Minimum Aquarium Size - EU Regulations

muddyfox wrote:
A few days ago one of the chaps in my LFS told me that the EU were
going to bring in a regulation on the minimum size an aquarium can be
for keeping fish, which seems fairly sensible to me. But then he told
me that the minimum would be about 60-70 litres and all smaller aquaria
would become illegal.

I have a betta which I love very much because he's such a friendly
little guy (lives in a little 22 litre, filtered, heated, tank with
plants and two little corys) and I was thinking of breeding him
eventually (allbeit, in a much larger tank for the breeding) but if I
need 60-70 litres for _each_ of the male fry there's just no way I
could do it. I was thinking about raising the males in little 10 litre
tanks.

Has anyone else heard about this?

Thanks,

muddy


I know for sure that Rome has outlawed goldfish bowls - check the BBC
news archives...

In the UK it still is not illegal but a lot of places have "best
practices" in operation and refuse to sell anything under 3 gall
(Maidenhead Aquatics being one of them)....some Pet Shops still sell the
smaller stuff...

On balance it would probably be better if these smaller tanks were
outlawed - it would save many a goldfish from torment - in the UK it
generally tends to be goldfish that get housed in these little
tanks...but it does raise a dilemma for those that breed fish or want to
keep a betta in comfort but not a massive tank for one fish...

It would be worth looking into this...maybe as ever legislation will get
pushed through without much real thought by people who understand that
there are exceptions...

Gill

On Fri, 10 Mar 2006 21:40:34 +0000, Gill Passman
wrote:

In the UK it still is not illegal but a lot of places have "best
practices" in operation and refuse to sell anything under 3 gall
(Maidenhead Aquatics being one of them)....

Now there's a business name that I would love to know the story
behind. With a name like that, there's got to be a story.

-- Mister Gardener

Do you mean 'Maidenhead'? It's just a place name over here - a town
west of London.

Yes, I agree. It's so hard to legislate in a way which will protect
goldfish and still allow reasonable practices to continue for betta
breeders.

Having said that I've seen bettas shipped to fish shops in the tiniest
containers imaginable. I don't regard this as reasonable. I found it
quite difficult to even look at them like that. I know they can
survive it, but it seemed quite horrible. The fish shop told me they
liked it in there. I can't see it that way. I've got my little betta
in a 6 gallon planted aquarium and he seems really happy, he'll take
food from my hand, he even plays in the bubbles sometimes with the
corys. He always swims up to the front of the tank if I come into the
room and he occaisionally sees himself in the glass, (only at sunset
when the light is right in the room). Then he flares and sometimes
even runs away from himself and hides in the weed the other side of the
tank. Funny little chap.

ho hum,

muddy

muddyfox wrote:
Do you mean 'Maidenhead'? It's just a place name over here - a town
west of London.


The company originated in the Maidenhead area (I'm not aware of a branch
in Maidenhead itself - they are certainly in Bourne End, Henley, Hare
Hatch - which almost qualifies)...they now are a franchise...I'm in the
UK too...I mainly shop at MA. I guess from this that you are from the UK
- I'm in the South East a few miles from Maidenhead...do a google on
Maidenhead Aquatics....

muddyfox wrote:
Yes, I agree. It's so hard to legislate in a way which will protect
goldfish and still allow reasonable practices to continue for betta
breeders.

Having said that I've seen bettas shipped to fish shops in the tiniest
containers imaginable. I don't regard this as reasonable. I found it
quite difficult to even look at them like that. I know they can
survive it, but it seemed quite horrible. The fish shop told me they
liked it in there. I can't see it that way. I've got my little betta
in a 6 gallon planted aquarium and he seems really happy, he'll take
food from my hand, he even plays in the bubbles sometimes with the
corys. He always swims up to the front of the tank if I come into the
room and he occaisionally sees himself in the glass, (only at sunset
when the light is right in the room). Then he flares and sometimes
even runs away from himself and hides in the weed the other side of the
tank. Funny little chap.

ho hum,

muddy


My betta is in a 20L tank and displays much the same qualities...he
usually responds to me and my 4 year old in the same way that you
describe but tends not to run off and hide until he thinks we are no
longer paying attention...he rarely acts this way for other family
members...

I went to one place last weekend (not somewhere I will go back to) -
they had all their bettas in bags in the display tanks - maybe I'm doing
them a disservice and they just got a delivery - I didn't ask....usually
the bettas I see are free swimming in the display tanks...

"muddyfox" wrote in news:1142033688.748248.276870
@z34g2000cwc.googlegroups.com:

Having said that I've seen bettas shipped to fish shops in the tiniest
containers imaginable. I don't regard this as reasonable. I found it

What containers?

Bettas usually come shipped in heat-sealed plastic bags just about twice
the size of a dime bag, with only enough water for the fish to stay wet and
partly submerged. This is part of the reason why Bettas can be sold so
cheaply, they require very little water weight per fish to ship.

I'm not agreeing with the whole thing, just saying it like it is.

dc wrote:
What containers?

Each betta was sitting in about 1 inch of water in the bottom of a
plastic cup not wide enough for the betta to keep it's body straight.


Bettas usually come shipped in heat-sealed plastic bags just about twice
the size of a dime bag, with only enough water for the fish to stay wet and
partly submerged. This is part of the reason why Bettas can be sold so
cheaply, they require very little water weight per fish to ship.

I think I would rather pay double and have them shipped in something
more comfortable for them, but since a lot of folk never see how
they're shipped I guess it will carry on since they don't die and it's
commercially more profitable.

I'm not agreeing with the whole thing, just saying it like it is.

Yes, I've seen the little bags too.

Gill Passman wrote:

- I'm in the South East a few miles from Maidenhead...do a google on
Maidenhead Aquatics....

I'm in SE England too. My nearest branch is in Enfield although I live
north east of London, between London and Cambridge. I've never been to
Maidenhead Aquatics but I've read really good things about them - they
have an excellent reputation. Enfield is only about 40 minutes in the
car, I might give them a try. Do you think it would be too long a
journey to be able to buy fish from there - I've always bought locally
before?

muddy

muddyfox wrote:
Gill Passman wrote:


- I'm in the South East a few miles from Maidenhead...do a google on
Maidenhead Aquatics....


I'm in SE England too. My nearest branch is in Enfield although I live
north east of London, between London and Cambridge. I've never been to
Maidenhead Aquatics but I've read really good things about them - they
have an excellent reputation. Enfield is only about 40 minutes in the
car, I might give them a try. Do you think it would be too long a
journey to be able to buy fish from there - I've always bought locally
before?

muddy


Depends on the weather I guess and if you have aircon in the car...it
takes me between 15 and 20 mins to get to the ones closest to me...

Others on this ng travel further to get their fish and some in the
States get them off the internet. So I would guess a 40 min journey
wouldn't be too bad....

Gill