Sam, although Wayne said it well I have to add that comparing dogs to fish is ridiculous. We have social interaction with dogs that is not possible with fish. Dogs are able to communicate their feelings in a limited capacity which fish are not. I'll also add that there is a significant number of people who are dog owners for the wrong reasons.

Um, my fish and my dog both get that same "feed me" look at dinner time. And I was playing with the female clown during the water change today.... :biggrin:

Hey, I just noticed that we're near the bottom of page 4 and none of those pesky mods have clsoed the thread yet!! Way to go!! :biggrin:

Well, what I'm saying is that its a bit overboard. I just can't imagine the same amount of noise is being made for other pets about needing to keep them in spaces equivalent to their territory size. It just doesn't seem necessary if only 1 individual is being kept in the tank as there will be no competition for food and mates, and no predation.

But Sam, this is a reef board. We talk about fish, not dogs. Go make a post on a dog board about keeping a big dog in a little apartment. Maybe you'll get what you're looking for there :wink:

Christy :)

Re: Tangs in a 90?
 

3 tangs in one tank, weird I though I only had 1, I will have to look for the other two.

as for the Achilles I did about 2 months of reading about them no where did I read imposable to keep to bad I didn't ask you. on the other hand I did read not a good starter tang and needs Very low nitrates, hmm he wasn't a starter and oh my look I have 0 nitrates. I also have no food competition for him and he picks at algae that I let grow on my rocks all day.

now back to your articles you posted, you forgot to mention one thing in your rant, that is for breeding and it is also what they maintain in the wilds, well I do not keep two females and 1 male in a tank which would require a lot more than 125 gal (about 375 gal) and I do not make my Tank search for food as he would have to in the wild nor does he compete with other consumers of the same food source. so that whole articles doesn't apply because it is under a totally different set of conditions.

In other wards in most captive tanks the fish do not have to fight, scrounge or what ever for food so it stand to reason that they can do with a smaller tank size.

a good case and point for this is anthius. even the smallest one can be kept singularly in a 33 gal tank but to recreate its proper environment you need a min of 125 gal tank but that is only the start, it should be a tank that is over 1 meter deep and wide as the mating ritual of the anthius is the do sped dives of approximately 1 meter. so ideally we should have 1 male and 7 or 8 females. so going by mating rituals these fish need more swimming area than a lot of tangs.

now I see a lot of off topic comments, lets keep them on as even though we have several different views here some good info can come from these heated "tang police" type things.

Steve

Re: Tangs in a 90?
 

Absolutely makes sense.

I keep a Yellow Tang in my 90 and it seems to be doing just great. :biggrin:

Now this is where the Tang cops are going to jump on me.......... I also kept a Yellow tang in a 33 gallon for about 3 years that also done well and never realy grew much.(It just got very fat.) That same tang lived in there untill I took that tank apart and gave it to someone with a 75. :eek:

Its comments like this can end up closing threads in the long run.

Or not being able to add worthwhile posts, without calling someone a self professed tang police and go join a bleeding heart group.

Hope that answers your previous question.

In a way it is Sam, although your point about animals being kept in confined spaces is a good one.

The SPCA and other organizations try watch things like puppy mills and the such. Plus if to many dogs or cats are kept in one house, someone usually steps in.

No such regulations apply for stores that sell fish. :eek: And thats what the shame of this industry is, IMO.

You can be charged with cruelty if you beat a dog but not kill ornamental fish.

I know this is a bit far fetched but just some thoughts.