Fish depression. Stimulate those fish brains!....

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Stan510

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You might have to subscribe..but I read it of course and they say among other things "You need to give fish something challenging every now and then..they need to explore. Higher oxygen content makes for happier fish. Never keep Bettas in less than a 2' tank. Move things around a little every now and then.
Based on a Scientific paper....
 
My betta seems more”peppy” ever since I added an air stone and a sponge filter to replace the weak low flow internal filter. Possibly more air input helped his energy level. I rarely see him come to the top for air through his labrynth organ.
 
No a joke!! :rofl:

Not laughing. Family forum.

(I wanted to comment but wasn't sure if your post was a question or not for lack of a question mark. I thought I would clear that up first before I shared my thoughts).

Either way,
joke or question,
not okay.
 
Hey, @Stan510 , sorry about the threadjack. We just can't help ourselves, sometimes. ha ha

You make a serious and really good point: Fish are a bit smarter than we give them credit for, and they need to stay interested in their world. It's easy to throw them in a tank, appreciate their beauty, keep them physically healthy, and think we've done our job, but that isn't enough.

The parallel with human depression is really interesting, too.
 
I honestly think that article shows a terrible experiement- they *literally just drew a line over a tank and if the betta spent more time under the line it’s depressed.* They don’t take account of the fish’s genetics (which bettas have been overbred where some individuals cannot be very mobile) or health of the fish, nor the environment of the fish. Why wouldn’t a betta in a bare tank get “depressed” due to lack of stimulation in the environment
 
I wrote an article on fish depression back in the 90s, Stereotypical behaviour caused by insufficient mental stimulation. No idea where it is now but basically you need to vary the fish's environment regularly to stop them getting bored. I used to feed them at different ends of the tank, have power heads on timers, add/ remove plants and ornaments. Even moving fish around to different tanks so they have different tank mates for a few weeks. It all adds up and helps the fish have a little less stress and a little more interesting life.
 
I wrote an article on fish depression back in the 90s, Stereotypical behaviour caused by insufficient mental stimulation. No idea where it is now but basically you need to vary the fish's environment regularly to stop them getting bored. I used to feed them at different ends of the tank, have power heads on timers, add/ remove plants and ornaments. Even moving fish around to different tanks so they have different tank mates for a few weeks. It all adds up and helps the fish have a little less stress and a little more interesting life.
I read that about Pea Puffers so I do change the tank items from time to time!
I don't think I will be taking him to others tanks, though.
Never thought about other fish, though.
Interesting...
 

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