Feeder Fish

[Tropjunky]

i think its a horrid thing to do even though the fish haven't a clue that i'ts going to be food i think is a bad thing to do and that no true fish keeper will do this injustice to his\her fish.

 

[keith]

do yall eat fish? I LOVE fish!!! Grilled, blackned, fried, baked, you name it. I take very good care of my aquarium and my fish are happy, but they better be glad they're not an edible species or I'd be raising my dinner

 

[Perky]

CFC, I was tempted to buy 2 Chaca Chaca. Have you still got yours and what size tank etc was it in?

 

[sumer_kay]

but they better be glad they're not an edible species or I'd be raising my dinner

LMAO I can just see it, 16 goldfish on a shiskabob....

 

[keith]

too hard to filet, and trust me, I know. If things get tight, I might start druelin

 

[susangc]

I have no opinion on feeder animals, but let's face it: Nature is not particularly kind to creatures of any stripe. Without the trappings of civilization, the very young, the very old, the maimed, and the ill are dead meat.

I love my family and pets, and I don't use herbicides on my lawn because of the birds -- but if I get lost in the wrong part of the American South at the wrong time of year, I'm dead from "natural" causes. The US is still a big, wild place. That might account for the cultural difference

Susan

 

[Landlocked]

Feeders are not supported by me.

I feel that feeders should only be used if no other option is viable, and the fish can't be weaned onto frozen or flake foods.

 

[CFC]

CFC, I was tempted to buy 2 Chaca Chaca. Have you still got yours and what size tank etc was it in?

I had my chaca in a 10g (it was only 3") and no i dont have it anymore, it died in mysterious circumstances, probably a disease caught from the plattys i was feeding it.

 

[Cian McLiam]

Has anyone ever kept the Amazon Leaf Fish and fed it prepared foods? I have my eye on a pair in a LFS, but they have refused everything but live fish for the guys there.

I dont know if feeders are illegal in Ireland, but I think it would be a good move as I dont think pesonal rights or liberty should include cruelty to animals, or cultivating your very own death row at home...

I remember one ex-member here had a few species of cichlids and other fish and fed the fry from each species to each other. I dont think this is what the hobby is about and it seemed a really twisted ideology for someone that claims to love their fish.

I think there are two types of people, some think of their fish as objects or entities that are just like the aquarium furniture, interchangable and dispensable. Sure they may have curiousity about them, but what is important is what they can get from the fish in terms of excitement or visual pleasure. Once they lose the initial wow factor, they are objects again. If they die, there are plenty more in the store.

Then there are those who are interested and have appreciation for having other living things in their home, and derive satisfaction not from having something nice to look at, but from building up a mini-enviornment. Having healthy and thriving fish is more important than aesthetics, but more often than not, creating a natural enviornment has the added benifit of being beautiful in appearance as well as giving a sense of achievement when the fish pay the ultimate compliment of breeding in your home. How anyone could look at the offspring who are there against the odds and think 'great, here comes lunch boys' is really beyond me.

A lot of people are somewhere in between and thats fine by me, but I know who the fish would rather live with

Ken

 

[plecoperson]

whew! I eat meat and fish, but just if one person (i.e. me) turns veggie, it won't save any cows because the cows at my school are going to be slaughtered whether I am buying the meat or if it's Mrs. Smith down the road. nothing against vegetarians of course. I just dont believe hard enough in the cause. If keeping a certain species of fish relies on eating another fish, I canno comprehend why someone would keep it for pleaseure. surely they dont get pleasure of feeding beautiful guppies to it? leave them in the wild where its all much more ethical and fair! and yes, us slaghtering hundreds of cattle, sheep, pigs every day isnt fair either.

 

[keith]

Those of you saying not to feed fish are the same people that feed brine shrimp? How many brain cells does a organism have to have to be considered important, or cute? If you talked to the people on the sea monkey worship page they would tell you that you are cruel(found that page looking at brines). I have a snake that I feed frozen mice? All of our dogs eat chopped up horses, and we chop up cows. Fish are much less complex organisms and your double standard is silly. Your fish better turn vegin too cuz fish food is full of fish meal(chopped up fishies) and I'm sure those conditions that they make your fish food goes something like throwing guppies in a blender. Ditch the double standard. Guppies are no more complex than a fishing minow, just more color. All the romanticism is self inflicted. Long John Silvers has a new fried betta platter!!! YUM!!!

 

[sumer_kay]

Those of you saying not to feed fish are the same people that feed brine shrimp? How many brain cells does a organism have to have to be considered important, or cute? If you talked to the people on the sea monkey worship page they would tell you that you are cruel(found that page looking at brines). I have a snake that I feed frozen mice? All of our dogs eat chopped up horses, and we chop up cows. Fish are much less complex organisms and your double standard is silly. Your fish better turn vegin too cuz fish food is full of fish meal(chopped up fishies) and I'm sure those conditions that they make your fish food goes something like throwing guppies in a blender. Ditch the double standard. Guppies are no more complex than a fishing minow, just more color. All the romanticism is self inflicted. Long John Silvers has a new fried betta platter!!! YUM!!!

well said keith!! BRAVO (STANDING OVATION)

 

[LobsterOfJustice]

i agree with the above

 

[wuvmybetta]

Long John Silvers has a new fried betta platter!!! YUM!!!

 

[Cian McLiam]

Those of you saying not to feed fish are the same people that feed brine shrimp? How many brain cells does a organism have to have to be considered important, or cute? If you talked to the people on the sea monkey worship page they would tell you that you are cruel(found that page looking at brines). I have a snake that I feed frozen mice? All of our dogs eat chopped up horses, and we chop up cows. Fish are much less complex organisms and your double standard is silly. Your fish better turn vegin too cuz fish food is full of fish meal(chopped up fishies) and I'm sure those conditions that they make your fish food goes something like throwing guppies in a blender. Ditch the double standard. Guppies are no more complex than a fishing minow, just more color. All the romanticism is self inflicted. Long John Silvers has a new fried betta platter!!! YUM!!!

Your argument holds absolutely no water with me I'm afraid.

Yes I do feed baby brine shrimp to fry, why? Because they would otherwise die. If I had an alternative I would use it. If you can tell me one that my fry will eat I would love to find out, as I have tried frozen BBS and liquid foods/crushed dried foods with no success.

You are talking about two different things, as CFC said, some fish will only accept live foods, and I believe it would be cruel to starve them to death. I would not buy a fish that will only eat live food so I cant see any double standard here. If you do a search, we had this live feeders debate over many times, and my position has always been that if a fish will only eat live food, then it is your responsibility as the person who chose to buy it, to feed it.

However, as CFC said also, very few fish available for sale in the average shop cannot be persuaded to eat substitutes for live foods, if there is a substitute, you should use it, if there isn't, either dont buy the fish or take responsibility for having to feed live fish.

I dont want that responsibility as I prefer to watch fish live rather than die, and I cant see any double standard in this at all.

Ken