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Should aquatic animals be treated like this?

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Discussion Starter · #1 ·
Today, just before I was going trick or treating, I visited my mom's friend that had a betta. The little guy was sooo tiny, younger than Equinox. When I saw him, he was in a tiny small bowl, and when I looked at his anal fin...

A big chunk was missing!!

I could tell that betta was stressed due to it's super red colors, but there was no black on the ripped place, so I knew this could be tail-biting... but it was too much ripped off for the little, unnamed betta...

no clean water, no heating, no room to swim and no food?! TERRIBLE!!!

I have really connected with that betta by secretly feeding it the pellets I give King Dedede and Equinox. It even follows my finger.

I have this ability to feel an animal's pain either by looking at it or connecting with it as I say in the speech I made up (look at my signature for the speech) and when I felt its pain, it was terrible...

It felt like that betta was calling out to me for help...

The only question I had that time was "Why? Why do people treat animals like this?" I take better care of my squirrel I befriended! :evil:

This was the WORST halloween I ever had... :cry:
 

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My husband can do this with animals as well as people. He says that he can tell when my girl is lonely and feel how excited she gets when she sees me. He can feel how much she and I mean to each other and has made a point to include her in our family.
 

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Discussion Starter · #3 ·
My husband can do this with animals as well as people. He says that he can tell when my girl is lonely and feel how excited she gets when she sees me. He can feel how much she and I mean to each other and has made a point to include her in our family.
:eek: so I'm not the only one with that ability :)

I'm so grateful, but what about the little suffering betta? what can I do? the betta is in my bldg so I can go up and down some stairs or the elevator (I live on the main floor/lobby)

I don't want the betta sufferrrrrr!!
:evil::evil::cry::cry::evil::cry::evil::cry::evil:
 

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I'm sorry you had such a bummer Halloween, Little Leaf. One way you can help your little betta friend is by talking to his owners. Tell them to come to this forum, Betta Fish and Betta Fish Care, and we'll give them all the help they need. In the meantime, the best thing you can do is keep visiting the betta and interacting with him. Be sure you have permission from his owners though. Don't want you to get in trouble.

Fish get treated like this because they are so different from our "furry" pets. Fish can't communicate discomfort like a cat or hamster can. They can't squeak or whimper or show any other signs that they are suffering and so people don't understand. Also, people have trouble telling the difference from the fish we eat like salmon and trout and the ornamental fish we keep like bettas and guppies. To most people, a fish is a fish. :(
 

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Discussion Starter · #6 ·
I'm sorry you had such a bummer Halloween, Little Leaf. One way you can help your little betta friend is by talking to his owners. Tell them to come to this forum, Betta Fish and Betta Fish Care, and we'll give them all the help they need. In the meantime, the best thing you can do is keep visiting the betta and interacting with him. Be sure you have permission from his owners though. Don't want you to get in trouble.

Fish get treated like this because they are so different from our "furry" pets. Fish can't communicate discomfort like a cat or hamster can. They can't squeak or whimper or show any other signs that they are suffering and so people don't understand. Also, people have trouble telling the difference from the fish we eat like salmon and trout and the ornamental fish we keep like bettas and guppies. To most people, a fish is a fish. :(
I think I'm gonna go tommorow after school. But the owners are kind of bad at english... sooo... they might have bad grammar... *stifling laughter* :)
 

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Discussion Starter · #8 ·
Hahaha, well, just do your best. Fortunately, the fish will understand you.
I gavee the owners a bit of betta pellets a month back, but now the betta is skinnier than before. I'm gonna go try to teach the betta to jump if he/she wants to.
 

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Aw... I'm sorry for the bad experience. As Sakura8 said, to most people a "fish is just a fish". :[ Good luck, and I sometimes have that ability. When I try to do that to Lebron, he seems bored and unamused. haha
 

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I do that with people, when my friend is down I just have to look at her/him....I know someone who has a betta in that condition.....but WORSE!!...I keep trying to convince them to give him to me but they won't budge!! Ask if you can take him, do you think they would let you?
 

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Discussion Starter · #13 ·
I do that with people, when my friend is down I just have to look at her/him....I know someone who has a betta in that condition.....but WORSE!!...I keep trying to convince them to give him to me but they won't budge!! Ask if you can take him, do you think they would let you?
hmm... on one hand I would really love another betta...
but on the other hand, I got no good tank to keep him in...

and I would really love to save that betta from it's... err... "miserble-ness"?
:)
 

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Discussion Starter · #15 ·
Ask if you can take him AND the tank. is it a bowl? You can keep him in that for awhile. Just keep up with water changes and feeding. Just ask! ;)
yea it's a bowl, I visited the betta today and I found out it was a male. I secretly named him Epic!

however... I needed a good tank for Equinox and my parents never supported me, so I'm selling Equinox for $5.00 now cause I don't want her to be in a cup for the rest of her life!! I'm worried something like that will happen to Epic if I take him!

UPDATE ON EPIC: I gave the owner a small saucer of pellets and now his anal is healing :-D
 

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Discussion Starter · #16 ·
UPDATE, URGENT: I went to visit Epic today... what I saw wasn't pretty. there was mixed up colors, black at the edge of tails and fins, white at the dorsal fins, inflamed gills... but most of all that alarmed me...

He had a red bump on his head.

The bump was swollen... I got no idea what to do! HELP?!
 

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Well . . . the best thing would be for him to get a water change. Can you describe his behavior? Most importantly, was he breathing very heavily and was he just laying there on the bottom of the tank unresponsive?
 

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Discussion Starter · #18 ·
Well . . . the best thing would be for him to get a water change. Can you describe his behavior? Most importantly, was he breathing very heavily and was he just laying there on the bottom of the tank unresponsive?
He only gets water changes 3 times a week.

Epic is darting (not too hard, but the water shakes a bit, I just can't hear the darting) and his colors are all messed up, there's red on the anal fin, orange and purple on the tail, white on the dorsal fin, but there's no ammonia, there is also fin rot affecting him a little bit. oh, and the red swollen bump on his head seems to be bothering him a bit, I think. He stops sometimes and his breathing goes really heavy... (like when someone has run a marathon without any training and has terrible staminia and has run non stop) he wasn't laying on the bottom of the tank though, he just darted, then stopped and started breathing heavily. this reminds me of those bettas in Pacific Mall that seemed to call out for help... (worst place to buy pets) Epic was really screaming out to me, hard...

What do I do? I tried to ask to temporarily keep him until he's better, but the owners said no... This is so frustrating... it feels like if he dies, it's gonna be my fault... I'm so discouraged right now.
 

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He only gets water changes 3 times a week.

Epic is darting (not too hard, but the water shakes a bit, I just can't hear the darting) and his colors are all messed up, there's red on the anal fin, orange and purple on the tail, white on the dorsal fin, but there's no ammonia, there is also fin rot affecting him a little bit. oh, and the red swollen bump on his head seems to be bothering him a bit, I think. He stops sometimes and his breathing goes really heavy... (like when someone has run a marathon without any training and has terrible staminia and has run non stop) he wasn't laying on the bottom of the tank though, he just darted, then stopped and started breathing heavily. this reminds me of those bettas in Pacific Mall that seemed to call out for help... (worst place to buy pets) Epic was really screaming out to me, hard...

What do I do? I tried to ask to temporarily keep him until he's better, but the owners said no... This is so frustrating... it feels like if he dies, it's gonna be my fault... I'm so discouraged right now.
I agree with Sakura, another water change should help. I honestly don't know what else you should do. Add in IAL or washed dried oak leaves. I really can't believe the whole mixed up colors with you and bettas. There can't be any fin rot if there's no ammonia. How do you know there's no ammonia? And don't blame yourself if he dies, it's the true owner's fault.
 

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Discussion Starter · #20 ·
I agree with Sakura, another water change should help. I honestly don't know what else you should do. Add in IAL or washed dried oak leaves. I really can't believe the whole mixed up colors with you and bettas. There can't be any fin rot if there's no ammonia. How do you know there's no ammonia? And don't blame yourself if he dies, it's the true owner's fault.
OK.
also, I don't get the part: "I really can't believe the whole mixed up colors with you and bettas." I got confused...


(ps. nevermind the ammonia thing, I was just guessing cause the water was clean ^.^)
 
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