Do fishes enjoy social interacttion with me?

[Wyld-Fyre]

Like many 'loving' aqauriasts, I want to provide the best living environment for my fishes.

I think water quality, a gravel substrate, aquatic plants, light, heat, fish companionship/comradeship, and food is great but I think it goes further than this.

I have heard that plants 'enjoy' human contact. Don't know whether that has any merit, but fishes are another matter. For a start, they have feelings. Would my fishes get upset with my:

1) constant antics in front of the glass?!
2) 'mad' techno music?!!
3) constant accessory/plant additions on a weekly basis?!!!

Hey, its all a part of the mental stimulation project I'm working on!

 

[endparenthesis]

I think you're putting much more though into it than they ever would. I think fish "enjoy" food, breeding, not dying... and, umm, that's about all I can come up with. And I don't think any of it is even conscious, really.

I'm not a big fan of anthropomorphizing them, so maybe I don't belong in this topic.

 

[Buglet]

Obviously, I can't read my Comet's mind, so I can't say for sure....but I do know that he knows me vs. other people---will come to the side of the tank where I am, will let me hand feed him...and will rub against my hand when I root around in the tank. Is it because he likes interaction with me? Probably more like he associates me with food....but regardless, he definitely differentiates me from others and seeks out my attention

 

[Sasha]

My fish beg for my attention! Everyone's always at the front of the tank waiting for me to look at them and tell them how cute they are. They trust me so much, that I can cup my hand in the water and they swim right through!

 

[bunjiweb]

My fish deffinatly differentiate me from my parents and other people and seem to behave much better infront of me being more playful and coming to the side of the tank I am viewing. I guess as people say it i because they associate me with food but I am still their leader.....bwahahahah..... err...yes anyway....

Ben

 

[smithrc]

am i the only one that had to look up anthropomorphizing??

 

[Cali]

am i the only one that had to look up anthropomorphizing??

I am too lazy to look it up, but, yes, I had to use contex clues to figure out what it means.

 

[endparenthesis]

Yeesh... read a book, people.

 

[Cali]

Yeesh... read a book, people.

I have a BA in English AND I do read daily...


I'm still not afraid to say that I have never hear of that word.

 

[Where the river goes]

My bettas do enjoy a game of "chase the pinky" I'll put my pinky in the water and they'll flare at it and bite it One of them will give chase if I move my pinky away from him When they get bored with this game they go back about their business.

One of my bettas has also developed a liking to the turkey baster, he's discovered food can come out of this thing (from me picking up a pellet he misses when I feed him ) so now every time I put in the turkey baster he follows it and bites it

 

[Opcn]

for those of you who dont like the dictionary anthropomorism is pretty much Giveing something an atribute it doesnt have like say that table is angry or my betta has a great sence of beat. None of the 3 things listed sound like viable options but provideing your fish suitable space to swim and ornamentation to hide in / find food in will stimulate them far more than you ever could.

 

[Cali]

for those of you who dont like the dictionary

Is that an insult?




I said I used context clues.

 

[FishDan]

I don't know that fish really "enjoy" anything. But then I also against anthropomorphizing my fish. They are great pets, and I do my best to care for them. But I tend to think everything they do is based on survival instinct and not because of enjoyment.

\Dan

 

[endparenthesis]

"anthropomorphize" - To ascribe human characteristics to things not human.

Like I said in another thread somewhere... I like fish because they're different from me, not because they're the same. You can come to a much better understanding of what it means to be human by trying to deeply understand what it means to be something else.

I do a lot of reading about AI and such for that very reason... so maybe that's how that word worked its way into my vocabulary. I'm sure it's been in there for a long time though.

 

[suspectdebbie]

"anthropomorphize" - To ascribe human characteristics to things not human.

Maybe I'm a lot older, but I learned anthropomorphize along with onomatopoeia and such in grammar school.