be disturbing. Fish is extremely healthy for you (unless it's fried... ugh!). I feed my baby salmon also, it's rich in nutrients that she needs to grow nice and strong.


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## kvw1988 (May 13, 2013)

I don't eat a lot of meat (I try to limit myself to one day a week) but I do allow myself fish whenever. I'll admit I do feel kinda weird about it, but I feel fish is a very good source of lean protein. Poltury is too, but I'm very picky about where it comes from and that can get expensive so I usually just steer away from it altogether.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

IndigoChild311 said:


> Can one eat a betta fish? Just out of curiosity. Humphrey and Mojo are safe from my mouth, (unless I give air kisses)


Ever hear of a movie by the name "a fish called wanda"?


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

I eat fish. And my goldfish get salmon in their home made food so they shouldn't be upset about it. 
Heck we even eat carp.
What about anchovies? They are small and nummy.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## xShainax (Feb 11, 2012)

Goldfish eat meat? I thought they were herbivores


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

I think goldfish would try anything at least once. Then possibly an additional two or three times just to make certain they don't like it.


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## Perry the platypus (Aug 20, 2012)

Well, I eat fish when my grandma makes it, there's no refusing. I really don't like fish (Unless its in Sushi ) but if someone offers it, more likely I'll try it so I don't hurt the person's feelings. But mainly, no.


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## Mashiro (Dec 2, 2012)

I'LL EAT ANYTHING THAT SWIMS.

Lol except my beautiful bettas!

Sent from Petguide.com Free App


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

Goldfish eat anything.


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## quietlythundering (Jan 29, 2013)

I have to be honest, after working so hard to take care of my bettas, I haven't been able to bring myself to eat fish anymore :/
Eel sushi, however, is the tastiest food in the world, and is therefore on the menu!


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## Skyewillow (Dec 28, 2012)

LittleBettaFish said:


> I think goldfish would try anything at least once. Then possibly an additional two or three times just to make certain they don't like it.


and then, another four or five times to be extra certain!

Goldfish are what I call omnomivores, they eat any and everything that fits in their mouth, whether they can actually swallow it or not.


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

Omnomivores hahaha.


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## LinkLover (Apr 3, 2012)

I don't eat fish (obviously, since I'm vegan), but it's because as I've gotten older and thought more about it, it's weird that you would look at a pet differently than another animal in that sense. I mean yea, I love my dog more than a stranger's dog, but I wouldn't eat that dog any more than I'd eat my own (and yes I know most people don't eat dog, it's just an example). The same goes for cows, or chickens, or fish, or any other animal. I think that disconnect and lack of emotion for a certain animal for reasons such as it being a "food animal' or not your pet is sad.


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## Skyewillow (Dec 28, 2012)

LinkLover said:


> I don't eat fish (obviously, since I'm vegan), but it's because as I've gotten older and thought more about it, it's weird that you would look at a pet differently than another animal in that sense. I mean yea, I love my dog more than a stranger's dog, but I wouldn't eat that dog any more than I'd eat my own (and yes I know most people don't eat dog, it's just an example). The same goes for cows, or chickens, or fish, or any other animal. I think that disconnect and lack of emotion for a certain animal for reasons such as it being a "food animal' or not your pet is sad.


For people like me, it's not really a "disconnection", it's just knowing that animal is for feeding my family. It doesn't get treated any differently than a pet, because I owe it that much. Actually, they get spoiled a little more than my pets do, the pets keep me company, the producer feeds my family, which is really important to me. And which is also why I would rather raise my own, then I know they had a great life before they went to my table.


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

+1 to Skye! Yeah we raise our own beef as well and boy do those cow's get a good life ^_^ we do keep the females as pets quite often but to keep our stock down some end up in the freezer as well. Same go for our chickens.


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## LinkLover (Apr 3, 2012)

I totally get that, and I know it's a different situation than buying it. And I think it's great that they're being treated well. However (and I REALLY don't want this to turn into a fight, cause I know sometimes this can get intense pretty quickly) those animals don't have to die. Like, in my opinion, we don't automatically get to decide whether an animal lives or dies just by being a person. We are lucky to have lots of options besides meat, and can live without it easily. But like I said, that's just how I feel about it, and I know that most people disagree with me and think I'm "extreme" or just plain silly. 

Sorry if I'm derailing the thread...

Edit: I used pointless wording when I said "bigger and stronger than them", since there are animals that are way bigger and stronger than us.


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

That's fine Link, and I honestly respect you for also respecting our opinions as well. Both sides are completely valid 

And I think it's still technically on topic ;-)


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## Mashiro (Dec 2, 2012)

I'm fine with some people being vegan. What I don't understand is why a lot of them try to convert meat eaters into being vegan as well. I like my steak, crab legs and sausage. Like me, most meat eaters are not going to stop eating meat. If you really think about it, hypothetically speaking, if everyone stopped eating meat suddenly, the planet would be overpopulated with animals. Those animals need to eat too, they will eat mass amounts of vegetative food. Cutting from our vegan food supply.

I just can't see how it would even work if everyone stopped eating meat. The balance would be thrown off completely.


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## LinkLover (Apr 3, 2012)

Well the reason there are so many animals is because there is the demand from meat eaters, and the whole world wouldn't stop eating meat suddenly, even if they all did. So there would gradually be less animals, and once we stopped eating them there wouldn't be that many to overpopulate anything. But we all know that won't happen, so it's not an issue really. But again, just my opinion. 

And the reason I (since I don't want to speak for all vegans) encourage people to try it is because I believe that it's healthier, better for the environment, and doesn't support the unnecessary killing of animals. It's like when people make a suggestion because they like something, or think it's better for you, or that you might enjoy it, or to get you to think about something in a new way. Yes, some vegans are pushy, but so are some of every group of anything. We get our bad reputation from the few that are jerks. 

Edit: I forgot to add that I used to be a meat eater. 

Anyway, I'm worried this is actually getting off topic, so...

No, I don't eat fish.


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

Well put, LinkLover.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

I never understood why a vegan wouldn't eat an egg produced by a backyard chicken.  I mean chicken's gonna make the egg and not have any use for it anyways. Unless you're totally against domestic animals existing.
It's not a life choice I'd make (future shepherd here) but I totally get why people don't wanna eat animals cause I was on that side of the fence for a long time. I've taken a more "Native American" view of my relationship with animals and plants recently though.
Now I'm on the side of the fence that is terrified of soy beans and drugs and anything processed. 
And also the side that will scavenge road kill if I see the chance. ;-) Eat cheaply my friends.

If everyone went vegan, the only issue I see is what would we feed our dogs and cats! And our fish!


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## LinkLover (Apr 3, 2012)

Olympia, I actually do eat eggs that are laid by my friend's chickens. I'm sure a lot of vegans would say that means I'm not a real vegan, but my opinion is that the whole point of not eating dairy/eggs is to avoid cruelty and exploitation. Her adorable pampered chickens have never experienced a second of cruelty and are not exploited in any way, so I consider their eggs vegan (if I didn't know that for a fact, I wouldn't eat them). Because like you said, they're going to lay them anyway.


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## MattsBettas (Dec 18, 2012)

I'm not vegan, but there is absolutely no issue with the lifestyle that I see (before you jump on me, I don't see any issue with eating meat, in moderation, either). I have heard of vegans eating eggs from a backyard chicken and honey from a hive they kept themselves. There aren't really any ethical issues with that that I can see. Some people are vegan for their health or the environment (it only takes a couple quick google searches to see how harmful meat and it's production is on the environment) though, and that might be the reason why they wouldn't eat even the most ethically raised eggs. 

Road kill is not only cheap, but if you don't eat it it'll decompose in the ditch... I've never ate road kill nor do I intent to... Ever... I just wanted to point that out. 

Oly, dogs can actually be vegan. I'm not kidding. I dont think it's the most natural, but it is possible. Cats and fish, on the other hand, are dependant on meat based protein.


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## LinkLover (Apr 3, 2012)

MattsBettas, my dog is actually vegan, I was just too scared to say so since usually I get people yelling at me telling me I'm abusing my dog. We did a lot of research on it before we got him, and he's been on that diet since day one with us and has done great. All the essential vitamins are in his food, and we give him "extras" every meal to make sure he's getting plenty of what he needs. He's very well fed and well loved.


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## Olympia (Aug 25, 2011)

Good on the eggs. 
Right- home grown free range egg. Middle- commercial factory farmed egg. Left- "Organic vegetarian cage free" grocery store egg. (an interesting point- one time a farmer was going on about the vegetarian eggs, that they are very wrong since chickens love bugs, so either they lied about the vegetarian or the chicken is kept in some "cage free" large shed).










Dogs can be fed those diets but cats and fish sure can't.


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Dogs are omnivores like us and so yes, they can be vegetarian and I think if given the right food and supplements they will be fine just like humans. If a person went vegan/vegetarian without using the proper supplements and vitamins, yeah that's going to be bad for the health. But I personally don't know too much about this subject so I probably shouldn't say too much haha.

This is a nice convo though, it's great to actually talk about things without it getting into a large angry debate :shock:


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## LinkLover (Apr 3, 2012)

The only vitamin vegans can't really get from our food is B12. So luckily we're not sitting around all day taking supplements.  

And yes, I'd have to agree. Usually I choose not to post if it has anything to do with stuff like this, since usually I get attacked by a large group of people, or just get a bunch of "Ohh yummm I love steak blah blah blah" comments to try and upset me. Which it honestly kind of does. It's frustrating that if you're shy and have a controversial opinion, your usual conclusion is that you might as well not talk, since you know people are going to be all over whatever you have to say.

The perfect example of that is when MattsBettas said "(before you jump on me...". Having to put a disclaimer like that after stating the way you feel about a diet is really unfortunate I think.


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

There's a lot of controversial things though that you can get jumped for, not just vegan/vegetarian stuff. But like tank sizes and what's best for your fish, but I agree it is unfortunate that we have to be so wary of what we say. I understand there are all walks of life on these forums and the internet, it's just unfortunate is all.


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## LinkLover (Apr 3, 2012)

Oh I know, there are a lot of things that get people all flustered, especially when it comes to animals. There are occasions where I think people need to be really direct and forceful about things (like if an animal is obviously being mistreated), but for the most part I wish that we could all just respectfully disagree with each other. It's just irritating to me that the way I eat is another of many roadblocks to me being social. 

Gah, I really sent this thread in another direction. If that's cool with everyone then great, if not I apologize and we can let the "To eat fish, or not to eat fish?" discussion continue... (and that will be the last time I mention that, I promise).


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Yeah, I understand that part for sure  I surely agree to disagree, it's not hurting anyone...at least that I'm aware of! :shock: And no worries, no one has objected so far about the slight detour ;-)


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## Skyewillow (Dec 28, 2012)

Poor dog, he's loved and cared for... what will she do to him next?! ;-)

(just a note: that's a playful comment)


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## Starfish1 (Dec 9, 2012)

LinkLover said:


> I don't eat fish (obviously, since I'm vegan), but it's because as I've gotten older and thought more about it, it's weird that you would look at a pet differently than another animal in that sense. I mean yea, I love my dog more than a stranger's dog, but I wouldn't eat that dog any more than I'd eat my own (and yes I know most people don't eat dog, it's just an example). The same goes for cows, or chickens, or fish, or any other animal. I think that disconnect and lack of emotion for a certain animal for reasons such as it being a "food animal' or not your pet is sad.



I totally agree. I stopped eating fish after I got my first fish cause I thought it was odd to me to have a fish and eat a fish. and became vegetarian a few years later. It does seem sad that people look at cows differently than their pets if you think about it.


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## jadaBlu (Feb 14, 2013)

I am pescetarian which means you don't eat birds or land animals. Initially I had health reasons for changing my diet but ethical issues have become part of my reasons. Many Pescetarians follow similar habits as vegetarians (but are not vegetarians because they eat fish). I eat fish occasionally my diet is about 85% vegetarian. If I eat them I try to choose fish that are not endangered or headed that way like tuna for example. Tilapia or sardines, or farm raised salmon. 

This is because I heard an public radio interview with marine biologist where she stated she rarely eats fish but if she did it's only fast growing, fast reproducing fish. The problem with eating others is that they don't get old enough to reproduce before they are caught and eaten causing decline of populations. I don't think it's more ethical for me to eat fish but not other animals. I avoid buying animal containing products or those tested on animals and do most things a vegetarian would do. I don't buy meat or eggs to be consumed in my home (even fish) despite having a meat eater in my home. However, when I am eating out there are occasions where from a health perspective I'd choose to eat fish than a plate full of fried appetizers which can be the vegetarian option at some places. I hoped my bettas would cause me to give it up fish but not thus far. 
Perhaps if I kept Cichlids which are like tilapia it might change something or if I actually had vegetarian friends and I wasn't surrounded by meat eaters it would change. Recently, I have thought about that even though I am eating fish I have still taken the opportunity to make a whole lot of bettas lives better than the fate they face at the petstore.


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## jaysee (Dec 9, 2009)

A vegan dog?? Not that dog food is natural, but....

Dogs are primarily carnivores. While they CAN eat plant matter, meat makes up the overwhelming majority of their diet. Saying that they are omnivores is misleading. Don't get me wrong - my dogs love apple cores (deseeded), carrots, cherry tomatoes - really anything. They will also eat things that can kill them, so just because they will eat something doesn't mean that they should eat it, or even need it for that matter.

You can determine what an animal eats by their teeth. True omnivores (like us) have incisors for cutting and molars for grinding. However, carnivores (like dogs) have incisors that do not cut and molars that do not grind. Instead, incisors grab/hold and molars act as scissors for cutting meat. In nature, form follows function. Things are the way they are because they need to be....

Not trying to start a fight or anything - just saying things are the way they are for a reason.


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## kalliburr (Aug 8, 2013)

Personally, I didn't eat fish for a LONG time. But it had nothing to do with being a fish owner. What made me never want to eat fish was actually a fishing trip that my dad took me on. We went fishing at some place and caught a bunch of trout, and I thought we were going to let them go later or something. I was 6 and hadn't yet grasped that meat came from living things. So we caught all these fish and I had named them all in my bucket and was very pleased with myself. And then my dad picked me up so that I could watch them gutting the fish.

For YEARS after that, I never ate any kind of fish at all. I think I finally started eating canned tuna in high school, and only in the past two years started eating fish and enjoying it. It was a pretty traumatic experience for me.


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## BettaLover1313 (Apr 15, 2013)

I do eat fish, but not very often, only once in awhile when I'm actually in the mood for it.

Nothing wrong with being a vegan or vegetarian. I have a friend who's a vegetarian, and she was actually happy that I understood why she couldn't get pizzas that were half cheese with another half with meat (grease can still get to that other side, which would, sort of, be eating the meat). I respect her choice, and she respects mine and her other friends in what we eat. 

What I don't like is that people get the wrong idea about agriculture a lot from the factory farms that are shown everywhere and then many people automatically assume all farms are like that, which they're obviously not (no one has said here that they are, just explaining what I deal with a lot being in an agriculture major). I also understand that that's where a lot of our meat comes from, but that's why I always buy local meat (and produce since I like fresh produce, not produce covered in preservatives).


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## BettaPrincess13 (Jun 2, 2013)

I eat fish but now whenever I'm eating fish I think of my pet fish and then I begin to feel bad about eating it. but Ive never been a big fish eater Im more of a lobster and crab fan. I do eat it though from time to time when I'm in the mood for it.


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## Naladari (Jan 4, 2013)

I also have a food/pet boundary line.
I guess I might be the darkest on the spectrum however.
I love fish, in all ways as pets and as food.
Ive always wanted to get a 1000 gallon aquarium and raise snakeskin gouramis for food.
Same idea with sunfish and bass and whatnot.


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## makoisland (Mar 2, 2012)

I love eating fish. It's never bothered me to eat it even after having pet fish, as long as I'm not eating them I'm good.


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