AquaBabies ( as well as many others sold under similar names ) is a small sealed acrylic container that holds about a 1/4 gallon of water. The company stocks these small cubes with 4-5 fish of various species along with either a small frog or snail, accompanying these animals is a twig of an aquatic plant.
According to the company all you need to do is dip the end of a toothpick in a "special blend" of food once every other day to adequately feed all of these animals. Since it is a sealed unit, the transfer of carbon dioxide and oxygen is reduced to nothing more than bare minimums. Water changes are to be performed only 2 to 4 times a year.
Many people are led to believe that these small cubes are an ideal fish keeping alternative to a standard aquarium, I am NOT one of these people, nor do I share in their philosophy of fish keeping! Thousands of fish die in these cubicles on a weekly basis, many at the retailers even before they are sold to an unsuspecting public. I have received hundreds and hundreds of E-mails about this product with about 90-95% of them wondering why within a short time of them being purchased the fish die.
Now I realize that all retailers and fish related business's are doing what they are doing for the profits, however the vast majority of them at least have a conscious and truly try to do their best efforts in maintaining healthy and viable fish stocks for their consumers. AquaBabies is not concerned for the animals welfare, but instead they solely focus their attention on the income generated by the acts of cruelty they subject these animals too.
If the same situations were placed on some of our four legged pets our society on a whole would be outraged to say the least. But because these are animals that we do not take for walks, can not pet, nor have curled up on our laps and purr society treats them with an indifference that is truly unforgivable. All too often I have witnessed on the regional and local evening news broadcasts the high profile stories of cruel acts placed upon horses, dogs, cats and many other animals kept as pets. These stories showcase the lack of food, drinkable water, cramped and unsanitary living conditions, and by doing this cause a reaction by the public that drives lawmakers to enact judicial consequences for the people responsible for doing such deeds. Now I can just about guarantee you that you will never see such stories about fish, we simply do not view them in the same light as other pets, even though as a nation, the United States population keeps more aquatic animals than any other in the home and workplace.
I urge you to find out more information about this despicable practice that AquaBabies carries out and join myself and thousands of others in a boycott of the product as well as the retailers that carry them. Already due to the efforts of this boycott many retailers have discontinued carrying AquaBabies and similar products.
If you click on the "Boycott AquaBabies" picture to your left you will be taken to the main boycott page that will go into greater depth about both the boycott, its success, failures as well as AquaBabies themselves.
If you would care to see first hand the attitudes that AquaBabies has, you can read a correspondence between the president of AquaBabies and myself by CLICKING HERE. Other related AquaBabies information is also on this page and soon I hope to have a feedback generator that will allow for your comments to go directly to the AquaBabies president herself.
