# I'm livid... I can't understand this...



## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

Today I got a text from a friend asking if I wanted a fish. I politely replied that I did not, then asked why she was asking. She told me that she had won the fish at a raffle and that it came with "everything it needs", but that if I didn't want it, she might just flush it. Having no idea what kind of fish this was or if I even had the resources for it, I immediately texted back to please not flush the fish and that I would come pick it up. She said I could have its "care kit" too. I drove over to her place and was presented with a pale, striped betta in a Petco cup with a round kritter keeper, a bag of gravel, and a three pack of silk plants. No food. No heater. No water chemicals. The kritter keeper might hold one and a half gallons. And the betta was a giant male. 

It was late and stormy and I'm short on funds, so I had to make the supplies work. Thankfully, my apartment stays around 76, so he won't be at an ideal temp, but he should survive until I can go get a heater for him. The little kritter keeper isn't nearly large enough for a giant, but it will be better for him than that cup until I can get him a larger tank. First priority is a heater.

I'm so frustrated I might cry. Obviously it was the right thing to do to rescue the fish from being flushed. But I didn't want another fish and certainly not a giant. Now I have to provide for this animal and find a place in my apartment to set up proper housing for him. It's not that I CAN'T take care of him, it's that I didn't want multiple fish again. That's why I didn't get that sad red crown tail at meijer. And yet now, here I am, stuck with a second fish anyway. Life sure knows how to kick a girl when she's down...

The fish is going to be a pretty guy, I think. He hasn't regained any color yet, but I suspect he's pretty stressed. The ammonia in his cup tested off the charts, so if he doesn't have mild ammonia poisoning, it'll be a miracle. He did eagerly snap up some NLS pellets. How many should I be feeding a giant? I gave him maybe 8.

I'm seeing dalmatian spots on the anal and caudal, and a little bit on the ventrals. Wild-type spotting on the dorsal. Colors... who knows how he'll turn out. I'm posting so.easy pictures of the setup he came with as well as the fish himself. 

Someone give me encouraging words, please...


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## Amberjp (Apr 28, 2016)

How old is your friend? She should know right from wrong and that flushing a living thing is inhumane and just plain cruel, I would not associate myself with that type of person. "Comes with everything it needs" from what I read, that's a serious joke, if you don't want him maybe post on the sites classifieds for PU/if you're willing to ship

He's really cute though!


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## NiceCrocs (May 14, 2016)

BLESS YOU for saving this handsome fellow. Even if the gear you've got isn't ideal, it's world's better than where he may have ended up. That ammonia test is breaking my heart 

I completely understand being in a position where you just can't commit to any more animals.

You may want to explore the option of finding someone to adopt him, and just concentrate on getting him healthy and in decent water in the meantime.

Whereabouts are you located? Maybe there's some forum members nearby who would be interested.


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

She is 28. She was at a charity raffle and put one of her tickets into this "basket" on a whim, never thinking she would win. She put at least one ticket in every basket, and lucky her, she won this one... she didn't even want the fish. And yes, it didn't have half of what it needs to survive. There wasn't even dechlorinator... I shudder to think what might have happened had a non-fishy person won this fish. It might have gone into plain tap water and died shortly after.

I will see about putting him up for adoption, although with how striped and unhappy he is right now, I don't feel comfortable shipping him until he's better. I agree, he's kind of cute. I am just stressed right now... if I was a fish, I'd look just like him... pale, striped, clamped.


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

NiceCrocs said:


> BLESS YOU for saving this handsome fellow. Even if the gear you've got isn't ideal, it's world's better than where he may have ended up. That ammonia test is breaking my heart
> 
> I completely understand being in a position where you just can't commit to any more animals.
> 
> ...


Well thank you, but honestly, I still don't like the situation he has to be in for the moment. I will see if I can find anyone near me who can pick him up, but for all I know, he'll end up growing on me and I'll get attached. Right now I'm still just trying to process everything that happened. I'm just thankful she took the time to reach out to me and ask if I wanted him instead of flushing first and asking questions later.


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## Amberjp (Apr 28, 2016)

It's irresponsible of her to put her ticket into the basket on a "whim" somebody else could have really wanted him and actually taken care of him, it's understandable that you're mad and stressed,I would be too! Hope you feel better within the next couple of days, knowing me I would be mad for days(I can hold a serious grudge)


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## Crash (Jul 19, 2015)

He looks like he'll be very pretty, at least. 

Hate when things like this happen. I've had success with putting my "unwanted", for lack of a better word, bettas up on Craigslist for free. Just make sure the person taking them knows what they're doing and has the proper supplies, and obviously meet in a populated place in the daytime.


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## sabrinah (Jan 2, 2015)

You saved him from what would have most likely been a horrible life! A one and a half gallon kritter keeper is a thousand times better than a cup, and while no heater isn't ideal it's definitely something he can survive. Just think of everything you're giving him that his other potential owners probably wouldn't: clean water, dechlorinator, high quality food, and compassion.


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## mingking (Mar 7, 2016)

I'm sorry this happened to you and the poor betta but SO GLAD and thankful that he's in good hands now. I hope a good solution for the betta and you comes your way. 

I just, like you, can't understand why fish... LIVE animals... Are used as a prize at a charity. It's so cruel. 


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

Thanks for the encouragement guys. I'm slightly overwhelmed but I think everything will eventually work out ok. I did wake up in a panic after dreaming that my cat was able to knock the giant's little tank off the table. Of course he can't. It's small but still easily 30 or so lbs haha. Goodness, irrational fears.


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## Kisiel (Jul 30, 2014)

Whoa, I almost got handed a giant just like him the other week, but that thing was _huge_ with a nasty temperament. 

Anyway, you did the right thing, even if you weren't prepared for another fish - you've saved a life and I'm sure that if you decide to keep him he'll repay you with years of fishy dancing and bubble nests. The setup you have him in isn't the end of the world, it's fine as a temporary home and certainly better than being flushed - which I personally find to be an absurd concept, killing an animal just because you don't want it. Unless people think that they go into the ocean or something, which is even more ridiculous. 

Keep us updated on his progress


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## ThatFishThough (Jan 15, 2016)

LOL Don't doubt your cat. I had a cat knock a 10G off a table.

Probably not helping LOL


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

ThatFishThough said:


> LOL Don't doubt your cat. I had a cat knock a 10G off a table.
> 
> Probably not helping LOL


Don't tell me that!! Hahaha jk, good to know. I'll have to put something weighted on the tank to keep it in place. So far he hasn't been too interested in the tank, but we will see.

The giant has regained a bit of color overnight after being in clean water. He's regained some color in his body, although his fins are still washed out. I'm hoping we'll see more color on him when I get him a mini heater today.

I had a bit of a hunch that he might color up a bit if I got him to flare, so we had a fun little mirror session today. He has beautiful form! His iridescence is starting to shine nicely. It's a nice turquoise blue. He will probably end up with wild-type coloration, but we'll see. The dalmatian spots have me curious!


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## Anne713 (Jul 18, 2014)

He is a beautiful guy!


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## BettaStarter24 (Mar 24, 2014)

Looks like maybe he's a mustard gas with armegeddon spots. He's beautiful


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## firewood04 (Dec 24, 2015)

He is beautiful! Thank you for rescuing him! I know that you did not want to take on another one and wanted some respite from having more than one fish. But look at him, you are already making a world of difference in his life. Thank you so much for taking him on and if you don't bond with him and keep him at least you will know the difference that you made in his life!


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

Anne713 said:


> He is a beautiful guy!


Thank you! He is going to be an interesting color, I think.



BettaStarter24 said:


> Looks like maybe he's a mustard gas with armegeddon spots. He's beautiful


IDK about Mustard Gas. He doesn't really have the bands around his fins, mostly just iridescence. But we will see how he colors up!



firewood04 said:


> He is beautiful! Thank you for rescuing him! I know that you did not want to take on another one and wanted some respite from having more than one fish. But look at him, you are already making a world of difference in his life. Thank you so much for taking him on and if you don't bond with him and keep him at least you will know the difference that you made in his life!


I had only wanted to have Pongo, it's true. But circumstances forced me to take him, and I'm going to do my best for him. If I decide to rehome him, I'll try and find someone in the marketplace section of the forum. I haven't named him yet. I'm going to wait a bit and see if I feel like I can handle having two before I name him. Once I name him, I feel like I'm going to be bonded to him.

But probably he'll have a name by the end of the day.


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## NiceCrocs (May 14, 2016)

Wow he's gorgeous!

Isn't it amazing what clean water, good food, and a lot of love can do in just a few short hours?


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## ShadeSlayer (Jul 20, 2015)

I’ve never seen that color before. very pretty guy. ;0)


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

Thanks guys. Yeah, he's made quite a bit of improvement overnight. I'm pleased to see him looking healthier and swimming around eagerly.

I'm going to regret this... but... any name ideas?


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## ThatFishThough (Jan 15, 2016)

Hamachi! It means "yellowtail fish" in japanese LOL.

Call him Ham for short?


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## fernielou (May 19, 2015)

Glad he ended up in your care. It might not be meant to be he stay with you, but you have given him a chance at life. I have a feeling you are gonna get attached though LOL.


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## firewood04 (Dec 24, 2015)

I am looking at Disney as Pongo is your other fish's name: Bruno "Cinderella", Lucky "101 Dalmations", Bolt "Bolt", Cheshire "Alice in Wonderland", Willie "Micky and the Beanstalk name of giant", or Chernabog also Giant name, Gustav the Giant, from "The Giant and the Tailor"... Just some suggestions...


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## ShadeSlayer (Jul 20, 2015)

Names...
Aiko, meaning loved in Japanese, since you rescued him out of love and compassion.
kichi, meaning "good luck” He’s a lucky dude, you got him!!
Vivian, meaning alive and living.


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## anglerette (Apr 12, 2016)

Raphael--like raffle, where he came from. You can call him rafi or phil for short.


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## mingking (Mar 7, 2016)

I really like Ham  He is so beautiful 


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## ThatFishThough (Jan 15, 2016)

mingking said:


> I really like Ham  He is so beautiful
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



I don't think that's his official name yet, LOL.


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

ThatFishThough said:


> I don't think that's his official name yet, LOL.


You're correct haha I am dragging my feet about naming him hahahaha. I am almost leaning toward a GoT name. Maybe Drogon? Hm...


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## ShadeSlayer (Jul 20, 2015)

Oooh, I like Drogon.


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

So... the no-name has been named. I decided to be ironic and name him Tyrian because in the show, Tyrian is a dwarf and this guy is a giant... I crack myself up hahaha. Anywho, he's regained more color that he's beginning to hold on to, finally. I'm pleased by his progress, and I'm hoping his fins gain even more color as his progress continues. 

Pic update!


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## Kisiel (Jul 30, 2014)

Can I be a killjoy and just say that it's Tyri_on_, not Tyri_an_ :wink3:


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## charliegill110 (May 19, 2014)

So your going to keep him?


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

I suppose I can take care of two. So yes, I'm going to keep him. But I swear, the next time I get a text asking if I want a fish, I'm just going to pick it up and find someone on the forum to take it ASAP hahaha. NO MORE FISH!! But he'll be staying here.

Random side note, my koi boy Pongo decided to bless me with his very first bubblenest today. And it's a doozy!! I'm so proud of him.


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## Vrisnem (Jan 25, 2016)

This thread makes me so happy. It's what I define as a "real" rescue. Glad to hear you're keeping him after all. He's going to be well looked after. :-D


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

A couple more pics from last night. He is the friendliest fish, seriously
When I walk by the table with his tank on it, he always swims right over and dances for me. He wiggles for food and shows off those flashy fins all the time. He's getting more orange as time passes. Even his body seems to be turning a bit orange, although it's dark.

Also, in fairness to my other boy, a couple Pongo pics.


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## charliegill110 (May 19, 2014)

Wow he's cute!


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## Seki (Jul 10, 2012)

Thanks!! Pongo was carefully chosen at Petco haha so he's EXACTLY what I wanted. Tyrion wasn't hand-chosen, but I think he's pretty handsome, too lol


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## DangerousAngel (Mar 26, 2015)

I'm SO glad you decided to keep him! Kings are the best! They're so sweet! 
Pongo is gorgeous btw! Super cute name too!


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