Are you thinking of getting a fish? This is what you should consider before buying a fish.
This Is What You Should Know Before You Get A Fish
Fish Are Intelligent
Fish are far more intelligent than most people think. Researchers have found that fish recognize each other and gather information through hearing. They are able to remember past social interactions with their own kind, and they show affection by rubbing against each other.
They Feel Pain
Fish have a very complex nervous system and react to pain in the same way as any other animal: their breathing becomes faster, muscle contractions occur and they try to escape. Dr. Donald Broom, Scientific Advisor to the UK Government, says that anatomically, physiologically and biologically, the nervous system of fish is extremely similar to that of mammals. In this video, which Joaquin Phoenix created especially for PETA, he shows you impressively how fish can suffer.
Fish Are Threatened With Extinction
When you buy tropical fish, you may well be contributing to a species of fish becoming extinct. Because every year thousands of billions of fish are caught to support a worldwide hobby. Some fish species, such as the Banggai cardinalfish, are now endangered species due to overfishing. And only to satisfy the hobby fish industry.
Many Fish Are Caught In The Sea
Many “pet fish” have most likely been torn from their natural habitat. An estimated 95 percent of the saltwater fish in pet shops come from the open sea-mostly from the waters around teh Fiji Islands, Indonesia, the Philippines or other Pacific islands.
Fish Are Related To Us
We are most likely descended from the ancestors of today’s fish. Fish are the oldest group of vertebrates. Many of the human traits come from fish – our agile jaws, for example. Fish were the first animals to have rudimentary teeth, skull bones, and spine around 550 million years ago.
One Plant In The Aquarium Is Not Enough
Ignorance and misbelief are the reasons for bad and unfair conditions for fish. For example, many people believe that fighting fish survive even if they are not fed regularly, or live in an ecosystem that is not intact. Your aquarium is sometimes nothing more than a vase with a plant in it. In this way the fish are condemned to a desolate and boring life with slow starvation. In nature, fighting fish live in shallow, slowly flowing waters and rice fields.
Fish Will Surprise You
There are around 30,000 species of fish. So they represent more than half of all known vertebrates. Some fish species can “fly”, others climb – and some are even able to change their sex.
Last But Not Least
If you or your friends have fish at home, please check whether the water temperature is consistently in the correct range during the winter months. Furthermore, animals that do not live in the wild need sufficient water volume, temperature controls, filtration, regular cleaning of the aquariums and well-enriched water. You can also improve the life of your fish by adapting your aquarium as closely as possible to the animals’ natural habitat.
