Vegans & Aquariums

Today I was at the aquatics centre getting some fish for my aquarium ( kept them before going to uni, now I'm partially settled I've got a new tank ) and it struck me I don't really know how I feel on it.

What do you guys think about vegans keeping fish? I'd never really thought of the implications my lifestyle had on it before today.

* Also interested in anyone's set ups, if they do keep aquaria * I'm currently running a 50l planted tropical, 6 female and 3 male guppies, 6 cherry shrimp (I think).

Mine;

www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAyuUVYja8Y

Just uploaded that last night (I think - lol). Sorry about the stupid beginning, it was an old video on my phone I found last night when I was really bored and was really bored when I took the video. lol

I have been keeping fish since I was around 6 yrs old. I've kept all kinds successfully.

As far as "implications" I believe animals can have it better sometimes if given a good home with proper care than in the wild on their own. But that's just my opinion. I have watched time after time after time, fish get used to their surroundings and get to know every inch and detail of their "home" in an aquarium and "grow into it" and get used to it and become extremely happy little creatures.

Your tank sounds good. Would love to see pics!

David

IMO the two don't work together. I also had an aquarium pre-vegan and of course maintained it after going vegan, but I never "replaced" fish after they died so that situation fixed itself after a few years.

I have vegan fed cats which is enough trouble, I don't know that you could even feed fish a vegan diet, but that topic has been exhausted with regard to cats and dogs, with no resolution, countless times already.

The question that's more applicable here is how those fish are acquired. Puppy mills are a definite no no, I strongly suspect that the business of selling fish is similar or worse.

You can argue that a good home aquarium is a better place than a pet store, but there's a lot than happens before that which needs to be considered.

That said, I'm not absolutely against all sorts of animal captivity. I have two rescued cats, and I do believe their lives are better in my home than in a feral colony in a city. But even that I sometimes doubt.

Personally I don't have a *conceptual* problem with large professional aquariums, I think the purpose they serve in preservation, education, and so on may justify some captivity concerns.

A personal aquarium, populated from a pet store at least, is difficult to justify in my view.

IMO the two don't work together.

Agreed, for all the reasons Chrisjs brought up.

Agree with the others.

One option that is always open is a plant only tank. As in my new one, I don't know that I'll have any fish in it, because it is so small. I can't confine anything I don't think will exactly appreciate it.

We don't have to see them as just a box of fish. They can be much more than that, and with the growing surge in live plant tanks, a whole new world of options is available to explore in the hobby.

chrisjs - Most fish being commonly sold at pet stores can live on a vegan diet. Many african cichlids can't have anything else, or they get bloated up and die. Still there are others who are strictly carnivorous and for this reason cannot be mixed with other fish because of their specialized diets. These usually aren't the 'common' fish at pet stores, though.

One other point to make is that although there is the extreme which is the puppy mill, fish are somewhat different. Goldfish for instance come from ponds where they were very happy, and can be happy in a new home (if it is proper). Fish will NOT breed if they are not in ideal or happy conditions.

The corals sold for reef tanks in the hobby more and more are being propagated from what already exists in captivity, not being taken from the wild. Many laws are being passed all over the world to prevent "reef farming" now so as not to deplete the habitats. They suffer enough from pollution and natural disasters.

In certain cases the reef keeping hobby is serving to replenish desolate areas because of what exists in abundance in the hobby by dedicated enthusiasts.