Do you think pet fish are aware of their imprisonment?

CruelCoin

You cannot compare this: http://www.partnerhomes.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/gold-fish-bowl.jpg

with this: http://boneblogger.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Home_aqua_240_litres.png

A fish tank done properly, with good attention to nutrition, water quality, substrate, filtration, environment, etc... will and does result in happy fish.

Most colourfull fish are good self-indicators of happiness, as they lose their colour when stressed, and regain it when all is well.

EclipsiumRasa

CruelCoin wrote: »

You cannot compare this: http://www.partnerhomes.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/gold-fish-bowl.jpg

with this: http://boneblogger.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Home_aqua_240_litres.png

A fish tank done properly, with good attention to nutrition, water quality, substrate, filtration, environment, etc... will and does result in happy fish.

Most colourfull fish are good self-indicators of happiness, as they lose their colour when stressed, and regain it when all is well.

I did not know this. I learned something today.

starlit

I did not know that based on their colour. Seen them of different colours and would notice one livelier than the other dependent on their colour!?

Do they have a language?? :eek:

D1stant

Silverfish wrote: »

Lot of myths around goldfish, such as 7 second memories, they live in bowls, or they don't feel pain, or they only live 2 years.

They respond to clicker training, and remember lots of basic stuff, like what food tastes good, what stuff tastes bad, who feeds them, and what time they get fed at. Of course if they're kept in the right size tank, they'll exhibit this behaviour, if they're kept in bad water or a horrible environment, they'll be dull and listless, and won't interact.

How does a goldfish interact?

Twitter?

RADIUS

doovdela wrote: »

I doubt they do as I can recall that goldfish only have about a 7 second memory they forget where they were and what they did 7 seconds ago. So its like their 7 second memory is being wiped out every 7 seconds.

That's well known to be a myth.

Different species of fish have different levels of intellegnce.

Some pet fish, such as the Oscar, Astronotus ocellatus, can be thought simple tricks.


A good fish keeper tries to recreate a portion of the fishes habitat. (biome aquarium). Fish in a well set up and suitably large tank will display their most natural behavior and best colours.

A Koi fish in a garden pond may look dumb, but they learn to recognize the person who feeds them everyday.

Koi have been known to live to the grand age of 200+ years old. Goldfish can live until their late 40's. But not in a crappy bowl!

Bowl's are a cruel way to keep fish as they don't allow enough surface area to absorb the amount of oxygen needed for the nitrogen cycle to occur, which is what normally keeps tank water clean. A fish in a bowl is basically dieing very slowly from swimming in it's own waste causing suffocation.

That's why they gasp at the top.

kylith

doovdela wrote: »

I did not know that based on their colour. Seen them of different colours and would notice one livelier than the other dependent on their colour!?

Do they have a language?? :eek:

Not a language as such, but they do communicate with body language and colour.

Dr. Ego

F*ck em, they're only fish.

I've 3 which got for the kids years ago, they got bored with them after a few days.
I don't look after them properly & I've often been on holidays for 2 weeks to find them still alive when I get home.
Water has to be green before I clean it & kids are forever throwing toys into the tank.
I'm the worst fish owner in the world & they're still alive 3 years later.

Reloc8

Dr. Ego wrote: »

F*ck em, they're only fish.

I've 3 which got for the kids years ago, they got bored with them after a few days.
I don't look after them properly & I've often been on holidays for 2 weeks to find them still alive when I get home.
Water has to be green before I clean it & kids are forever throwing toys into the tank.
I'm the worst fish owner in the world & they're still alive 3 years later.

It does no credit to you or your brood to keep animals in your house in that condition. Do 'em a favour and try and rehome them. Failing that look after them properly. Failing that knock them on the head and give them a quick death. You have them swimming around in more or less a toxic sludge - it's not very nice for them and they didn't ask you to buy them.

Lone Stone

I had a tank of tropical fish once, my red finned shark fish killed all my god dam guppies !

CruelCoin

Lone Stone wrote: »

I had a tank of tropical fish once, my red finned shark fish killed all my god dam guppies !

Yup,

Long finned species like guppies are prone to being fin-nipped/killed by many other species.

You really need to do your research first.

Example: If you want freshwater snails, then don't put them in a tank with Loaches! Snails will be dead.

A good broad rule of thumb to follow is, a fish will generally try to each any other fish that will fit in its mouth, so keep this in mind when choosing fish to put together!

folan

mine is, especially since i put in the bars!

csi vegas

Cybercubed wrote: »

I've been watching a pet goldfish swim around it's tank and it looks so depressed.

I hope it's not aware.

Aware. Defeating depression since 1985

ADonoghue

I used to keep two goldfish , one was named bob because the other kept swimming after him saying " bob , bob, bob

opinion guy

bluewolf wrote: »

I had one repeatedly attempt suicide

How?


Anyhow I suspect they have an inner monologue.

Their actions are continually narrated by a Geordie voice in their heads saying stuff like
'Day 4,523 in the Goldfish Bowl........Goldie investigate the sunken castle.......again'

...that might just be the schizophrenic fish though:(

opinion guy

opinion guy wrote: »

How?


Anyhow I suspect they have an inner monologue.

Their actions are continually narrated by a Geordie voice in their heads saying stuff like
'Day 4,523 in the Goldfish Bowl........Goldie investigate the sunken castle.......again'

...that might just be the schizophrenic fish though:(

kept flipping itself out of its bowl
we wondered how we kept finding it on the ground until we saw it doing it at last

Where To

Does anyone know how long of a memory goldfish have?

Mimikyu

This post has been deleted.

livinsane

I have a goldfish for over 6 years. Not sure what age he is in total as I adopted him from someone, who's housemate moved out and left him. He's moved twice with me.

Honestly, they make wonderful pets. Im always talking and singing to him and he just stops swimming and stares at me, like he's listening! When I stop, he goes on his merry way swimming. I get him to follow my finger around the tank too.

I will be devastated when he dies.