Fish in a fruit jar?

Thank god i dont live in europe.. Your life in europe seems way to regulated.. You cant keep a fis in less then 13 gallons!!!!! I have a 10 gallon tank with 12 neon a cory 3 dwarf puffers a alge eater and 2 crabs and they all do fine.... Kinda funny, the goverment in germany has a huge tax rate and then spend your money creating a bill to regulate the size of your fishtank.. :o
 
Sorry, I deleted last post so what was said last by OrionGirl may not make alot of sence as I didnt phrase what I said very well...

But what I was trying to say was:

So many fish do suffer and die in small, unfiltered aquaria each year. Our successes with such small tanks do not mean that these tanks work, but that they can work in the hands of the experianced. The experiance, might I add, who know to keep an eye on water quality, carry out regular water changes, plant the tanks up well, and meet the needs of the fish. Whereas the less experianced, who the article was aimed at, would not know to do these things, and were apparently not informed to within the article.

And the mention of (in the deleted post by me...maybe I shouldnt have deleted it now come to think of it) the fish challenging the owner as being a sign of insecurity was just me putting across another view of these actions, and saying that they are not always a good sign. Maybe I should have made that more clear.

Thom.
 
Yeah, I was disagreeing with what thom336 said immediately following you, and then deleted. This is why deleting thread should not be done--explain in another post if needed, but deleting them causes too much confusion.

:)
 
PETA got involved to an extent with the Aquababys issue, if anyone remembers RK Aquaria, she was leading a boycott against Aquababies, and PETA put it on their WEB site. I never said they were involved with this.

The Betta Vase, and apparently Joy Tippets home made betta fruit jar, has a terrestrial plant stuck in it with the roots growing in the water. In the Betta vase it is a "Peace Lily".

I have heard the arguement that Bettas have a special lung or something that allows them to breathe is very small containers or very shallow water. Thats not the point. Keeping a fish in a container where all it can do is basically turn around and float motionless in the water is ridiculous. And to keep it in unheated, unfiltered, and motionless water is cruel.

All animals need some sort of stimulous. Animals get bored, complacent and lathargic without it. Even a fish needs exercise!

Betta bowls are used in stores as temporary housing to display their colors and keep the fighting males separate, not as permanant housing.

The other claim about the Betta vase is you never have to feed it...it feeds off the roots of the plant. Last I heard Bettas were meat eaters. My wholesale paper supplier has a Betta Vase on their counter. It had a Betta AND a African frog in it...that is until 3 weeks later when I went in and all it had was the sickly looking betta. Big surprise.

Oh, and sorry Tom, I don't consider a fruit jar "small aquaria" for the experienced. A fruit jar is for fruit. Not a fish!
 
Last edited:
Originally posted by thom336
Unfortunately bettas are taken advantage of in the way of keeping them in very small 'tanks' (if you can really call them as such) as, being anabantoids, they have their labyrinth organ (a sort of lung) which allows them to breath atmospheric air - and hence can survive in rather stagnant water, but that is all it is really: survive, not flourish. But they do need space to swim and stretch out...I would put an absolute minimum tank size for them as 4gals - preferably larger, as large as you can go.

Thom.
Click to expand...

Robert, I did mention the 'special lung' already...and clearly stated that it was beside the point and not a reason to keep them in the jars. In the same paragraph (which is the one quoted) I also mentioned that they need space to swim. If it was me that you were refering to calling the the jars 'small aquaria', then you will also find a bit in this quote that counteracts what I said. I am in agreement with you Robert, and one of the first things I said in this thread was that it was outragous at fish being kept in fruit jars.

And orionGirl and wetmanNY, I am also aware that OrionGirl was disagreeiing with what I said, i was just explaining that the behaviour observered isnt always a good sign, to which extent wetmanNY seemed to put it. This was one reason I deleted the post, as what was written was taken in the wrong context.

Thom.
 
Originally posted by Robert H
even PETA has taken issue with it!
Click to expand...

uh, PETA opposes any captive animals - PERIOD, so it's nop suprise that they oppose this as well. Their basic stance is that any animal is better off "set free" than under even the best human care. These are the people who break into research facilities and let dozens of monkeys loose in the middle of a city!
Now, I'll agree that not ALL research is necassary, but ALOT is very beneficial - and certainly better than getting run over by cars.
 
Since it was mentioned, and since it seems to come up whenever this does, I just wanted to chime in on the whole anabantid/labyrinth thing.

I got this from Barron's book on Bettas (paraphrased):

All of the anabantoids have a modified gill arch (bone) that became vascularized and convoluted into a small chamber, called the labyrinth organ. This allows them to get supplementary oxygen from the air. The complexity of the labyrinth varies across the anabantoid spectrum, being most complex in snakeheads, then in the larger gouramis, on down to simplest in the bettas.

They are the least good at getting supplemental O2 from the air: they can get some but it shouldn't be treated as a primary source, the water still needs to be oxygenated. Just another argument for regular water changes and a healthier surface area then the small jars, bowls, and vases can provide.

And agreed, FAMA should be more responsible about discouraging bad practice.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom