Is Fishkeeping Right

[Riccardo]

Is what we do ethical?

Shouldn't these fish left to swim in their environment rather than an aritifical fish tank?

Sometimes I feel for my fish, surely they must be bored swimming in the same surroundings.

also we have to consider how many die when exported from their natural habitat (i.e. travelling on a 747 for 12 + hours packed in a small box).

What do you guys think of this.
I feel bad about it

 

[Bloo]

Obviously not that bad - otherwise you wouldn't be keeping them right ?

I think if we try to provide the best environment and care for them we can, then it's fine. So many of these fish we keep are now tank bred - though of course there's still a large percentage of wild caught fish. But I think for the vast majority, we're talking goldfish and live bearers etc. that are all tank bred.

 

[Griz]

Is fishkeeping ethical?

In the strictest sense, no. It is unethincal. We are causing the suffering of living things and the only reason for keeping them is for our own pleasure and enjoyment. Seems to me that's pretty unethical.

However, it's way down the scale of things to be concerned about IMO. There are millions of human beings in this world who are treated worse than most fish. Now THAT'S unethical. And something more worthy of my concern. Don't get me wrong, I'm not heartless when it comes to fish. It's about priorities.

 

[catxx]

if you do feel about these things
don't buy wild-caught fish
and try and only buy tank-bred fish bred in your local area

 

[CFC]

Actually the vast majority of tropical fish are still caught from the wild, large scale breeding operations are costly to set up and run so it is more cost effective to capture the fish from the wild. Some of the more commonly kept species are now farm bred but this just a very small percentage of the species available.

As for the ethics of keeping fish i look at it this way, if the fish were still in the wild they would face predatation from larger fish, birds and fish eating mammals (including humans) on a daily basis, at certain times of the year their habbitat can dry up completely meaning they have to search for deeper water or die and they have to constantly search for food as there could be days and even weeks inbetween meals, and in the case of territorial fish such as Cichlids they have to fight other fish constantly to keep their territory.

When compared to that life in an aquarium seems quite cushy if you ask me.

 

[Bloo]

Is fishkeeping ethical?

In the strictest sense, no. It is unethincal.

Just playing devils advocate here, but who decides what is ethical? "Your ethical" might not be "my ethical".
Your right might be my wrong - and vice versa. Who decides ?

 

[dwarfgourami]

I had the same thought as CFC. Given the number of fish born/spawned in a single batch, not many of them can survive in the wild; the vast number will be eaten by predators or starve if the number of predators is not great enough.

This does not mean that we do not have a responsibility to provide our pets with as good a life as we can. Fish dying on our tanks because we can't be bothered to do our research or overreach ourselves with the stocking or are too lazy to keep up tank maintenance- now that is unethical.

We've had a couple of threads lately suggesting that any buying of wild caught fish is unethical. I am not so sure. The ruining of a fish species by inbreeding and battery farm style rearing on antibiotics seems to me at least equally unethical. And are those who condemn the buying of wild fish aware how many of commonly sold fish this will rule out?

 

[Fishkeeper2004]

I think fish caught in the wild and put into captivity for sale is not ethical, however I think tank bred fish are fine to be living in *large* aquariums, as they were never in the wild - so surely they can't miss it?

 

[TF Keeper UK]

I agree with CFC. IMO keeping tank bred fish is ethical. You would'nt go and catch a trout and then keep it in a tank would you?

Del

 

[Teelie]

Tank bred fish originally came from wild caught fish so no matter where your fish come from, they had their origins in the wild.

 

[Bloo]

Tank bred fish originally came from wild caught fish so no matter where your fish come from, they had their origins in the wild.

Yes, but so did cat's and dogs we keep as pets

Anyway, I don't have a problem with keeping fish and do not think it's unethical (for reasons better described by CFC).

 

[Teelie]

I don't either but then I don't agree that keeping only tank bred fish is "ethical" either. About as far as I go with that is taking an excess amount from the wild is unethical but then most people here probably agree about that.

 

[Ethos]

Funny thing is, me and my dad just had a discussion about PETA this morning.
I think we should stop fishing-for-prophet for our porpuses.
I know that if we stoped taking hundreds of fish from the environment, and started breeding them, the cost of fish would go up, yes.
But I think it'd be good. Think of the world before 1500. The "New World" was so crammed pack full of animals, and so many species that today are almost exstinked....
We'll never be there again, but we can try. We could start with fish.

 

[WILDER]

Yes i feel guilty some times, but i try to make them comfortable and give them a good home, we don't live in a perfect world, and it won't stop them from taking fish from the wild, so i say to myself well at least I try to keep them happy, and do my best for the fish, but i think most fishkeepers feel guilty sometimes or they wouldn't be human.

 

[kat and james]

what bloozoo2 said is right.. who says what is ethical or not.. fox hunting has been banned be coz ppl think that it is unethical, but the ban will result in the foxes in this country being extinct in a few years time.. so is that ethical??? (don't want to start a debate here.. just an example.. )

and again, what about cats, dogs, birds, reptiles.. any of them..? the best thing and most ethical thing to do is your best, give them a good home, food, care and love.. a happy life.. no one can argue with that! what i'm saying is that it is unethical to remove an animal from it's natural habitat and then not care for it properly!

kat