Unpopular Opinions (fish related)

[Back in the fold]

I personally have mixed feelings about this one. I get that many people are offended by seeing a fish ripped apart, and I know live feeding is problematic in several ways. At the same time (as I believe I mentioned before in this thread), I consider it rather cruel not to give live food to piscivorous fish. Hunters gotta hunt. Not just fish, either. It makes me sad when I go to a zoo and see the tigers and lions being fed dead meat. It isn't because I find great pleasure in seeing a goat ripped apart, but, as the movie said, “T-Rex doesn't want to be fed. He wants to hunt. Can't just suppress 65 million years of gut instinct.” (Dr. Alan Grant, Jurassic Park)

A hunter that isn't hunting is only half living, and certainly not demonstrating its natural behavior. Most people root for the antelope in the nature films. I love seeing a prey animal pull off a good escape, but I equally love seeing a hunter use its skills to put food on the proverbial table. It's a shame to treat them as if that part of their behavior doesn't exist.

I don't want to come off as a morbid Jeffrey Dahmer or some such fiend but there's something about watching fish eat other fish that fascinates me. I had piranhas on two occasions years ago. Both times it started with three and ended with one despite regular sacrifices of goldfish. My Golden Wonder Aplocheilus lineatus will eat anything up to 1/3 their size. I've seen Angelfish with two Neon Tetras in their mouths while swallowing a third. Fish are monstrous and you really miss something by not seeing this. Bwaa Ha Ha Ha ! ! ! Release the Kraken ! ( OK , I'm alright now)

 

[PheonixKingZ]

Yes. Its common fish sense about who should never be kept with who. Those Tinfoil Barbs and other fish...trapped in a tank with Gharials? In one vid- the longest one on youtube..African Cichlids were near hollow belly.
All that expense in huge aquariums..and then save money by not feeding the fish? Terrible.

Why not just stop watching YouTube? Seems a lot of videos on there triggers you.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

I think curiosity gets the better of us sometimes.....and sites like YT feed that curiosity, sometimes too much.

In regard to the huge municiple aquariums, thankfully there are not quite so many of them nowadays since the advent of conservation has overtaken the "stand there and gawk" trend.

Municiple aquariums do have their place and as distasteful as it can be, seeing fish eating a tankmate or a fish visibly suffering ill health is quite often the only way that mere humans can actually learn how fish behave in the wild, they aren't always cute or cuddly, some of them are downright violent and murderous thugs. And since we humans are not able to watch this natural behaviour in the wild on a regular basis, seeing it in the municiple aquarium can be very shocking, very frightening and very upsetting.

The thing to remember is that the fish are not behaving any differently to their peers who live in the wild. Yes, sometimes the tankmate might not be a natural prey in the wild but the fish are still exhibiting natural predator behaviour.
No fish (or any animal) is 100% domesticated in its behaviour, so to expect a fish to be super nice to its tankmate and not eat it when it gets the urge is the stuff of fairytales.

The number of times I have seen nature films on TV with trigger warnings that animals get killed....well of course they get killed, that is a part of nature...animals kill other animals whether it be for food, in a fight, due to health issues....in the same way you are always going to have animals that don't get their fair share of food and get bullied and outcast.

It happens in nature, you cannot and should not expect it not to happen in confinement, such as a municiple or home aquarium, too

 

[Back in the fold]

@wasmewasntit Speaking of large municipal aquariums. My wife's grandson visited the Steinhart Aquarium in San Francisco this last weekend . I asked him, with much gleeful anticipation of effusive praise , how he liked it and he said "was alright". I was stunned. Most people could not care less about fish.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

@wasmewasntit Speaking of large municipal aquariums. My wife's grandson visited the Steinhart Aquarium in San Francisco this last weekend . I asked him, with much gleeful anticipation of effusive praise , how he liked it and he said "was alright". I was stunned. Most people could not care less about fish

The problem with fish is that you cannot cuddle them, they don't sit on your knee, you can't ride one (well OK apart from the swimmy mammals like dolphins)

Unless you are a real fishy person and have the patience to sit and watch them and get to know their characters...its hard for a non fishy person to relate to them....other than served with chipped potatoes or with sweetcorn in a sandwich etc

But it is weird that we can get all cooy and cuddly with a cow or pig (that we eat) but not a fish

Humans are plain weird....

 

[Stan510]

I know its obvious to the vast majority...but it can change things for the better. I almost took a position as an aquarists with Steinhart Aquarium and had worked for a local Museum on maintains aquatic displays. Including twin 50,000 gallon ponds one of Koi and the other Cali native fish like Sturgeon.

Funny when you try to be honest,boards start banning me. No profanity or threats either on my part. I thought it was just American boards until the UK aquarium plant board could not handle original opinion..well,to me just facts. TFF being my last stand-lol. Videos are 21st century. Before it was "prove it- cite articles!". These days vids are better. No eye strain..ha.

 

[Stan510]

btw - One topic that drove UKAPS crazy is that I don't make water changes. Just evaporation and maybe 10% or less water change cleaning the filter. That's it. Water quality is as good as I need. Fish are happy,carbon and lots of bimedia help.

 

[Stan510]

When I fed those Museum fish? I FED them!

 

[Stan510]

WARM- That's because fish cant make sounds to show when they are in pain. At least not sounds that make humans feel sorry for them.
Triggerd stuff? Ah,thats me being me. It doesn't carry me for the day-ha.

 

[Back in the fold]

btw - One topic that drove UKAPS crazy is that I don't make water changes. Just evaporation and maybe 10% or less water change cleaning the filter. That's it. Water quality is as good as I need. Fish are happy,carbon and lots of bimedia help.

Wow ! That's what I did in the 60's. Even in later years I was very intermittent and lackadaisical about water changes. I never had problems. My Innes book says very little on the topic of water changes. He said do 10% a month. And speaking of the seminal classic Exotic Aquarium Fishes by Dr. William T. Innes , I still consult it regularly. The basics of fish keeping have never and will never change. Put that in your pipe and smoke it !

 

[Stan510]

Here's another beef. NO aquarist on youtube should do a live streaming of over an hour. 45 minutes at the most and 30 minutes is usually enough.
To see some listed as 2:30? INSANE! NOT EPIC!

 

[Rocky998]

Here's another beef. NO aquarist on youtube should do a live streaming of over an hour. 45 minutes at the most and 30 minutes is usually enough.
To see some listed as 2:30? INSANE! NOT EPIC!

You realize you can close out of the video whenever you want and its free right? I mean you can go oh this is interesting and watch maybe 15 mins and then go: "Alright I'm done now". If someone wants to do one for that long I don't think its a problem. Some people enjoy long live streams from their favorite YTers.

 

[Stan510]

I should have added the real beef to them. They title about something I would like to hear..and then drone on with howdys. Hard to skip and find the main topic when its buried in 90 minutes or more.

 

[Rocky998]

I should have added the real beef to them. They title about something I would like to hear..and then drone on with howdys. Hard to skip and find the main topic when its buried in 90 minutes or more.

Now that I can agree with

 

[WhistlingBadger]

If I'm at 1:00 and they still haven't delivered the goods, I'm outta there. Life is too short. It's like recipe bloggers who have to tell you their life story, and the deep emotional significance this recipe has for them. JUST TELL ME HOW TO MAKE THE FOOD, ALREADY!!!