As some people might know, I just did my first betta rescue! I got him from Petco when he had a serious velvet issue, and now is all better and ready to go to a great home. This experience has been so wonderful, and it really made me think... What if I could do this all the time? That is something I would love to do, but the problem is, there is no one else I know who would be willing to take in AND properly care for a betta. So I wanted some opinions. Do you think people on this site would be willing to adopt on a frequent basis? I don't want to get fish and then have no homes for them (since I can only keep one myself). Or does anyone have any other thoughts/concerns? Any input is appreciated!
If you have the tank space and heaters and such then couldn't you just keep them a little long term and leaflet your cause? There's people around they're just hiding. Like when we have bakesales at my uni and I always make vegan treats, the vegans network and then I run out!
Ok, I already liked them on Facebook so I will send a message. Thanks!
And unfortunately I don't have the money or space for more than one or two temporary bettas. I can do leaflets though, as I used to do vegan activism so I have done that type of thing before. Although I'm pretty shy so doing it alone would be scary! Do you have any ideas for what types of locations would be the best?
Put up your flyers on bulletin boards in vets, grocery stores, and schools. I'm shy too, hate putting up flyers for my bakesales! lol But I think about the cause and the purpose and I get through it!
I emailed someone on kijiji about a 1.5g for 5$!!!!!! I offered them more if they'll deliver! Wish me luck! lol
I guess you don't really need to have a tonne of tanks laying around, spreading the word might be enough.
Haha good to know it's not just me. Bulletin boards sound like a good idea, and less scary. And good luck on that tank!
I would be buying them from the pet store and treating them, unless someone has a betta they want to give me for whatever reason. But I don't know anyone with bettas.
The trouble with buying them is that it simply encourages petshops to carry on stocking them. After all, your disgust at their conditions won't show up on their end-of-year invoices.
That being said, I admit that I have bought bettas to prevent them dying.
Pet stores will continue to stock bettas. They won't stop for one person who compassionately cares about their well being. The way I see it, with the society as it is, the big boom of the pet industry will never end. While I would never suggest to buy a puppy or a kitten or even birds and small animals from pet stores I think fish are the more profoundly impacted animal of all. Nobody cares about them. Not enough for people to lobby on the streets like they do with pet mills.
Even some stores who do not sell live animals like cats and rabbits and such still sell bettas and goldfish. They are cheap for the business to hold and they sell for cheap too. That's why most stores have the "starter kit" deals which get you a free betta or hamster with the purchase of the tank. Pet supplies=profit.
Something as small and 'insignificant' as a betta will not show up on an invoice. There is little loss at all in fact. If we buy from the store, we are suporting the cruel business of fish milling and improper care but we are saving a life. It hasn't gotten to the point where there are fish rescues as large as a dog pound.
I definitely understand your point, especially since I'm vegan and deal with this issue all the time. However, I don't see how refusing to buy a sick betta does anything for the fish. I would LOVE to change the world for animals, I really would. And I tell people all about my lifestyle, wear animal rights t-shirts, attend protests, leaflet, and do everything I can to help the cause. But I know that I personally can't change everything on my own, and that it will take years to make the difference us animal lovers want to make. So in the mean time I want to help by making individual lives better, even if it's just a few fish, I know that I will have made a difference.
Check out the eBook Betta Fish Care Made Easy
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