Grrr...people and fish.

[Chickerdoodle13]

They had this "winter carnival" in one of the cafeterias in my school last night. They had a few activities that were fun, but one of the activities was a game where you could throw ping pong balls into tiny bowls filled with either a goldfish or a beta fish. I've seen this game before and it does stress the fish out, but the worst part is people who win the fish often keep them in those tiny little containers and you can't keep goldfish in a cup of water! They were large goldfish also. I think it is also cruel to keep bettas in that amount as well.

Anyways, at the end of the night they had about twenty five fish left and they were going to throw them all out! Everybody took the ones in the cups right away, but no one wanted the other ones who didn't have single cups. So, a girl on my floor took them and went around looking for homes. I took the last five because no one wanted them. Poor fish...I feel bad for them because they are in a 2.5 gallon tank and definitely don't have enough room, but they have to wait until next weekend when I go back home and can put them in the barrel pond I have. I guess it's better than death by garbage though...

I just don't understand why they have to use fish as the prizes. So many people just think they are throw away animals. They may be cheap, but I still hate to see animal cruelty like that! I just can't understand why they couldn't play a different game and give out prizes that aren't living!

 

[Redfeathers]

I agree, I have always wondered why they choose that game at these events, the only people that want the fish are the kids, the parents don't want the expense of buying a tank or fish bowl and food, cleaning the the darn thing isn't something most people want to do either.

I'm glad you helped them out and saved them from being tossed. Maybe you should write a letter to the school explaining how you and others feel about this and what almost happened to the left over fish.

 

[Chickadee28]

I brought home 20 gold fish from a wedding once, they were used in center pieces. I felt bad for them as they were going to be thrown out too. My daughter was in tears, so we put them in zip lock bags and brought them home. I set up an aquarium for them and they lived a happy life. I too get frustrated when I see actions that will cause a living thing to suffer.

 

[Blisschick]

I used to raise fancy goldfish (chickens of the aquarium world), and I've seen a lot of ignorance and abuse. I used to belong to a couple of goldfish forums, and it was worse than some of the stuff you see here. Comparing goldfish and chickens, they're both work to keep up with, but if you know what you're doing and don't mind actually taking care of them, it's not that hard. Most people view goldfish as dumb and disposable, so they don't put much thought into their care. (I'll give them dumb...they don't have much of a memory, but a goldfish in captivity can live for 25 years.)

 

[patandchickens]

Quote:
Very definitely.

In fact if this is *your* school, or you know people who go there, I'd suggest also getting a petition together. This is the sort of thing that tends to continue year after year just because the people who care don't say anything and the people in charge just don't think. It's usually not real hard to get it stopped. And stopping it (in a publicly announced way) also gets people to think twice when they see freebie goldfish elsewhere.

Best of luck (and yay for caring about fish!),

Pat

 

[ncgnance]

I thought things like this were against the law. I remember when I was a kid, the carnival would come to town and they had goldfishes in bowls of colored water. You could win the fish, but they always died, because of the water, I suppose. They also had these dyed ducks and chicks. I thought stuff like this had been outlawed.

 

[silkiechicken]

Yeah, my pet adventure started when I got a pair of gold fish from a wedding... Now I have hundreds of gallons of water in the house and chickens outside with turtles in a kiddie pool in the house!

People are always shocked when they see my gold fish and are amazed that it is about 9 inches long... and NOT a koi. Yes, gold fish can get big when there are just three in a 30 gallon tank... and not a 20 ounce bowl! Granted... I feed gold fish to my turtles and green sunfish too though.

 

[Lunachick]

I'm glad you helped out with the fish Chickerdoodle. They used to do that with the goldfish at the boardwalk along the shore here. That is now considered inhumane and they don't do that anymore.

I agree with Redfeathers - let the school know that it's not right.

 

[theOEGBman]

I agree as well, Lauren.

Its terrible because kids want them, and parents get them without wondering about the care requirements. It doesnt help when they hire some idiot that tells you that itty bitty bowl will be fine for its whole life. I wont let anyone I know play things like that, no way will I support it.

 

[Barnyard Dawg]

I will buy goldfish and put them in my creek/pond they keep the mosquitoes under control and let me know if anyone has done any illegal dumping into the waterways.