Sharks that should be banned from public sale

[krj-1168]

Actually - Elasmofreak - it was the Monterey Bay Aquarium that successfully kept the juvenile Great White for about 6 months.

But I agree with your point.

Someday - some public Aquarium with a tank the size of the Atlanta Aquariums' 6 million gallon tank - will like succeed in keeping an adult Great White.

 

[Honda12]

Sorry - but I tend to disagree. The main problem is lack of good education or just simple research about Shark Husbandary. Not the room or fund to keep sharks.

The simple fact is a crafty & knowledge hobbist could easily go out and get the materials to build a small pool(or simple buy a small pool) that roughly 6-8ft diameter about 2 ft deep (about 420-750 gallons) and build a true shark pond, for less that the cost of a 240-300 gallon aquarium. In fact for the cost of the aquarium alone (usually about $1,200 to $3,000 depending on glass or acrylic) - But for about $2,000 you could get the pool, sand, salt, and a good wet/dry sump.

Then you could safely(for the shark) - house an adult Brownbanded Bamboo, a Horn, a Epaulette, or even an exotic Japanese Wobbie(not all together of course), if you desired.

A larger pool like a 10-12ft pool(but you would need a building to house it) - cost about $4,000, could house Port Jackson's, or even smoothhounds.

But the more active sharks like Bonnetheads, Sharpnose, or Blacktip Reefs would actually require a custom built tank/pool to safely house - but could be done.


It's all a matter of how badly you want it.

I get what you are saying. I could go out tomorrow and get the stuff to build a 13'x6'x4' pond for a shark in my basement if I wanted to. I have also done plenty of reasearch to keep a shark if I felt the need to.

The thing is, is that most people won't commit to houseing a shark like that or do the adaquite reasearch.

I also don't think it is all a matter of how badly you want it. Cause I could go out tomorrow and buy a port jackson shark for $65, yes $65 and stuff it in my 90gl with out doing any reasearch about the shark.

I guess I just don't like the fact that most of the commonly sold sharks I see are like nurse, wobbegongs, black tips and for a cheap price no less. I rarely see bamboo sharks that someone would have an easier time houseing then the others. And when I see these big sharks for sale they aren't for sale for long cause there are morons out there that are willing to spend a couple hundred to have shark.

I guess the other sharks should be availible but they should only be availible with a bigger price tag, so that you get a person that is willing to commit because of the price. Cause I know if I want something I am willing to pay for it.

 

[Justin_James]

My opinion on the topic is quite simple and short. I feel that as long as you have the knowledge and money you can keep anything you want but because of people that impulse buy the shark hobby is getting a bad name. Knowledge is the key to keeping sharks and research can be extensive and tiresome but if you cant take the time to do that part than where are you going to find the time to look after a shark?

I think that petstores should not carry them in stock since this causes impulse buyers to jump at the chance of owning a shark then they end up throwing a banded bamboo in a 55and expect it to do well at home. Most petstores dont know a darn thing about what they are selling either and will tell you crap like "a nurse shark will do well in a 300 gallon". Tank size is not the only mistake unedgucated buyers make, diet is also a leading killer of young sharks in captivity. Most pet stores will tell you that they will be fine on goldfish and shrimp. I will say though that not all petstores are like this but it is common to see it.

If a person can show proof that they really do have the right size tank and the knowledge to care for the particular species being ordered and the store is willing to special order it in then I say power to them and good luck with your shark.

It's a matter of knowledge and money, not species and availabiltiy.

 

[thefishofdoom]

i say anything should be availlable but more exotic/ dangerous stuff like large sharks would have to be special orderd because how would u speciale order somthing that u didnt have a clue about till u took the time to reasearch. you shouldent ban anything unless it poses a great danger. but i still dont agree with that. there are gonna be hobbists like me that are gonna want stuff like larger sharks but will have a fit because people banned them just because they could not own them but the more experenced hobbist can. it would not be fair to ban somthing just because u cant keep it and some one else can.

 

[Elasmofreak]

Actually - Elasmofreak - it was the Monterey Bay Aquarium that successfully kept the juvenile Great White for about 6 months.

But I agree with your point.

Someday - some public Aquarium with a tank the size of the Atlanta Aquariums' 6 million gallon tank - will like succeed in keeping an adult Great White.

My bad on that one! Idk what i was thinking. but yeah i cant wait to see adult great whites in captivity! That will be fenominal!!! I have seen the whale sharks at Atlanta. that is truly a site to see. Its an inspiration to us all that anything is possible!
I wonder if and when they house great whites', what they will feed them? Seals?? Haha! That would be a true site to see... a Great white breech the aquarium while it tears up a seal! Its amazing enough seeing it on Discovery... I cant imagine what it would be like seeing it right in front of your face.
& no im not being serious about the seal thing. Obviously the aqairium would have moral ethics. Although im not going to say i wouldnt enjoy it!

 

[krj-1168]

Hmmm ...

You have a point there - fishofdoom.

Maybe a better term that banned is - Restricted.

That way - a person would have to have a special license or premit to own the larger sharks - like Nurse, (larger) wobbies, Blacktips, & Whitetips.

I also tend to agree, Justin_James - that LFSs are part of the problem. Misinformation by the LFSs (either do to lack of knowledge on the part of the employees, or just trying to make a quick buck), is a leading cause of impulse buyers getting their hands on sharks.
But unfortunately - misinformation is actually fairly common with the entire pet trade. It happens among dog breeders, cat breeders, Parrot breeders, Reptile breeders & even in retail pet shops.

I also don't think it is all a matter of how badly you want it. Cause I could go out tomorrow and buy a port jackson shark for $65, yes $65 and stuff it in my 90gl with out doing any reasearch about the shark.

Wow! - Really, Honda12. Because, man would I love to have your resources. Every place that I've seen that offers Port Jackson's - wants at least $ 250 for a pup.

I guess I just don't like the fact that most of the commonly sold sharks I see are like nurse, wobbegongs, black tips and for a cheap price no less. I rarely see bamboo sharks that someone would have an easier time houseing then the others. And when I see these big sharks for sale they aren't for sale for long cause there are morons out there that are willing to spend a couple hundred to have shark.

I understand, your point. But I would exactly call Nurses & Blacktips - common. Still I agree that these sharks only belong in the hands of professionals or very experienced shark keepers.

When I lived in Raleigh,NC(which I did for most of my life), their were 3 main LFSs that I visited fairly often and in the past decade - I saw exactly - 1 Blacktip pup, 2 leopards pups(before they became illegal to own), 2 Nurse pups, 1 "Zebra" pup & no wobbies. But during the same period, 2 dozen Brown-banded Bamboos(or egg cases), about a half dozen Whitespotted Bamboos, 5 Coral catsharks, 4 Horn sharks, & 1 marbled catshark.

By the way - Raleigh,NC(has population of about 300,000 in the city alone - about 500,000 in the entire county) - so it's not a small town.

But generally - for ever Nurse or Blacktip that a large LFS sales - they will sale at least a half dozen Bamboos, cats, & Horn sharks.

As a general rule - Bamboos, cats, & horns are a lot cheaper & more common than Nurses & Blacktips. Still IMO, Nurses are just way too cheap(even at $200-300 each), these sharks shouldn't be available in LFSs at all. Blacktips are at least retailing around
$1,000 now, which will hopefully keep them out of the hands of novices.

 

[rocsorcs]

Someday - some public Aquarium with a tank the size of the Atlanta Aquariums' 6 million gallon tank - will like succeed in keeping an adult Great White.

Dude, DO NOT fall into that thing while cleaning the glass. lol.

 

[jayl]

Does the Lemon shark pose a real threat to hobbyists ? I've been doing a lot of reading and they seem to be pretty dangerous, yet I've found them for sale on at least 4 different web pages...Crazy stuff!! I've wanted a small shark for a 300 gallon but I would never want to cramp or hurt an animal like that! Although I must say that the Lemon sharks are so fascinating to me, and if I ever did a shark pool.....hmm......haha!

 

[krj-1168]

First off - jayl -Lemons are born at about 2' in length. And, they are very activity & aggressive sharks, even as pups.

Even though Scott Micheal recommends a pool of at least 10,000 gallons. The truth is that's still way too small for an adult. Adult Lemons max out at over 11', and regular reach 9' in length. Also Lemons are #10 on the Shark Attack List - with 10 cases of unprevoked attacks on humans.

And yes, I will take several years for them to reach their adult size - then a single adult will require a shark pool or tank that's at least 32,000 gallons(absolute minimum).

Plus this is a shark that should only be kept by very VERY experienced or professional shark keepers.

 

[michael]

I agree....there are a ton of fish that should not be so readily available

and a ton of fish should be available that aren't