Dyed Bettas!!??? More like Died Bettas!

[silver]

CRY!!!

Every single betta they had (about 150 cups) were in little TINY cups with only 1.5 inches of water!!!

Shouldn't there be laws that prohibit that....they could be in there for weeks?? No air, no room to move and I have a question for anyone who knows:

Why is the water BLUE in the betta cups (pee cups). I live in the States so they may do things different here, I don't know, but the water has some sort of blue dye in it. Only in the blue and purple betta cups, not the red ones. Does anyone know?

Silver

 

[finatic]

Hi Silver,

Don't know about blue water, but what a shame. Fish need love, too. Don't you feel like stuffing those people in a garbage can? No way to treat a living creature.

Finatic

 

[mrV]

Call to some municipal vet/society of protection of animals etc, who will report upon this things.

Fishes are also vertebrates and their nervous system is quite good; they will feel pain and show signs of ilness, if they aren't ok.

No air, no room to move

They don't need air-pumps, they can breath air too (they have labyrint organ), but they definately need more room.

 

[-=DG=-]

At one of the fish shops near me, they keep the fighters in the same tiny cups which are hooked onto racks! But there is a notice on top saying that its been inspected by the 'RSPCA'. Its 'ok' because they live like that in the wild (according to the shop).

 

[mrV]

It's big difference to keep betta in a small cup than betta living in rice fieldt. Although it has "little" space there, but water values are excellent and it has still much more space in fieldt.

That's why also many hobbiest/store keepers give reason for keeping them tightly (=cup or tiny tank)

 

[semper fi]

unfortunately there is nothing you can do about it unless you have the betta banned from being sold. they are put in the tiny cups which have tiny holes to allow gasses to be released. aerators do nothing but move the water so gasses are released from the water column. with such a small area there is no need since the fish will move the water themselves. they are dept in small cups since they cannot be kept in one tank with a group of them. also they do not need heaters. have seen goldfish bagged and just setting out like the bettas. cuts down on the amount of people they have to employ to always be scooping out fish. the dyed water just makes the betta look prettier.

do not agree with it. think it is cruel.

also think it is cruel that parents allow their kids to dictate what they want. saw some kids at the lfs the other day dragging their mother from fish tank to fish tank. they ended up buying a 2.5 gallon tank and a clown loach which they named nemo in the store. the employee did not once even try to tell the "adult" how cruel it was and that the fish was being commited to a life of misery. started talking to the mom since she thought that i was there for the same reason with my kids. told her no and tried to tell her the mistake she was making. her comment was "but what are you going to do let them whine til they get one? besides in a few weeks they will get bored of it and the fish will probably die anyways." got nasty and told her that kids learn by example and if she had such a low disregard for life hate to see them as adults. they probably also have a dalmation in theikr yard that is tied to a tree so as not to ruin the landscaping!

semper fi

 

[fishdude]

I see this too at walmarts. But only some walmarts luckly put bettas in 10 gallons.

 

[bigfish]

Well said semper fi!!!!!! it annoys me when you see someone buying a huge tank for the first time and the they fill it with £50 worth of fish and then wonder why they all pegged it. i.e cycling springs to mind.

 

[Alex]

It's so sad, and why won't people listen?

Went to a shop near me about 2 weeks ago, noticed they had a 10 gallon tank, with a clown loach in. I asked if I could have a better look, they had no plants but 2 clown loaches, 20 mixed tetras, a gibbiceps plec, and half a dozen platies they also had only had the tank set up for 10 days. the fish (no surprise) had a very bad case of white spot, on closer inspection there was also no filter and no heater. When the man that owned the fish came back, I found out he had removed the filter thinking it was the cause of the white spot, numerous fish had died already (can you imagine how many fish he must have put in). I gave him as much info as I could (2 fish keeled over and died while I was there), I set up his filter for him and gave him some of my filter media to help him on his way, got him treatment for the white spot and took the clown loaches back to our hospital tank.

Unfortunately the clowns were too far gone and they died the next day, when I spoke to the owner nearly all his fish had died - I was too late. Still gave him advice on what to do because he wanted to start again, Told him about cycling the tank, etc.

A couple of days later I went to my lfs and was chatting to the bloke there and found out that mr shopkeeper had come in the day before wanting a load more fish for his tank 'cos all his had died.

What do you do, I won't use their shop any more, and at least the lfs refused to sell him any more fish until he had cycled his tank. What can you say, lets hope none of us come back as a fish that is sold to a person like that.

 

[Alia]

Well, that would be a rotten break, spending one lifetime worrying about the poor fish and the next lifetime being one! I prefer to believe that those who are cruel and inhumane will spend their future lifetime(s) as helpless and miserable creatures. That's the only real justice.

I almost forgot, we all could start plaguing the WalMart Corporation with letters/e-mails complaining about these displays of bettas ( and frogs!) in cups and say things like that it doesn't fit with their image, some trash like that. You'd be surprised what a small percentage of their total customers will turn a big company's head, because they know there are a lot more that think it and just don't speak up.

 

[Jamnog]

i think the blue is a chemical thats supposed to improve the condition. it like fin guard or something but im not entirely shure the water should be blue with it. well i for one would be very interested in the mortality rates of thease fish. its one of the main aspects in finding out how cruel a practice is i think is abhorrant.

 

[silver]

Every time one of us is in Walmart, or a place like it, I think we should see how many dead bettas there actually are in those cups too? I am going to see next time I go and keep a record of it just for the pure curiosity. I don't go to Walmart often maybe once a month ....I LOATH the place personally. But I will still peak at the fish when I go.

Silver

 

[Pufferpack]

I almost forgot, we all could start plaguing the WalMart Corporation with letters/e-mails complaining about these displays of bettas ( and frogs!) in cups and say things like that it doesn't fit with their image, some trash like that. You'd be surprised what a small percentage of their total customers will turn a big company's head, because they know there are a lot more that think it and just don't speak up

Always sign your complaint letters to big corps with a title such as "Citizens Coalition for Fair Treatment of Fish" or "Fish Rights Action Committee"...scares suits a lot more than a letter form an individual

 

[totalbolshevik]

"but what are you going to do let them whine til they get one? besides in a few weeks they will get bored of it and the fish will probably die anyways."

First of all, yes, let them whine. If this lady already knows that they are going to let the fish die, she should definitely not let them have fish. If they want fish so badly, she should introduce them to the idea that having a pet is not all fun and games. There is a lot of hard work involved too. Also, it is okay to be experimenting with non-living things, but animals can not be experimented with. Time for a little tough love.

 

[ratts]

semper fi

well said. my mother just came home from work complaining of the same thing (about the nemo movie, and all the parents who will go out and get one for there kids). i had to call her to read to her your letter. befor i could even finish reading it she had to interupt with, well they probly think that fish will be eisier than the dalmation pup was a few years ago. so just to let you know vary well said. (although i do have a dalmation mix, although i did not go out and buy it for any reason, she was dumped at about the age of 6 ms. and we were her foster parents, the only one she would bond with was our 2 year old doughter, she's been a keeper ever since. which unlike being tied to a tree, she is laying on the floor being a compination foot stool, pillow while the girls watch a movie. even though she is stubern, hyper, spoiled lil terror, shes in heaven to have two little girls to tag alnge with, at least they can keep up with her. now that its been 5 years, she is finaly slowing down, thank god.)

as far as the tough love, my 8 year old is still complaining(3 week now) becouse she wants to put a second betta in her tank, and mean old mom wont let her see for herself why she cant. oh well some day shell get over it, probley when she decideds she wants something different, then it will just be something new to be mad at me about.

ratt