Re: [GSAS-Member] NPR story on fish vets

["A JACOBSON" <amjacobson52@msn.com>]

I'm wondering if it is even the ethical thing?  We have a good shot at 
understanding the psyche of dog, cat, goat, etc. -- at least we're all mammals. 
 We can try to make reasonable judgments about quality of life.  Birds are 
getting further away, but since at least parrots are incredibly intelligent and 
communicative, we can make some reasonable judgments here too.  But how are we 
supposed to enter the psyche of a fish enough to know whether we are giving the 
fish a quality extension on life, or simply more days or weeks of terror, after 
giving it truly the fright of it's life and possibly taking away a fish's 
security that he/she knows what life holds, swim around, eat, defend 
territories, avoid predators, etc.  We try to avoid causing unnecessary 
physical suffering, but could we be causing unnecessary suffering none-the-less.

Though these are not thinking creatures as we know thought, they avoid death 
when possible, try hard to reproduce, seek out food, feel pain -- and judging 
from some of my cichlids actions, can anticipate the immediate future (begging 
food), will attempt to modify environment to their liking, and are capable of 
learning that some things can be trusted (eating out of our hands), and some 
things can never be trusted.  If they can learn, they can think.

Anita
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Trish<mailto:snips36@yahoo.com> 
  To: Greater Seattle Aquarium Society member 
chat<mailto:gsas-member@thekrib.com> 
  Sent: Friday, February 11, 2005 10:39 AM
  Subject: Re: [GSAS-Member] NPR story on fish vets


  A friend of mine who lives in Washington DC had a
  sugery done on his goldfish as well. To help it swim
  upright. She {the vet} implanted 2 small stones. It
  did work, but after several months the golfish died in
  the end. 

  So in the end,  is it worth the money?

  Trish
  --- Darcey Harding <darceyh@drizzle.com<mailto:darceyh@drizzle.com>> wrote:

  > 
  > 
  >
  
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4494238<http://wwwnpr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4494238>
  > 
  > All Things Considered, February 10, 2005 . 
  > 
  > A growing number of veterinarians are being trained
  > to treat pet fish that fall
  > ill. The first documented operation on a sick
  > goldfish was performed in 1993 at
  > North Carolina State University. Jessica Jones of
  > member station WUNC follows
  > one successful surgery.
  > 
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http://lists.thekrib.com/mailman/listinfo/gsas-member<http://lists.thekrib.com/mailman/listinfo/gsas-member>
  > 





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