View Full Version : Is fish dumping illegal?
SkarloeysMom
07-19-2007, 10:51 PM
So I called this person who's selling a 20g long on Craig's list. The tank has fish in it and she said she didn't really have a place for the fish and was thinking about either flushing them or dumping them in a creek!!! As politely as possible I told her that was probably not a good idea. I told her about taking them back to Petsmart. They will take them, quarrentine them and resell them if they are found to be in good health and if you bought them there. I also told her that if she was really gonna flush them that she should just euthanize them in ice water and throw them away instead. I hate to be so cold (no pun entended) but I'm just afraid she'd gonna dump them or flush them without knowing what she's doing. So, my question...
Is dumping tropical fish in creeks illegal in the U.S.? If it is I could tell her that and she might decide giving them back to the store is a much better.
Lady Hobbs
07-19-2007, 10:56 PM
Yes. At least in all the ones I know of.
What fish is she going to get rid of? You could take them!
zackish
07-19-2007, 10:56 PM
I don't think anyone cares about a simple aquarium fish because they are going to die within several hours of dumping them wherever. It's not like introducing a new species that can actually reproduce in a certain area and make an impact.
I would say it's not illegal and even if it was....nothings illegal unless you get caught.
Drumachine09
07-19-2007, 10:59 PM
I don't think anyone cares about a simple aquarium fish because they are going to die within several hours of dumping them wherever. It's not like introducing a new species that can actually reproduce in a certain area and make an impact.
I would say it's not illegal and even if it was....nothings illegal unless you get caught.
See, now thats the kid of uneducatedness that gets me upset. It IS illegal if you dont get caught, and releasing an aquarium fish into any body of water could release diseases and such into the water. Worst case scenario, you could collapse the ecosystem.
Dumping fish is quite illegal and carries stiff penalties...
...but yes, you have to be caught.
Petsmart, as far as I know, will not take back fish past the 14 day warranty period.
SkarloeysMom
07-19-2007, 11:07 PM
Yes. At least in all the ones I know of.
What fish is she going to get rid of? You could take them!
Well, she's got guppies, mollies and pleco and I don't want them. I already have a plan for the stocking of this tank and I won't have room for them. But when I get there I'll probably change my mind cuz I'm such a big, fat sucker. Homeless animals just see me coming...oh look its a softie! She'll feed us!
SkarloeysMom
07-19-2007, 11:08 PM
Petsmart, as far as I know, will not take back fish past the 14 day warranty period.
Yes, they'll take them, with no money back of course, as an alternative to having to kill them or dump them.
salman
07-19-2007, 11:12 PM
Omg, dont let her throw them away. Who would do that? Poor fish, she doesn't deserve them.
You take them and then take them to your LFS and sell them or exchange them for some food or something.
People who would dump their fish don't deserve to keep them :(
That's odd...maybe the Petsmart policies are different in Canada vs. the US...
Drumachine09
07-19-2007, 11:41 PM
Maybe you could keep them for a bit, but put them up for "free to good home" on craigslist.
salman
07-20-2007, 12:38 AM
What is craigs list? I keep reading craig here. Like 'i saw an aquarium on craigs list or something' At first i thought it was a member here. lol
SkarloeysMom
07-20-2007, 12:40 AM
Omg, dont let her throw them away. Who would do that? Poor fish, she doesn't deserve them.
You take them and then take them to your LFS and sell them or exchange them for some food or something.
People who would dump their fish don't deserve to keep them :(
You're right, she doesn't deserve them and she's getting out of fishkeeping because, "it just isn't fun anymore." She had quite a few other comments that made me think that she really doesn't know much about it, doesn't have time to or care to know much and its probably best that she gets rid of her tank. Fish lives will be saved. She doesn't even know what kind of fish she has in her tank. She actually said, "I have an orange one." Well that narrows it down, doesn't it!
However, I'm resistant to the idea of taking on someone else's fish, especially these fish, due to all the diseases I've dealt with lately from buying fish that turned out to be sick. I'm sick of it, truthfully. (no pun entended) I feel like a fish doctor most of the time these days. She also mentioned that she'd had some fish die lately and she's not sure why.
A far as taking them to the LFS myself, I kinda feel like she should take responsibility for them since she's the one that has cared for them for a year. I just want to provide her with the information to make a good decision on her own. (can you tell I'm a mom?)
I still can't believe the her first option was to flush them! But then again there's all kinds of peeps in this world.
SkarloeysMom
07-20-2007, 12:44 AM
What is craigs list? I keep reading craig here. Like 'i saw an aquarium on craigs list or something' At first i thought it was a member here. lol
It's a free service here in the U.S. where you can list items for sale online. They are city specific so you can find something you want to buy in your town and email them, go look at it and buy it - cheap! Kinda like a online garage sale.
Do you have garage sales in Kuiwait? That's like when you take all the crap in your house that you don't want anymore, price it cheap and put it out on the driveway and people come an buy it up.
salman
07-20-2007, 12:47 AM
Kinda like a yard sale? I havn't seen any. But there are places that sell used stuff. Where you can take your furnature or whatever and you can sell it there. But im sure they dont have a website lol.
SkarloeysMom
07-20-2007, 12:47 AM
Maybe you could keep them for a bit, but put them up for "free to good home" on craigslist.
Good idea but my concern is that they may not be healthy fish and I don't want to give someone sick fish.
salman
07-20-2007, 12:51 AM
Good idea but my concern is that they may not be healthy fish and I don't want to give someone sick fish.
Tell her that she could sell them in her LFS. She will go and try to sell but if they are molly's and livebearers they will probably say no.. or give her something cheap in exchange, but she will accept it since its better then flushing it down the toilet.
I've read that guppies have survived after being flushed down the toilet.
salman
07-20-2007, 05:29 AM
I've read that guppies have survived after being flushed down the toilet.
They cant!! You have no idea whats in the sewage.
Mark Lathrop
07-20-2007, 07:20 AM
Just before I started my first tank several months ago, I was reading in the news on the internet about aquarium fish being dumped into the ocean. Of course these were saltwater dwellers, but that particular kind of species did not belong in the locale, and were thriving. They were becoming a pest and eating all of the foods in the region, causing the fish that belonged in the region to shrink in numbers due to starvation!
They even found vast amounts of aquarium marine fish off the coast of Massachusetts that had no business there. Weird stuff. You can really effect the ecosystem of some creatures by aquarium dumping. Don't do it. Many of these fish are brought here from other regions of the world for a simple hobby. They would have no natural reason for ever being in N. America.
I've read that guppies have survived after being flushed down the toilet.
Indeed not possible. How could this possibly be proven? Come on, Troy, where are you getting your information? I'll say it again. Substantiate your posts or please don't post.
Drumachine09
07-20-2007, 01:29 PM
Just before I started my first tank several months ago, I was reading in the news on the internet about aquarium fish being dumped into the ocean. Of course these were saltwater dwellers, but that particular kind of species did not belong in the locale, and were thriving. They were becoming a pest and eating all of the foods in the region, causing the fish that belonged in the region to shrink in numbers due to starvation!
They even found vast amounts of aquarium marine fish off the coast of Massachusetts that had no business there. Weird stuff. You can really effect the ecosystem of some creatures by aquarium dumping. Don't do it. Many of these fish are brought here from other regions of the world for a simple hobby. They would have no natural reason for ever being in N. America.
MY POINT EXACTLY!
In the canals in tropical florida, you should spend a day fishing. Do you know what one of the common catches is? Pacus, Oscars, and other large south american aquarium fish released by careless owners into an ecosystem that they DO NOT belong in. It makes me sick, that someone would be so irresponsible to do that. Not only could they destroy the ecosystem for the other animals, but what about the people who depend on it for food or leisure?
SkarloeysMom
07-20-2007, 01:39 PM
In the canals in tropical florida, you should spend a day fishing. Do you know what one of the common catches is? Pacus, Oscars, and other large south american aquarium fish released by careless owners into an ecosystem that they DO NOT belong in. It makes me sick, that someone would be so irresponsible to do that. Not only could they destroy the ecosystem for the other animals, but what about the people who depend on it for food or leisure?
So here's what I'm going to do. If I decide to buy the tank when I go to see it I will ask her again what she plans on doing with the fish. If she's too lazy to take them back to the Petsmart or her Mom won't take them (her Mom has a tank too) and she says something about releasing them in the creek I'll tell her that is illegal. If she's gonna flush them I'll just offer to take the fish to Petsmart myself. I really hope she will take responsibly for her pets but I guess I will if she won't.
RobbieG
07-20-2007, 06:45 PM
Good job with that! Its always nice to see someone step up to the plate!
minabird
07-20-2007, 07:30 PM
Not to belabor the point, most of the people in the US have probably seenor heard the story about the man who let 2 "small" (about a foot" long) snakeheads in a pond in a Marlyand suburb. Since then, there have been numerous sightings (ie snakeheads being caught) in the the Potomac tidal basin. And as a top predator, they are destroying the ecosystem by eating all of the native fish species. Snakeheads have also been found in Michigan and Wisconsin, where experts used to think they couldn't survive due to the cold winters.
MeganL3985
07-20-2007, 07:50 PM
Its so sad that someone could just flush fish cause they don't know how else to get rid of them! Sick, sick irresponsible pet owners!
Kuli_Loach
07-20-2007, 08:49 PM
Seen many goldfish in creeks. It ain't as sick to me but so stupid, why waste your money? Go and get what you can out of them. Give them to someone else or something. Don't waste what you have. I have had fish and tanks given to me before. I received a rather large pleco that would have costed 4 dollars when small. I took it to one of my LFS and got 12 dollars for that fish. The fish was gave to me. I made 12 dollars.
MeganL3985
07-20-2007, 08:55 PM
Goldfish aren't as bad to me, cause people keep them in their outdoor home ponds, they are obviously not as sensitive to poor water conditions. But fish such as guppies and others that are more sensitive I feel sorry for.
Drumachine09
07-20-2007, 10:00 PM
Good call skarloeys mom. Make her take responsibility, and then if she proves she is not mature enough for it, you might have to help her.
Goldfish aren't as bad to me, cause people keep them in their outdoor home ponds, they are obviously not as sensitive to poor water conditions. But fish such as guppies and others that are more sensitive I feel sorry for.
Unfortunately, Goldfish that are released into the wild may do serious ecological damage, outcompeting local species. In this sense releasing fish that may survive is a lot worse than releasing fish that has no chance of surviving and establishing a population.
Drumachine09
07-20-2007, 11:16 PM
Unfortunately, Goldfish that are released into the wild may do serious ecological damage, outcompeting local species. In this sense releasing fish that may survive is a lot worse than releasing fish that has no chance of surviving and establishing a population.
Exactly. In fact, across the street from my neighborhood, there is some yuppie, high class, neighborhood with an AWESOME fishing lake. (Restricted to "members only", but lets see them enforce that :ezpi_wink1: ), and i have actually caught a 10" koi in that lake. That should NOT be happening.
I read it in AFM. Now there are plecos wild in Florida also.
vBulletin v3.5.4, Copyright ©2000-2012, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.