Cruel :(

[alessasavoca]

I recently came back from a holiday to Sicily to see my family, however when we were there me and my other half went to the Catania market. There was a pet stall (not very nice in general as they had VERY scared baby rabbits for sale) but they also had goldfish. Didn’t think anymore of it until we got closer and not only were there goldies but guppies!

Then to top it all we looked in one of their plastic boxes they were using as tanks and in there were about 18 tiny tiny cups each with a betta in! ‘Caccia Freddo’ (means they were for coldwater - which we all know is not true ) They were even more cramped than they are in a lfs and they were 3 euros each, at least if they were a it more expensive it would have put ignorant people off buying them.

It’s really sad to see such beautiful creatures in conditions like that, and being sold to people as a cold water fish. I wanted to buy them all, and if there was a way I could have got them back to the UK, I would have .

 

[Lynda B]

Ignorance is not bliss......

 

[JamesCarden]

wow...that sucks...did you talk to the owner. maybe it was a ignorant mistake?

 

[demonmagus]

that is pretty sick, but in Sicily the weather is probably warmer - so heaters may not be needed, but apart from that it's disgusting

 

[alessasavoca]

it is very warm but most people have air conditioning in their apartments or villas because the weather can get unbearable. If my italian was as good as it should be the owner would have got a major lecture but i did manage to get my point across that the bettas and guppies are tropicals, and that he shouldn't give people guppies/goldies/and bettas to keep together for various reasons.

The guppies were also in an unfiltered plastic box so i pointed out that they should be in an aquarium with filtered water. I think he was just more interested in the money and not the welfare of the livestock. I think whoever sold him the fish (wholesaler or private sale) is sick aswell.

 

[fishlover301]

i hate how small those contaniers are. In walmart the little plastic cups are small and so low that the fish cant even extend its fins out.... and the females use to be in the contaniers but i kinda know a lady that works there and told her that they can live with the tetras...i wish i could save them all too...

 

[mommyof2bettas]

I used to live in Sicily until a couple of years ago
I've never had the fish obsession when I was there though... so never looked at the fish too much.
Actually, "Caccia Freddo" means they were caught in coldwater. Which actually may be the case- depending what they mean by coldwater, are you sure it wasn't "Caccia Fresca" or something? That would mean fresh caught... sounds like they would eat 'em though
The guppy in without filters isn't bad though.
And also, the person who sold them might have bought them from someone who did think they were coldwater, or who did catch them in coldwater, and might have assumed it to be true.

 

[AllenLeicester]

Surely them guppies wouldnt last much longer than a few days?

 

[alessasavoca]

I used to live in Sicily until a couple of years ago
I've never had the fish obsession when I was there though... so never looked at the fish too much.
Actually, "Caccia Freddo" means they were caught in coldwater. Which actually may be the case- depending what they mean by coldwater, are you sure it wasn't "Caccia Fresca" or something? That would mean fresh caught... sounds like they would eat 'em though
The guppy in without filters isn't bad though.
And also, the person who sold them might have bought them from someone who did think they were coldwater, or who did catch them in coldwater, and might have assumed it to be true.

no it was deffo freddo i did ask the man who said they weren't tropical fish?? mind you like i said in the earlier post he had all sorts of animals that weren't kept in good conditions. Caccia is slang for fighter aswell (i know it means caught ), don't know if it's the proper name for them in italy but I did ask to clarify that he meant fighter and not caught if there's a place in sicily where there's a pool of bettas im moving over there !