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Heck, I'll take that 500 gallon African Cichlid tank so he doesn't have to bother with it

When I become famous yeah right, like that will ever happen I'll still keep fish and will still keep visiting here...that is when I become famous

heidi michelle

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

I visit public aquariums and enjoy watching fish that I'm not taking care of, that in many cases I'd find difficult or impossible to care for (Jellyfish, Seadragons, Nurse Sharks ...). Aren't people allowed to enjoy things they don't understand? I'm no mechanic, but I own a car. I'm no architect, but I live in a house.

As long as someone is taking care of the fish properly, who cares whether it's a hired hand? Why begrudge people the joy of a beautiful aquarium just because their energies are focused somewhere other than chemicals and aquascaping?

-Molly
Visit shelldwellers.com!

Cars and houses are inanimate objects. Would it be okay for somebody to buy a dog just because they like the way it looks, and then pay somebody else to come over to their house and take care of and play with it?

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

Cory,
Let's suppose for a moment that for some reason you become unable to care for your tanks yourself but have the means to hire someone to do it. Does that mean because you can't do it yourself you must not own an aquarium?

People own dogs and hire others to walk them. People own horses and hire other to ride them and keep them fit. People own racing pigeons and hire others to train and fly them. There is nothing wrong with any of those and neither is there anything wrong with owning a tank and having someone else take care of it.

Just my opinion, Mike

Thats a rather weak argument Cory.

The animals are getting taken care of, thats more than some people can say for the tanks they take care of themselves.

Not to mention a lot of professionals don't have time to deal with things such as that. I see fish tanks in Dr. offices and hospitals all the time, I gurantee the Dr's aren't the ones doing tank maintence. Does that mean places shouldn't be allowed to have fish tanks? I'd say not, especially since from a medical stand point they have proven to be very effective at relaxiation.

A fish tank in a car is the worst idea I've ever heard of. The noise and movement would mean constant stress for the fish. ]

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I'm not your neighbor, you Bakersfield trash.

I was watching a show about seriously overdone cars that celebs have. The one... I want to say it was owned by Busta Rhymes or something like it. It was a rapper anyway. He had a big Hummer that he had made so that the entire back of it, from the backs of the front seats, to the rear of the vehicle was made into a big fish tank. All so he could drive to the beach with his own sharks swimming around in his Hummer! I thought that was going WAY too far, but as far as celebrities having amazing tanks in their house and paying professionals to take care of them, I have no issue with that. Heck, if I was discustingly rich, and could have what I wanted at the drop of a hat, I would have some intensely huge tanks made as real to their natural habitats as possible, and I would happily pay someone else to do all the dirty work while I did all the fun things! LOL!

I like the idea of a fishsitter, Oleta.
I'd love to have that as a part time job.

no the rapper (?) / actor, romeo!!

"lil" romeo

w/missy elliot

& THE OSBOURNES!!! they have like an empty fishtank near their kitchen or something...The fish kept on dying so now they have an empty fishtank

Last edited by dude_dude at 07-May-2005 07:01

Isn't Romeo dead? And wasn't he a fictional character anyway?

*puzzled*

ROMEO, I just saw a (chichilid?) tank inside romeo's house (his own ) on vh1!!!!

Last edited by dude_dude at 07-May-2005 02:33

The question is probably to hard to answer because you would have to know that person enough to know whether they put any effort into their tanks or not.
I've seen tanks in celebrities homes on tv many times but I wouldn't have a clue as to whether they clean them themselves or not

Troy, I think I did

I can only say I know of several personally. But, in confidentiality to them, I will not name them. And yes, one has a very large shark tank in his Florida home. And yes, he knows all about the sharks, as well as all about the other SW fish he keeps. He does all the care for them him self, except for the water changes, they are done by professionals once per week.

_____________________________________________________________

There is always a bigger fish...

Has anyone named a celebrity yet?

*gasp* oh, no you wouldn't want to break a nail!



Anyway...

Hmm..

Well, I can see both sides of this conversation..

Should you keep fish if you have no knowledge on how to keep them?? My first instinct would be to say "no", because the fish snob in me screams that anyone that can't be bothered with wet shirt sleeves or algae removal doesn't deserve the pleasure of a beautiful aquarium.. I think it's only human to feel that way.. It's also because in most instances the lack of knowledge would lead to some pretty dire consequences for the animals in question..

But, since we're talking about people that can afford the luxury of having someone else care for their investment, it's really no different than having dogs who get passed over to dog walkers, horses that end up in stables with trainers and children who spend all their time with nannys.. It implies a level of apathy, whether it be real or imagined, and it does irk me.. Some folks have the dough to spend, the desire for aquisitions, but not the true interest for serious responsibility..

However, if someone is determined to have something - be it fish, dogs, horses or children - I'd like to know that the wealthy person in question is at least smart enough to provide knowledgeable care in the form of a caretaker.. It's not ideal IMO, but at least it's adequate, if not better than what would potentially be provided by the owner..

~ and if you're still reading this post, I'll go on a bit more just to emphasize my own hypocrisy:

To take the responsibility factor to a different issue and flip the comparison to a hobby that I'm not as deeply involved in - I'm sure if my mechanic or husband knew half of the stuff I've put my car thru, they'd both bonk me on the head and be positive I deserved it..

I love my car but there's no way I'd ever want to learn how to bleed brake lines or replace spark plugs.. It's dirty under the hood and I might *gasp* break a nail.. I enjoy my car for purely aesthetic and nostalgic reasons..

However, I do know that the gas goes in at the back end, clunking noises are not good and that bald tires are a bad thing when it's raining.. So long as the would be aquarist with a care service has some of the same common sense, it's really not all that different.. It's just all about perspective..

Why wait until you reach celebrity status to get one? It isn't like they need huge tanks or anything.

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And when he gets to Heaven, to Saint Peter he will tell: "One more Marine reporting, Sir! I've served my time in Hell."

most celebrities, if they keep fish, don't know TOO much about them. I don't have any evidence for such a conclusion, it's just an assumption.

*cough* probably comes from the fact that over the years, a decent number have decided to keep sharks and other outrageously large fish in rather confined quarters.

I don't get the shark thing... I can think of far more interesting things to keep myself.

If i was a celeb, i'd keep a mandarin goby

For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett