Ethics- Buying Large Fish...

[rsandelius]

I'm curious about the ethics of buying a monster fish when it's small and then selling it when it grows too big. I've heard people say it's just not right, other people saying that they do it all of the time.

Now, personally, I don't see any problem with it. I would love to keep a tiretrack eel while it would fit in a 55, but not when it gets so much bigger. Plus, I'll be honest. There are SOOOOOOOOO many awesome monster fish out there, doing so would increase the rotation in which I'd be able to experience new fish.

I DO understand there is a grey area to this discussion. Keeping a monster fish in an undersized aquarium WHILE you are trying to sell it is just wrong. So don't think that I'm using that as an excuse, because I full expect any of you (as my peers) would call me out on that if you saw that any of my stuff was out of line (like I know my 30 is getting small for my 6.5" bichir...).

That being said, I'm just wondering what side of this ethical fine line that most of my tend to stay on. I'm not planning on selling fish for profits, but just for the experience. I love ALL fish (goldfish pending, lol) for the curiosity, peace, and fun they bring to my life.

[rottbo]

this is exactly why i started my adoption program to save monster fish from little tanks i will not buy them most of the time but in certain cases i have been known to but i will pay shipping on them and a 30 gallon for that bichir is not to small

[Oddball]

I guess it depends on the degree of Monster you want to discuss. Finding a home for a tiretrack eel that outgrew a tank is quite a bit easier than finding a new home for a pima that's outgrown a home tank at less than half its' adult size. A half grown juvie, at over 4ft, would only find a home in the largest of home tanks. And, don't rely on "I'll donate him to Sea World". If it's a one-of-a-kind species, they may take it. But, they're not the "Boy's Town" for everyone's abandoned fish.

[rottbo]

i agree with oddball heres a link to my thread on large fish adoption


http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24034

[Miles]

I would say it's only okay if you have a definitive gameplan on what to do with the fish when it get's too big.

It upsets me when people say "I will get a bigger tank later" or "I will figure out something when it gets too big", because more often than not the fish gets neglected, is placed in a bad home, or ends up dead..

I see people buying Airapima Gigas and other XL fish all the time, assuming it should be no problem to find a home for them when they get larger.. Most public aquariums have all the Gigas they can handle.. Also, once a fish gets 'too big' for your aquarium you have to take into consideration how hard it will be to transport to it's new destination..

Sooo before you buy your monster fish, and assume you can just take it back to the LFS or find a new home for it without hastle, THINK TWICE.. Get a gameplan set up and project about what time the fish will outgrow the tank (try moving a 3' RTC in the snow..?).. This will better help you prepare and hopefully think out a good plan before you make your purchase..



PS. The XXL fish that have little to no worth at XL sizes should either be inflated in price or restricted in order to prevent these type of scenarios.. (ie: Pacus, Clown Knife, RTC, Pacus, TSN, Pacus, and more Pacus..)

[rottbo]

i agree miles but what can ya do except what i do let me know when you get more big adoptions for me in

[Miles]

I will let you know.. Should be able to ship you some monsters for a pretty good rate via Air Cargo..

I am going to set up a few stock tanks on my back porch for the summer, incase I have any unexpected XL Donations for yas! :D The LFS near me gets in big pacus, oscars, and cats on a regular basis, because they don't mention to their customers how big they get!

[rottbo]

ha the couple of lfs around here have started calling me but one wants me to pay full price for them which is insane since they are only going to keep them in little tanks untill someone buys them which they usually dont

[rsandelius]

Right... I've already contact a bunch of LFS's around me and a bunch of them said that they often did that... :) I'm anal about that kind of stuff... ask anybody who knows me. They always wonder why I research a fish for 3 weeks before I buy it... lol

[edotero]

Once I buy it, it is hard to let it go. I will only buy what will fit in my tanks or when I buy it I understand that I will need to spend the money later to get a bigger tank.

[rottbo]

but most people think that they will be able to afford the big tank right when they need it and most cant when the time comes to get the bigger setup

[rsandelius]

I'll kind of agree on that one... I bought my senegal with the plans to buy a 120 gallon for when it gets bigger... and in those 4-5 months since I bought him, other things have come about that make that less and less of a possibility... so I guess my point is...

... how bad should I feel when "life happens?"

[rottbo]

BAD
but i dont think that you have aprob with a 30 and a sengal as lon as its not overcrowded

[rsandelius]

Right... I guess that was a bad example.

[rottbo]

a good example is a 14" pacu in a 55 gallon tank

[Ang]

If the person is an experience aquarists and does their homework before buying the fish, has it in an adequatley sized tank the whole time he has it and has somewhere lined up to sell it once its too big to keep that they trust will sell it to someone who knows what they are doing, i dont see any problem with that.

WOW, that was the longest run-on sentence i've made in a while.

[rottbo]

look at my post i run sentences for ever and get picked on for it but i dont care punctuation is not for me if you wan t punctuation here ya go?<<>:"{})_*(**%&^#!,./;'[]=-

[Oddball]

I, for one, don't want to see pacu prices inflated. I routinely grow out pacus. They go from tanks, to bins, to one of the larger ponds, and finally (after a couple of months of fresh fruits and veggies) to my BBQ!!!!

[big E]

I don't really feel good about people getting the larger monsters when they know they can't take care of them, I guess it's too tempting when you can actually keep a monster for a period of time while it's still small. I think many people may have done this at some point or another myself included, :( :banhim: Poor Pacus, they really do seem to be one of the most abused fish in this sitiuation, maybe because so many people want these cute little "pirahnas" , I really wish that the big chain stores would stop selling xxl fish like these and that people would be a little more thoughtful about these animals, Pimas and other things that size range don't even really belong in the hobby UNLESS you can provide the proper housing for them and lets face it MOST people can't, even though you can run into "fish snobs" that say guppies need 500 gallons in some forums, I really think MFK is doing its part to help this problem by spreading good info around on how to properly care for these monsters. Good topic,

[Steve_89]

I will not buy a fish that I cannot keep for life.

[prm]

I hate how the chain store by me says that pacus only get 12in. That makes me so mad. I saw a guy buy two of them and I just wanted to tell him to research his fish and let him know they can get to the 3-4ft range.

[Oddball]

You have to realize the situation with pacus. These fish are farm-raised for food markets. The excess is what we find available in pet shops and department stores. Excess fry, beyond what these 2 markets can absorb, are destroyed at the farms and used for fertilizer. The pacu is a VERY prolific species with females producing up to and over 400,000 eggs each per spawn. With virtually no predation in a farming environment, the pacu farm populations must look like cockroach infestations. If even a few out of a hundred wind up living fairly well in home aquaria, that's still better off than the ones left behind.

[rottbo]

I, for one, don't want to see pacu prices inflated. I routinely grow out pacus. They go from tanks, to bins, to one of the larger ponds, and finally (after a couple of months of fresh fruits and veggies) to my BBQ!!!!
do you seriously BBQ them?? if so how do they taste??? and dont say like chicken

[Oddball]

They have a firm, flaky flesh with a very mild (unfishy) taste. I either grill them with a rub of spices or wrap them in foil along with butter, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, dill weed, and thin-sliced orange sections. Yummy!!

[rottbo]

thats how i cook catfish that i catch around here that sounds awesome but i dont know if i could kill any of my tank kept fish

[Oddball]

We're thinking of trying a couple of fillets (in the freezer) cooked with crushed pineapple and salsa.

[rottbo]

mmm how bout NEWMANS OWN pineapple salsa its my fav salsa out there

[guppy]

It really depends on the fish, I used to trade out larger redhooks and balas (10"+) all the time as there is usually a market for them, but it is harder to find homes for big catfish, pacus, other fish that exceed 3'. If you are looking for store credits or don't mind not getting full price you can usually find a taker for most healthy fish on up to around 18", esp. if they max out at 2' or less, large clowns can always find a home as can royal clowns and nice dats but a 2' marbled goby would be difficult to place. I had a steady buyer for almost everything.

[rottbo]

i will take anything large and if i cant keep it i can find a home for it guaranteed