Fish Club?

[Red]

I was thinking about starting a club at school, and it would be like some sort of fish club kind of thing. Has anybody ever done something like this? Do you think it would be worth even trying? Thanks everybody!

[fishlover49]

Sounds like a plan to me! thumbs2:

[Wild Turkey]

I was thinking about starting a club at school, and it would be like some sort of fish club kind of thing. Has anybody ever done something like this? Do you think it would be worth even trying? Thanks everybody!

How many kids are at your school? Thats probably the biggest factor. In my highschool there were about 2600 kids and im sure i would have been the only kid at a fish meeting. Lets see...Warhammer40k club had 3...chess club had 8 or so...out of 2600! lol Its hard to convince people to spend extra time somewhere they hate i guess. Shouldnt let that stop you from trying, anyways, besides it might get some aqua-dorks to come out of the woodwork even if they dont come to meetings, Just make ur emails available.

[LadyHatred]

I think that would be an awesome idea. Even the toughest "gangstah homey" (omg I can't believe I even typed that!) can enjoy an aquarium; especially seeing how many aggresive fish one can keep. Its no longer the goldfish faire prize these days!

[PUNISHER VETTE]

Only way i can see this working is if you can somehow get a sponsor. Someone who can offer a free fish or some cheap equipment or knowledge that might entice students to get interested in the hobby. Kinda like creating a workshop where students can come and build their tank...

Maybe the school can offer certain funds to after school clubs? Probably not but it's worth looking into any possible way you can somehow get money for a workshop.

If not i just can't see enough kids interested in the hobby.

[Red]

My school is one of the biggest schools in the state. I think i have already came up with a teacher (you need one teacher) and he has many fish tanks. The funding is still up for grabs. I have talked to some people ( like five people haa) but they know what they are doing. I was thinking about extending it to maybe 2 meeting per month, one after school or whenever and then us going to a couple LFS or going to a GCA meeting or swap. I know the shed will sponser things like this (pretty much advertise) but will give you behind the scenes and stuff like that.

[PUNISHER VETTE]

My school is one of the biggest schools in the state. I think i have already came up with a teacher (you need one teacher) and he has many fish tanks. The funding is still up for grabs. I have talked to some people ( like five people haa) but they know what they are doing. I was thinking about extending it to maybe 2 meeting per month, one after school or whenever and then us going to a couple LFS or going to a GCA meeting or swap. I know the shed will sponser things like this (pretty much advertise) but will give you behind the scenes and stuff like that.


that would be cool. See if the Shed can give your members free admittance to their place for a day or something. That might attract members to join up.

[Red]

Yeah, and then we have the like bus van things that a teacher could drive us up there. I got to see if we could raise the money to start the club though. I think it costs like 200 bucks to get it going though :(

[btate617]

Even if you get one or two people interested in the hobby I would say you have succeeded. Good luck to you :thumb:

Brian

[Mvjnz]

Sounds like a lot of hassle and time and effort spent for no particularly good reason to me.

If you want friends who are into aquariums, I'd just look in the forums for people in your area, go to auctions etc.

[NickFish]

I don't know, I highly doubt anyone would show up for the meetings initially. I mean, everyone on here probably would if we went to your school but young people like us that are addicted are few and far between, and even someone who loves fish may still not come. I've only ever met in real life one person my age who was really into fish. And even online how many of us are there? A few hundred of us out of the 1 or 2 billion that are connected to computers? That gives you something like a .00001% chance of finding someone like that in your school. I'm the only person under 20 in my fish club of 100+ people. Bottom line I think is that most serious fishkeepers are older.

Still, that being said you may probably get a few people if you can convince them. Pretty much every family has had a goldfish or betta at some point, I think if you could set up a good ad campaign you could convince new people to start keeping fish. You might be the only person in your club with a tank over 10g, eventually there would be very little to talk about unless you can convince people to move up with the hobby. I would have to say it depends on how good a marketeer you are.
Either that or the old stand-by, get a handful of hot girls to join and see how many people bought fish tanks that week. :hmm3grin2orange:

Ever think of joining a fish club outside of school?

[Glub]

The first rule about fish club, is that you don't talk about fish club. :22:


Sounds like a lot of hassle and time and effort spent for no particularly good reason to me.

If you want friends who are into aquariums, I'd just look in the forums for people in your area, go to auctions etc.

I'd kinda have to agree... What do you intend to do in a fish club that you can't do with your friends? Talk about fish for an hour? I think you can really only talk about fish with the same group of people for so long until you realize that all you're doing is having the same discussions about the same fish over and over again.

And you know you're going to be seen as the group of kids who gather after school to sit and talk about fish... Don't bring your own fish in to school, it wont help the reputation. But I think a lot of kids would rather go home and hop on MSN to talk to their friends about their interests instead of spending an extra hour at school for dedicated fish discussion.

I mean you're really trying to form a club over something that's already low in popularity, and that has limited room for group involvement.

Considering how many people aren't responsible enough to properly keep fish, I don't know why you'd want the hobby getting any more popular. More people in the hobby = higher demand for fish = more stress on fish populations and the land taken to breed them.

Animals are a neat hobby if they're sort of your calling. But it's not something I think people should just be picking up on a whim in highschool.

[btate617]

The first rule about fish club, is that you don't talk about fish club. :22:




I mean you're really trying to form a club over something that's already low in popularity, and that has limited room for group involvement.

Considering how many people aren't responsible enough to properly keep fish, I don't know why you'd want the hobby getting any more popular. More people in the hobby = higher demand for fish = more stress on fish populations and the land taken to breed them.

Animals are a neat hobby if they're sort of your calling. But it's not something I think people should just be picking up on a whim in highschool.


Wow, He's trying to get people involved in a hobby that obviously we all enjoy because we are here.

I dont know why you'd want the hobby getting anymore popular...... holy crap. Why do you come here? To come and share your experience? Maybe learn a thing or two? Think what you might learn if there was say 25,000 members here..... lots more info to spread around yes. Forums are a great way to learn, even if you are not into saltwater maybe once a week read a S/W post, learn something new. If we kept those S/W people out because we didn't want the hobby getting anymore popular.... what would happen if one day we decided to do a S/W tank. Or keep a new freshwater fish we have never kept. Where would this info come from then. You could teach a kid to clean a betta bowl probably, maybe thats what does it to get that person started.

Here's an example of what could happen if hobbyest don't get involved.
Take Herichthys Labridens for example. An awesome cichlid. Here's a bit of a write up from another site about this fish......
The sad part is with the canal that was built into Media Luna from the nearby town introducing Herichthys carpntis it is a sight you do not really see in Media Luna anymore (one of my top three places in the world I have ever seen!) even when i last went it was already very hard to find labridens that was true on both sexes anymore with the carpintis hybridizing in. So it is seemingly left to us the hobbyist to cary this magnificient fish on. Not only for colour but their feeding behaviors with fry of stirring up sediment for the fry to feed off of is amazing.
So if people were not interested in breeding this fish honestly it could be gone. Here's a clip hopefully it works.
[Only Registered Users Can See Links.]

Here is someone already interested in the hobby, he would be my pick to try and teach someone new then someone at a LFS selling another oscar the same day they sell that person a 10GAL kit.

Without people already in the hobby teaching others, who's going to do it?
I still think what you are doing is a great idea, no you are not going to have a club with a thousand members, but give it a go.


And you know you're going to be seen as the group of kids who gather after school to sit and talk about fish... Don't bring your own fish in to school, it wont help the reputation.
You can't teach them from a closet.
Just my opinion, but all the clubs any of us go to, they all started with one member. No you won't save the world but give it a go.

Brian

[Glub]

holy crap. Why do you come here? To come and share your experience? Maybe learn a thing or two? Think what you might learn if there was say 25,000 members here..... lots more info to spread around yes. Forums are a great way to learn, even if you are not into saltwater maybe once a week read a S/W post, learn something new. If we kept those S/W people out because we didn't want the hobby getting anymore popular.... what would happen if one day we decided to do a S/W tank. Or keep a new freshwater fish we have never kept. Where would this info come from then.

I'm not saying keep people out of the hobby, I'm saying you don't really need to be dragging them into it. It's not like fishkeeping is some exotic closely guarded secret. It's not as if forums like AC are difficult to come by. It's not like there aren't clubs established all over the world. Anyone who has any vague interest in keeping fish has absolutely nothing stopping them from learning about it, and if they aren't willing to take that initiative, I can only question how serious they could really be about it.

You don't really need some kid at school to give you a fish and tell you to come to meetings to talk about it. That's not exactly the best way to find people who are serious about keeping the fish, and who are serious about adding to the collective knowledge we have. Just seems like a great way to get a bunch of kids buying fish who are eventually going to lose interest over the summer once the club takes a break.

I'm not saying people shouldn't be allowed to learn... I'm just saying, it's not like anyone hasn't heard of fish keeping and really needs you to show them what it is to decide if they want to do it or not. It's not like these people have never seen an aquarium. If they really have no idea what an aquarium is, it's probably because they never cared that much in the first place and probably wont take the club seriously enough to keep the fish for the full long run.

Most teenagers think fish are stupid animals that just swim around in circles when you jam a stick through their gill slits. It's not like he's targeting the most intelligent or serious age group for this, and granted there are exceptions, it's not like those exceptions who do take the hobby seriously can't find and communicate with each other without spending all the time and money it would take to keep a school club running.

You can't teach them from a closet.
Just my opinion, but all the clubs any of us go to, they all started with one member. No you won't save the world but give it a go.

It's pretty irresponsible to take a pet to school...

Plenty of students would love to drop a bit of bleach in that water just to watch the 'fish geek' cry over his dead fish. Plenty of students would be willing to bump into him to watch him drop the bowl or tank he was carrying around. Students are @!!$%*#$ like that. A school is a bad place to bring your pets.

[Red]

ha thanks for your responce. Kids did mess with me in anyway. I am a wrestler and tehy respect all of us. They would not look as me as a "fish geek". And if they do, then screw them. African Americans wouldn't have rights if MLK and other black rights people were of afraid people might call them bad names. Thats not the thing i need help with.

I think of it by just saying to myself, "why not"? Not that many people may come, to be honest i would be happy with 5-10 people. We wouldn't talk about the same thing, like i said earlier we would meet maybe once or twice a month and go out and do something.

[NickFish]

African Americans wouldn't have rights if MLK and other black rights people were of afraid people might call them bad names. Thats not the thing i need help with.


So, you're like the Martin Luther King Jr. of fishkeepers? Sweet. :)

I'm all for getting a gathering of fishkeepers together, but I doubt there will be much initial involvement, unless, like I said before you go with the old standby. And it could possibly get boring after awhile. Unless meetings were monthly. Hey, you could do it but it may not be as good as you think it is. Its hard to do auctions and barbeques and field trips, swaps and all the great things clubs do with only a couple members.

Animals are a neat hobby if they're sort of your calling. But it's not something I think people should just be picking up on a whim in highschool.
I picked up fish on a whim when I was 6. Pretty little neon tetras at the pet store. They were shiny and colorful. Thats how I started off.
Fast forward a bit and look where I am now, roughly 22 tanks running. 22. I can't even believe that I once started off with a single neon tetra in a 5g. But isn't that how most of us started? Maybe not exactly but it is usually something along those lines. I'm sure when you first started keeping fish your initial thought wasn't something like "OH, look! There's those Paracheirodon innesi I've been researching! I have a few grand to burn, I think I'll start up a dozen fish tanks! But first I'll need to research for a few more months."
No, lets be honest, most people start fishkeeping on an impulse buy. But you have to start somewhere, and wouldn't it be better to start among people that actually know what they are doing rather than under the tutoring of some 15 year old petsmart employee that is only there because his/her family member works there? You need to start somewhere.

I agree with you that this isn't the most serious age group for fishkeepers, but that doesn't mean there aren't a few of us out there. How many people are under 20 on this forum? Probably quite a few. Doesn't meant there will be a lot at his school though, and those who do probably have a betta or a goldfish. Not much to talk about, and that is sort of what I'm saying. I do agree with you in a way Glub.

Sev, you'll get out what you put in. Maybe expand a bit, go beyond your school and to neighbouring schools as well. If you really put some dedication into you could possibly get your 5-10 people. Not sure how the meetings would go but if its what you like.

[escamosa]

Well Red, i've never tried settin up a club at school before, i was always to busy playin footy, but you'll never know if it can be done until ya have a go, so get to it i say and see what happens.
What's the worst thing that can happen? They might say naaaah it's not my thing, and if that happens you've still got all us crazy people at AC.:18: :hmm3grin2orange:

[Glub]

I picked up fish on a whim when I was 6. Pretty little neon tetras at the pet store. They were shiny and colorful. Thats how I started off.

Hehehe, but you were 6. How much "research" could you have comprehensibly read? :hmm3grin2orange:

I started when I was about 3 years old with 2 goldfish in a 5gal tall hex that was in our kitchen. We lost tons of fish just because one of them kept eating the other... And the one that hurt itself on the sharp plastic plant. Could have been avoided if my parents had done some research, but they weren't really interested in it at all.

But hey, 6 is pretty young. It's obviously a hobby that caught your interest at a very young age and stuck to you. Hobbies that have kept your interest from a younger age are generally the ones you're going to be inclined to take seriously and put the most work into, and that you're least likely to abandon when something new comes along. When the hobby involves living animals, I think that's pretty important.

For a 6 year old, with parents who probably didn't know what they were doing that much either, I wouldn't expect the fish to be given a perfect home. But when it's a 15 year old, I'd have to wonder why they'd never thought about keeping fish until then (granted, there's legitimate reasons), and why it took them 15 years to develop the urge to purchase a fish on a whim. Sounds more like a novelty for them. While a novelty purchase COULD turn into something more, I'd think that with 15 years of knowing about fish and never taking enough interest to get an aquarium (even on a whim), the odds of that person being exceptionally interested in the fish are somewhat lowered.

Remember, there's plenty of people, adults included, who've owned aquariums for at least 10 years, and have never once had it properly set up for their fish because they didn't really care, they just wanted to see a fish tank in one of their rooms.

But, if you're certain you have somewhere safe to keep the fish that no kids will be able to get to them during school hours, and the club isn't going to cost you any sort of money or land you with a bunch of obligations to eat up your time (or if you can afford the time), then there's really not much to lose, so why not if it's something you really want to do, as long as you're prepared for a low attendance.

I just can't help remembering all the clubs that were canceled in my school...

Warhammer club got canceled when somebody broke a bunch of the armies.

Debate club and chess club got canceled due to lack of interest. People were also stealing the chess pieces.

Christian Fellowship was canceled due to lack of interest.

As was the more broadly accepting Religion club.

The only clubs that actually survived in our school were the charity club and the environmental club. They made the news several times with their successful projects.

[escamosa]

Geez Glub, your being so nagative about this.
Red is obviously really keen on fish and want's to share it with other people who may not have fish yet. I dont know if you've got kid's or not (not callin Red a kid), but showing a little bit of support, gettin behind em and not filling thier heads up with all the bad thing's that only MIGHT happen can have a positive outcome on thier ideas or dreams.
I've got two boy's and i'm tellin ya that as soon as ya start not showing any interest in what they do or want to do then you get a negative reaction and then you have trouble gettin em to try anything.
If i was you Red i'd get into it, your not gunna loose anything by havin a go.
Go for it mate.thumbs2: thumbs2:

[NickFish]

You have to start somewhere. Mistakes WILL be made, you don't start off as a fish expert.

The absolute best place to start would be in a fish club, don't you agree? You have actual real people helping you the whole way, and actual real motivation and an actual real reason to keep fish. It has got to be the best time to start.
You're a teen, disposable income, no other real worries, lots of free time, what better time to start?
Obviously most teens aren't going to be trying a reef tank or high-tech planted right off, probably a 10g with plastic plants. Thats where most people start. I think most teens can handle that.

Best part is, say you are right Glub, and some kids don't like it, there is a whole group of other fishkeepers right there waiting to pay top dollar for any fish or equipment you might have. There's no risk. It has got to be the best time to start.

ehehe, but you were 6. How much "research" could you have comprehensibly read?
Yes, but I stuck with it all through my teen years. Heck, I went beyond that plastic 10g thing. I had planted tanks and was breeding fish for profit by the time I was 10 or 11. I'm not some child-fishkeeping-prodigy, its all about dedication and research. With the group of people you have pushing you on and offering advice and encouragement those two things take care of themselves.

[Algenco]

I say give it a try, you would have the opportunity to introduce new people to the world of aquariums and get them started on the right path

[sPuD]

I don't really tell any one at school about keeping fish, they no i have tropical fish, but if you say you breed fish its sounds just a tad creepy. . . i no i sound reallly shallow.Lol i wouldn't even let my bf in my garage cos of all the fish tanks.

It may be easier to join a club out of school and see if you just make friends with fellow fish keepers there.
otherwise before i started having fish tanks i kinda thought that is was the sorta thing people with no lives did. . .

i sound lyk a real dick ae.but its true . . . most people wont be interested, unless they actually see how cool it can be.

o well.

[NickFish]

I don't really tell any one at school about keeping fish, they no i have tropical fish, but if you say you breed fish its sounds just a tad creepy. . . i no i sound reallly shallow.Lol i wouldn't even let my bf in my garage cos of all the fish tanks.

It may be easier to join a club out of school and see if you just make friends with fellow fish keepers there.
otherwise before i started having fish tanks i kinda thought that is was the sorta thing people with no lives did. . .

i sound lyk a real dick ae.but its true . . . most people wont be interested, unless they actually see how cool it can be.

o well.
I really have to disagree.

I guess it could be one of those things that if you are already a little...unpopular it could add to it. Like if everyone already hates you thats just giving them another thing to make fun of. But if everyone already likes you and you are well respected few people are going to change their opinion of you. Better yet if a cool kid in school takes up fishkeeping it is suddenly the next big thing.

LOL, I admit breeding fish can seem kind of funny. At least until I tell people I make more breeding fish than they make at their jobs.
Corydoras Panda paid for my car. :11:

[Red]

When I tell people i breed fish and have lots of tanks and etc, I get loads of questions, like why did my fish die, what happen to this fish and stuff like that. Most of the people know i keep fish, so it would be no shocker to most.

[gourami*girl]

If you already have the support of a factuly member and think a few other students would be interested, why not give it a shot? I think you'd have a lot to talk about, just look at all the different threads that show up on here every day. If you could get some funds and/or a LFS to partially support your club, it could really be fantastic. Maybe you could set up a club or school fish tank that you collectively design.

If it doesn't work out, at least you can say that you gave it a try, and gained some valuable experience managing an organization. Plus, president and founder of your school's fish club would look mighty nice on those college applications... thumbs2:

[Sir Tristen]

LOL, I admit breeding fish can seem kind of funny. At least until I tell people I make more breeding fish than they make at their jobs.
Corydoras Panda paid for my car. :11:

That's awesome! I'd just love to have some pandas.

Red, I think there is a possibility of it working, especially if you already know a few people who are interested. I might have gone just to see what it was, had I had an aquarium club in my high school, because I had had a tank in my youth, but I didn't know squat about keeping them, so they all died. I stopped because it was a lot of work to keep fish the wrong way. Maybe my interest would have been rekindled earlier had I been given the opportunity to associate w/ fellow fishkeepers.