Paris Aquarium warns of goldfish 鈥榮low death鈥�
The Paris Aquarium is encouraging goldfish owners to bring their fish to be rehomed in its tanks, in a bid to prevent the popular pets from 鈥渄ying a slow death鈥� in a small bowl.
The Trocadero Aquarium at least 50 goldfish - previously pets kept in fishbowls in houses - have been brought to its four-million-litre tanks every month for the past two years.
Keeping a goldfish in a traditional spherical water bowl or small tank amounts to 鈥渁nimal mistreatment鈥�, Aquarium management , and can cause the fish to have stunted growth and a much shorter lifespan.
Re-homed goldfish can reach lengths of over 20cm and live for up to ten years, the Aquarium , in stark contrast to the usual tiny-sized home goldfish with a lifespan of just three to four years.
Alexis Powilewicz, director of the Paris Aquarium, : 鈥淲e are no longer seeing goldfish of a good size. Putting a goldfish in a bowl is not good. Like all animals that are constrained, they stop growing.
鈥淕oldfish need an aquarium of at least 100 litres, with a water filtration system [cleaning the water]. Otherwise, it amounts to killing the goldfish slowly.鈥�
There are typically two groups who bring their goldfish to be rehomed in Paris, Mr Powilewicz . They are either parents whose children have won a goldfish in a fairground game, or those who realise that their pet can no longer live happily at home.
Visitors of the Aquarium also enjoy seeing the goldfish thrive, he , and it is much better to bring them there than to abandon them in a fountain or a lake.
