Why do people do this to fish?

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

Aaand something bad happened. I went into her classroom and noticed the betta was STILL in the bowl. Then I noticed two neon tetras in the five gallon. Apparently she’s getting a snail in two weeks as well. She also said she’s going to get a hermit crab. One of my friends told her hermit crabs require at least 40 gallons, and her response was, “well I’m not going to get it for a while.” I’m done trying to help her. I bought her a tank, decorations, sand, a heater, a filter, etc. I set it up for her. I TOLD her bettas need at least 5 gallons and I bought it for the betta. She just didn’t listen. So she can do what she wants, it’s obvious she won’t listen to me.

Here's a thought...
Your story sounds like something the local Press would just love to jump on.
Poor little kiddy, doing their best to save animals and the planet and fish...and a wicked teacher, throwing a gift back in their face, ignoring them and demonstrating cruelty to animals...as a teaching tool!

 

[Guyb93]

I think if the fish was suffering for education purposes then maybe it’s just one of those things , but for it to suffer so it can be painted a simple statue of the fish would of been a much better thing , the conditions people keep in Ian a reflection of the person or establishment that owns them , I like to use chickens as an example .. the condition these animals are kept is truly horrific , do we actually care .... vegans do , we still eat them after half of the leg as been taken away because it’s been rotted by ammonia from being in crap filled cages 24/7 , farmed salmon the fish are disgusting there covered in parasites and half dead apparently the meat is coloured red and pink because the fish itself is scrap , animal cruelty is actively encouraged by governments for our benefits so it’s impossible to stop individuals

 

[Deleted member 149562]

If the school administrator/head teacher refuses to do anything, then your only recourse would be to contact your local city hall's animal welfare department/animal services and explain your concerns to them. The majority of these animal services departments will act on all reported acts of cruelty regardless of species that is being kept in detrimental conditions.

The teacher and school can ignore students and co-workers all they wish but they cannot ignore the animal services dept since they are linked to local law enforcement and punishments can involve heavy fines and being banned from keeping any animal in future (plus the removal of all animals that they have at home or workplace)

 

[Callisto405]

Hi everyone!
So, my art teacher has a betta in a bowl. I brought her a nice five gallon for said betta. I learned today that she’s keeping the betta in the bowl and getting “a few goldfish” for the five gallon. Whyyyy?

It sounds like you are afraid to speak up to her. Just tell her, I’m sure she’ll understand.

 

[Callisto405]

If the school administrator/head teacher refuses to do anything, then your only recourse would be to contact your local city hall's animal welfare department/animal services and explain your concerns to them. The majority of these animal services departments will act on all reported acts of cruelty regardless of species that is being kept in detrimental conditions.

The teacher and school can ignore students and co-workers all they wish but they cannot ignore the animal services dept since they are linked to local law enforcement and punishments can involve heavy fines and being banned from keeping any animal in future (plus the removal of all animals that they have at home or workplace)

Are you kidding me. No one is going respond to a betta in a bowl and a goldfish in a 5 gallon tank. How fish are taken care of is up for debate and how one interprets it. They have bigger fish to fry. Pun intended.

 

[Bruce Leyland-Jones]

It sounds like you are afraid to speak up to her. Just tell her, I’m sure she’ll understand.

It sounds like you haven't read the whole thread.

 

[Sgooosh]

update on my situation: teacher was really nice
she had a 10g but used it for science experiments (what....)
gave some plants to the little fish, that's all i could do, but the fish seems a lot happier

 

[Callisto405]

It sounds like you haven't read the whole thread.

You can hear me read? You must be like a wizard or something

 

[Myraan]

not that I condone the teacher doing this, but is this thread becoming a witch-hunt?

 

[FF_Member146894]

yeah nobody can do anything about this, i would give up and hope the fish die faster so they don't have to live through their shortened lifespan of torture
after the fish inevitably die the "teacher" will probably go get another few to compensate, so it doesn't even matter anyway

 

[Guest14017]

I go back to what I said - there's nothing that can likely be done about this. Fish suffer horribly daily and in many places there are no laws to protect them. And even in places where there ARE laws, enforcing the laws is very difficult. You did all you could do.

 

[Guest14017]

Are you kidding me. No one is going respond to a betta in a bowl and a goldfish in a 5 gallon tank. How fish are taken care of is up for debate and how one interprets it. They have bigger fish to fry. Pun intended.

Exactly. Nobody is going to be bothered with this at all. It simply isn't of any priority and it is likely no laws exist anyway. None exist where I am. We have to start living in the real world and recognizing when something is beyond us. If she insists on keeping the fish there, there isn't much that can be done. The fish will exist there until he dies and the cycle repeats itself until she gets tired of fish dying and either gives up or finally listens to advice.

 

[WhistlingBadger]

One sad fact of fish keeping, and many other pursuits, is that we can advise and persuade, but in the end we can't really control anyone but ourselves. If there are helpful suggestions, it is appropriate and good to share them. Bashing someone we don't know and discussing ways to get back at them aren't helpful, so please stop. We all feel strongly about fish welfare, but let's control ourselves and keep things friendly and helpful. Thanks.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

Are you kidding me. No one is going respond to a betta in a bowl and a goldfish in a 5 gallon tank. How fish are taken care of is up for debate and how one interprets it. They have bigger fish to fry. Pun intended.

Actually no....I am not kidding

Simple reason being if this person is harming "only a fish in a bowl" what other animals have they at home who are also suffering abuse and/or cruel confinement?

From little acorns...

It is also a proven fact that many who intentionally abuse animals and who refuse to be advised or guided on how to take care of their animals, regardless of species, have other "dark" behaviours.

This person may have dogs, cats, other aquatics at home.....for all anyone knows they could be an animal hoarder......outwardly they might seem normal, hold down a good job.....you have no clue what they are doing at home

Animal services and animal welfare charities are often the first people to actually expose issues such as animal hoarding or cruelty and it usually gets triggered by what many might consider a small, insignificant event such as cruel confinement of an animal that then snowballs.

Do not kid yourself that it does not happen....from the kid pulling the wings off butterflies, to a teacher treating a fish inhumanely despite guidance and advice not to.......don't be naive and don't ignore abusive behaviour "just cos its only a fish" cos it can lead to much bigger and worse things

 

[Guest14017]

@wasmewasntit
His main point is that oftentimes in the real world where there are REAL world problems, nobody is going to listen to anything about potential fish abuse. Laws do not exist to protect them in many places (such as where I live) and nothing can or will be done most of the time.

In addition, where I live, there is always going to be fear of retaliation when you do something like what you're claiming to do. Having someone in a position of authority turn on you over a fish is not worth it.

It must be nice to live in a bubble and be able to spend as much time as one wants hugging trees, but for many people... what you are trying to do is simply not realistic whatsoever. You try to report something like that where I live, you'll just be laughed at and dismissed instantly.

The OP and the rest of us are not IGNORING the issue, we are merely being realistic about it. It is also not fair to assume that incompetent or negligent fish keeping means the person is inherently cruel. We need to understand as fish keepers that MANY view fish as insignificant, easily replaced creatures. They view mammals COMPLETELY differently. Those types of comments are the "witch hunt" types of comments that we should avoid making.

For example I view rats as insignificant, pestersome rodents that I want to ensure are NO WHERE AROUND ME. If my cat gets one, he is doing a natural behavior and doing me a favor. But some people keep rats as pets and view their welfare and lives TOTALLY differently. Doesn't mean I am inherently cruel, just different views.

So it is best to leave this one alone. Poking and prodding the way you claim is highly unlikely to yield any real results and can quickly backfire. The OP did what could be done.