fishrule101

Would you quit fishkeeping to save the fish in the oceans and rivers from the aquaruim trade and habitat loss.

Dino

As we keep 3 extinct in the wild and over 20 endangered species here, no.
We are part of the reason some of these fish are still on the planet.

peacemaker92

Yeah! I agree with Dino!

Pandora

Most of the fish I keep have been domesticated for countless generations... stopping keeping them would do nothing for any wild fish species!
I also have an endangered species back home that's pretty much only being maintained in captivity, and would love to get involved in the IBC's species maintenance program when I have a bit more experience with wilds and more space.
There's a lot of good you can to by keeping fish! If you're worrried about fish in oceans and rivers you can make choices that will not affect them or can even help species at risk.

rainman

Ditto

fishrule101

Well some people say that aquarists are wanting more fish so the people that get them mess up thier home in order to get the fish.

Chief_waterchanger

That is what Pandora was getting at when she said there are ways around that.

If you keep fish that are either endangered or extinct in the wild, and are willing to breed them to help continue that species, or if you keep fish that are in no current danger of becoming endangered, or even if you keep domesticated strains or species of fish (such as betta splendens have been domesticate over such a long period of time that it is completely different than any wild counterparts, so the ones commonly kept are not wild caught, but domestically bred) then you are not contributing your money to the bad side of fishkeeping. (The downside of fishkeeping is mainly due to greed.)

Steve113

Stopping now would make little to no impact on the wild.
We buy fish that have mostly been bread in captivity and have been for generations - using selective breeding techniques to ensure we get bright coloured attractive fish.

The ones we buy have no effect on the natural habitat of these fish.

Devon

Some types of fish can't be bred in captivity for one reason or another. I was reading that no one has figured out how to successfully mate Dragon Moray eels in captivity, so any that you can buy (good luck finding one!) is wild-caught. It think it's the same story for Dogface puffers... someone correct me if I'm wrong on that one.
I do my research before I buy fish... and if I read that it is only available if wild-caught, I don't want it. Tearing these creatures from their natural habitat just so some rich fool aquarist can throw it in a tank and show it off to his friends is a complete disgrace. Other types of fish, however, wouldn't exist if people didn't keep them as pets... such as the highly domesticated betta splendens as we know them today.
I guess the answer is, if I thought my fishkeeping was harming wild populations of fish, then I wouldn't be a fishkeeper!