I need your help.

[Haiku]

I had this thought, and I hope this doesn't seem awful or shocking, it's just something I wondered about. Is there a possibility that it would be better for them to be kept still and from moving around a lot if they were being shipped and jolted around a lot, rather than shook up and bashed around in a container? Could it be possibly be to keep them safe and from ripping up their fins while being shuffled around? I'm thinking no matter how they are shipped, there's a possibility of some arriving sick or dead with the sheer amount of fish being moved about.

I'm just not sure what to think on it. I guess I would like to learn more before I formed an opinion, such as how long they have to spend like this, and exactly why it is done.

 

[eudielynn]

I've been doing some searching and I came up with:

Midwest Tropical Aquarium
N1928 Kennedy Rd
Mauston, WI 53948
(606) 666-3307

Thought it could possibly be it. Wouldn't hurt to check and see.

 

[BettaMomma]

There's the Midwest Betta Club,lead by Victoria Parnell..
http/www.midwestbettaclub.com/articles/home.asp
If they come from there then they're probably not in the bags too long. Were they veils though? Because if so than I'm willing to bet they're not club fish and that they came from overseas.

Does this not piss you guys off?
Is there not something we can collectively do to stop this?

It does and it doesn't,if that makes sense. It's the most efficient way for them to ship from overseas. They do everything in bulk and it's just their way. I'm willing to bet that the Walmart fish do come that way but they probably stop at a trans-shipper for cupping.

Hmm...
they do get a lot of crowntails and double tails.

So you're saying they could have been in those hellholes for a trip across the ocean?
This whole things makes me so angry and disgusted that I feel sick.

I'm completely depressed now.
How horrible.

This whole thing is just so huge I feel like I'm a tiny insignificant raving lunatic in the shadow of this monumental problem and there's nothing I can do about it.

 

[wuvmybetta]

This whole thing is just so huge I feel like I'm a tiny insignificant raving lunatic in the shadow of this monumental problem and there's nothing I can do about it

Well....I'm not one to say "I told you so" But it does become overwhelming and frustrating. But.. I LOVE your fire,don't let it fizzle out so quickly.

You could send a kind email to someone in the club and ask if they sell their fish to that lfs,just for starters.
I still assume they came from overseas though. But it's hard to be certain unless you ask. There's an upper midwest club as well. Wanna link?

 

[BettaMomma]

I had this thought, and I hope this doesn't seem awful or shocking, it's just something I wondered about. Is there a possibility that it would be better for them to be kept still and from moving around a lot if they were being shipped and jolted around a lot, rather than shook up and bashed around in a container? Could it be possibly be to keep them safe and from ripping up their fins while being shuffled around? I'm thinking no matter how they are shipped, there's a possibility of some arriving sick or dead with the sheer amount of fish being moved about.

I'm just not sure what to think on it. I guess I would like to learn more before I formed an opinion, such as how long they have to spend like this, and exactly why it is done.

The thing with the way they were in those bags is that if the whole thing was turned the right way, these fish could all have been caught out of the water with the amount of air they had in the bags. It was about 95% air, with (Grulla and I both thought it to be about) 3 tablespoons of water or so.

Go get a glass later today and measure out about 3 tablespoons of water into it.
You will be apalled. I even tried to adjust the bags they were floating around in and there was no way possible I could even get the fish to be completely submerged in water.

and then I saw the dead one.

 

[BettaMomma]

This whole thing is just so huge I feel like I'm a tiny insignificant raving lunatic in the shadow of this monumental problem and there's nothing I can do about it

Well....I'm not one to say "I told you so" But it does become overwhelming and frustrating. But.. I LOVE your fire,don't let it fizzle out so quickly.

You could send a kind email to someone in the club and ask if they sell their fish to that lfs,just for starters.
I still assume they came from overseas though. But it's hard to be certain unless you ask. There's an upper midwest club as well. Wanna link?

Yep - send me whatever ya got for me.

Oh, and I might just drive down to pick up Floor Boy.
Where do you live again? lol

 

[wuvmybetta]

This whole thing is just so huge I feel like I'm a tiny insignificant raving lunatic in the shadow of this monumental problem and there's nothing I can do about it

Well....I'm not one to say "I told you so" But it does become overwhelming and frustrating. But.. I LOVE your fire,don't let it fizzle out so quickly.

You could send a kind email to someone in the club and ask if they sell their fish to that lfs,just for starters.
I still assume they came from overseas though. But it's hard to be certain unless you ask. There's an upper midwest club as well. Wanna link?

Yep - send me whatever ya got for me.

Oh, and I might just drive down to pick up Floor Boy.
Where do you live again? lol

LOL! Don't worry,Floor Boy will be fine,crazy

Here's the upper midwest link,but it appears to only be a yahoo group of a site. You can still reach members though.
http/groups.yahoo.com/group/UpperMidwestBettas/

 

[Haiku]

I hope I didn't seem to be questioning your judgment in this, it's just my nature to look at things from every angle before I decide on my conclusion. It really does sound horrible . I'm sure if I had seen it in person I'd have been as apalled. If it's done purely to cut down on shipping costs... which is how it sounds... then that is just horrible

 

[BettaMomma]

Nope, not at all. You were just being logical about it
Which, when I let my emotional hot-headedness take over my logicalness goes right out the window.



and yeah - it'd be sorta like shoving all us humans down in the cargo area of a plane cuz it's more cost effective.

I'd like to make people who make these kind of decisions get into some sort of human form of this shipping. See how scary and horrible it would be fore them.

 

[MAM]

I had this thought, and I hope this doesn't seem awful or shocking, it's just something I wondered about. Is there a possibility that it would be better for them to be kept still and from moving around a lot if they were being shipped and jolted around a lot, rather than shook up and bashed around in a container? Could it be possibly be to keep them safe and from ripping up their fins while being shuffled around? I'm thinking no matter how they are shipped, there's a possibility of some arriving sick or dead with the sheer amount of fish being moved about.

I'm just not sure what to think on it. I guess I would like to learn more before I formed an opinion, such as how long they have to spend like this, and exactly why it is done.

Haiku, this is what I thought was the reasoning for it as well, to make transit "easier" on the fish (less sloshing about). Considering bettas breath differently than other fish, as long as they have constant moisture, I guess thats the idea behind it.

BettaMomma, before you give yourself stomach ulcers and a heart attack, keep in mind that most of these fish probably DID get shipped from Asia, so you're also dealing with a cultural issue here. Thats how they do it. I'm curious if any folks on here have gotten individual fish from breeders in Asia, if they too came in a fairly small amount of water................

 

[BettaMomma]

Midwest Tropical Aquarium
N1928 Kennedy Rd
Mauston, WI 53948
(606) 666-3307

Their middle 3 digits are 666.
This must be the place.
lol

 

[BettaMomma]

I've been doing some searching and I came up with:

Midwest Tropical Aquarium
N1928 Kennedy Rd
Mauston, WI 53948
(606) 666-3307

Thought it could possibly be it. Wouldn't hurt to check and see.

It wasn't them - that number is no longer in service.



I have contacted the Department of Agriculture today, though, and I'm going to file a complaint against this damn company as soon as I can find them. I'm also contacting the humane society and have talked with the animal alliance here in town.

 

[Bettaman]

I hope I didn't seem to be questioning your judgment in this, it's just my nature to look at things from every angle before I decide on my conclusion. It really does sound horrible . I'm sure if I had seen it in person I'd have been as apalled. If it's done purely to cut down on shipping costs... which is how it sounds... then that is just horrible

They breath air which would go stale quickly they are not given much water as this also stops them from doing damage to there tails in transit, there must be more air than water but 80-20 would be about right, you all want lovely tails and if you were to buy a fish for $30.00 and it was shipped in lots of water were it could swim and bite its tail you would be annoyed even more its not to cut on shipping its so more can be shipped at one time, as there is a lot of weight in water if they were not shipped this way more would die shipping would be double if not treble the cost your fish would be $80-90 a piece so better this way, i do 80% air and 20% water IE it cover the fish they are double bagged and then wrapped in newspaper so its dark and they rest and not try to swim to much.....and i haven't had a DOA yet and that also how mine come from Thailand and they are only like it for 24 hours max......

 

[BettaMomma]

Bettaman - don't you look at them and think it's just cruel?
I guess I understand the reasoning, but seeing the dead one today just really hit me as something being NOT RIGHT...
So what if we, as humans, don't want to worry about a little added extra weight? I doubt that putting enough water into those teensy weensy bags (even if it's another tablespoon or two) at least enough to cover them up so half their fins aren't sticking out of the water... would make each betta cost 75 - 85$ more.

I guess I'm just completely peeved today.
Maybe tomorrow I'll feel better, but that might also be cuz today and tonight I'm contacting all sorts of places to make sure they're aware of this.

 

[Bettaman]

no your right they should have water covering them which is what i do.....but it is just that the rest must be air people see other fish come in in huge bags filled with water thats what they need as they take the oxygen from the water.....if the Betta were in more water they could actually drown in there due to lack of clean air.............so that the point not the fact that it looks cruel as it is not it would be if they had no air to breath in but also they should as you say as soon as they get the bags open them and let in fresh air and float them to equalize water temp not leave them on the counter to get shocked ....by getting them in fresh air and warm them up gives you have is one happy betta............