Live animals sold as key-rings.


Animal cruelty is something that can really get me fired up.

"If a national animal protection law was enacted in China, such acts of cruelty could be prevented, and those who persist in causing harm and suffering to animals within their care could be prosecuted.-CNN"
 
Now on one hand...it specifically says the vendor recommends to set them free shortly pretty much....
"One vendor selling the animals outside of a Beijing subway station told CNN that the bag contained crystallized oxygen and nutrients.

She said that that the animals could live for days but also warned that they should be freed from the bag as soon as the air ran out or they would suffocate."
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Don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating this. I am saying I could see this as a street-corner pet store type thing. Now this isn't what it seems to be at all....but it could be.

I'd say leave the little guys (the animals) alone. We don't need live critters as the next 'bling' for your Iphone or key chain.
 
Jofthepeace said:
Now on one hand...it specifically says the vendor recommends to set them free shortly pretty much....
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I understand that you aren't advocated it but I wanted to make this point: I doubt the customers will go out of their way set them (a $1.50 trinket) free in the proper habitats that they each belong in (if they don't die first of suffocation)
 
It's so sad :( Poor turtles. They claim that there are "nutrients" in the water to keep them alive for a while but it's horrid. Especially when you think what you do every day with your keys. Mine spend most of the time at the bottom of my handbag!
 
I was walking along a British (posh) street market this summer when I came across a stall that sold creatures (such a scorpions and tarantulas) that had been preserved in perspex for PAPER WEIGHTS!

Seriously... There was even a bat. I asked the woman on the stall whether the creatures were found dead or killed purely for this purpose. Then when she answered that they were killed and I looked shocked she said 'what? They're vermin'.

What a pointless reason to kill something.



PS I'm aware that as a meat eater, some might find this post a little hypocritical but hey ho!
 
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amphibians, small fish, scorpions, and tarantulas have brains so primitive you might as well as stamp "286" on them.
Turtles however.... really do piss me off.
On an intellectual level, this really shouldn't bother me too much.
However, it is a foolish abuse of our natural resources, and while I'm not convinced these animals are not much more than moving automatons, I still can't help feeling that this is really sort of wrong.
Then again, so is keeping a goldfish in a small bowl, but no one seems to care about that. (they NEED aeration, water filteration and room to swim)
 
Oh.. and what about those evil baby squirrels? How DARE they run amok in human territory!
This story really pissed me off.
 
Meh, I think every life is important. I go out of my way not to kill spiders and bugs and stuff. The idea of keeping a fish or spider in a key-ring just repulses me. That's whats primitive to me. *shrug* Keeping a fish in a small bowl is horrible but your key-ring spends most of the time in your pocket or hand-bag with little to no light. I think it's different.

The video of the squirrel is horrible as well :( Glad the little guy got taken to a shelter.
 
Holly88 said:
I was walking along a British (posh) street market this summer when I came across a stall that sold creatures (such a scorpions and tarantulas) that had been preserved in perspex for PAPER WEIGHTS!

Seriously... There was even a bat. I asked the woman on the stall whether the creatures were found dead or killed purely for this purpose. Then when she answered that they were killed and I looked shocked she said 'what? They're vermin'.

What a pointless reason to kill something.

PS I'm aware that as a meat eater, some might find this post a little hypocritical but hey ho!
Click to expand...
Some times you can only shake you head and wonder about the heart condition of some people...

I don't think you're a hypocrite. You consume meat for food. You don't kill an animal to use it as a paperweight or to hang it on your key-chain for a week.


Sunflower said:
Meh, I think every life is important. I go out of my way not to kill spiders and bugs and stuff. The idea of keeping a fish or spider in a key-ring just repulses me. That's whats primitive to me. *shrug* Keeping a fish in a small bowl is horrible but your key-ring spends most of the time in your pocket or hand-bag with little to no light. I think it's different.
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I am with you 100%. I think all life is important and deserves to be treated well. It doesn't matter to me what level of intelligence humans labeled them with or whether scientist consider them primitive or not.

Monster said:
amphibians, small fish, scorpions, and tarantulas have brains so primitive you might as well as stamp "286" on them.
Turtles however.... really do piss me off.
On an intellectual level, this really shouldn't bother me too much.
However, it is a foolish abuse of our natural resources, and while I'm not convinced these animals are not much more than moving automatons, I still can't help feeling that this is really sort of wrong.
Then again, so is keeping a goldfish in a small bowl, but no one seems to care about that. (they NEED aeration, water filteration and room to swim)
Click to expand...

(To be clear: I don't think Monster was really saying that it was justifiable. Unless he comes back and says otherwise. He also brings out a good point about abusing our natural resources. Humans have learned nothing about past civilizations. Once you do away with your resources...you're next.)
 
Hey! here's an idea! What about using a blind cave fish as keychain! They'll appreciate the dark enclosed environment.
(just kidding, I don't think this right by any means)
blind_cave_fish1.jpg
 
Here's a COMPLETELY horrendous and cruel practice that is accepted by the masses.
Although, I'm pretty sure most people are completely ignorant about this, it's really just wrong. Please take a minute and read.

What many people also don't realize is how intelligent some of these fish really are. The cichlids in the article, Oscars, and Parrotfish, are easily smarter than most small animals, maybe not to the level of a dog, but as smart as a rat or turtle for sure.
 
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Another major travesty is the sale of monster fish to people who don't any better. This is a problem that has gone on for over 20 years.
People will buy Pacus and others when they are cute and small. But they get big FAST. Pet stores don't care. Most low paid employees have no idea how big they get, believe me, I've asked. Same with many catfish, tropical and temparate) sure they look cute small, but they grow huge. The fish end up being WAY to big for the aquarium, and then the owner ends up having to toss the fish into a local river. They then die because they can't live through our winters. (which is probably a good thing so they can't take over our wildlife by propogation). No pet store will take them back because A) no one wants to buy a fish that big B) it's not profitable (50 small fish in a tank WILL sell much better) and C) even if they would take it back, they probably already have more than they can handle.
The alternative really isn't much better. EVEN if you buy a huge tank, it's really just not enough room for these guys. I've seen fish that were badly deformed because they were in tanks that were just to small, they'll swim and thrash, and get all cut up, especially in the nose and face. It looks really horrible.
pacu.jpg
 
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