CONFESSION! I FLUSH FISH!
- Thread starter Rbishop
- Start date
At the requests of many via PM....
Okay...love the input and thoughts. Thanks!
I admit I have been guilty of flushing fish that were sick a long tiime ago, but never fish that I did not want. It is not my standard practice though, and has not been for many years.
Often, for me, I will put effort into a tank wide illness, vice a singular fish. Just a fact of life. Fish that then get disposed of are put down by some combination of freezing/clove oil/sharp knife.
Though some may not want to hear (read) it, while I consider my fish as pets in general, I do not equate the same traits to them as a dog/cat/bird. I do have my favorites and care well for them.
Once again..thanks for all the responses, and I hope everyone received some thoughtful input from other members on opposing views! :hi:
Okay...love the input and thoughts. Thanks!
I admit I have been guilty of flushing fish that were sick a long tiime ago, but never fish that I did not want. It is not my standard practice though, and has not been for many years.
Often, for me, I will put effort into a tank wide illness, vice a singular fish. Just a fact of life. Fish that then get disposed of are put down by some combination of freezing/clove oil/sharp knife.
Though some may not want to hear (read) it, while I consider my fish as pets in general, I do not equate the same traits to them as a dog/cat/bird. I do have my favorites and care well for them.
Once again..thanks for all the responses, and I hope everyone received some thoughtful input from other members on opposing views! :hi:
I rarely flush fish... When I do though I freeze them first. I killed a Festivum because it killed an angel fish and then beat the living snot out of another. It was the end for him, I don't feel bad for it. I see my fish as dollar bills floating around. Doing African Cichlids now I see them as $10-$50 swimming around a really expensive glass box. When I lose a fish unexpectedly I think, "Crap, there goes X amount of money!" Do I feel this makes me a bad individual? No, it's a hobby to me, yes I'm playing with real living things but they are raised at breeding farms in the first place. None of the fish I own came from the wild. My fish were born to be kept in tiny boxes and look pretty. Nothing more.
Would I flush my Dog, Ferret or Cat? No, because they actually know who I am. They know who feeds them and who loves them and they respond to a name. Do fish know this? I don't think so, they see a human figure and flip out because all they think is "FOOD FOOD FOOD FOOD FOOD FOOD FOOD" When I put my hand in the tank they run for their lives. It's just not the same bond as a pet owner.
Would I flush my Dog, Ferret or Cat? No, because they actually know who I am. They know who feeds them and who loves them and they respond to a name. Do fish know this? I don't think so, they see a human figure and flip out because all they think is "FOOD FOOD FOOD FOOD FOOD FOOD FOOD" When I put my hand in the tank they run for their lives. It's just not the same bond as a pet owner.
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I put my finger or my hand in the tank and mine rush up to my arm. Hell they try to chase flake debris up the grav vac tube.
mg: Did this actually happen to you?! Such a realistic story if not...
Have you ever read Jessica Mitford? You definitely should!
I agree with you about funeral services (for people) but it's the kind of thing I never bring up since it is offensive to so many. I hope so called "eco funerals" catch on in the U.S., but I think it will be a long time before this country warms up to cardboard coffins.
We have an almost healthy relationship with natural decomposition - look at all the people saying they compost their fish - except when it comes to us. For some reason, worms and microbes returning our bodies to the earth really rubs us the wrong way.
Well, if the fish earned some $$ and sprung for the ~$10,000 service they can have a steel coffin with silk liner if they want it....
That a, "I want food, maybe this is food?!" response... Not a, "OMG I LOVE YOU!" response. Hah.
Yeah I flush too but only after they have died. By the time I figure out what illness they have it's usually too late & I have tried isolating and medicating many a fish to no avail they usually die on me anyway. No way I could flush a fish while it's still alive that is just inhumane. If the fish is going to die atleast let it do so in it's own environment or if you feel you can euthanize then do so. 
