I bought 2 tiger oscars, the orange on them is so vibrant I am convinced the are painted. At the pet shop they had some kind of white fish and they had perfect diamonds on them, pink and blue. The owner was chinese, I asked if they were painted he said yes,,but he couldn't explain how. does anyone know how or what they give the fish to make them so colourful?
2006-11-23 22:36:28 · 9 answers · asked by maggiedimaria 1 in Pets ➔ Fish
Well, i have seen very vibrant tiger oscars that were not "painted" so it's possible yours is not, can't be sure. But the "painting" process involves injecting the fish with a very large needle (relative to the size of the fish) and injecting them with dye, ussually things like printer ink. It is a very cruel process wich most fish do not live threw.
For more information check out this web site:
http://www.deathbydyeing.org/
Don't get me wrong, i'm not some sort of Peta loser, i just don't like the idea of animals suffering senslessly. I mean, come on, theres lots of pretty natural fish available.
2006-11-24 03:36:29 · answer #1 · answered by GuZZiZZit 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your type of Oscar would be specifically bred for their vibrant colour. From what I know they don't inject Oscar with dye. But the farmer do feed them pellets that contain colour enhancer.
The silver diamond shape fish you mention with the weird colour are probably tin foil barb that have been injected with dye. I think that its very silly thing to do and it makes the poor fish look so ugly.
Another specie that commonly have dye injected into them are the glass fish or Indian glass fish. I wouldn't say a glass fish is very nice to look at, but I would prefer a school of normal glass anytime over those painted ones.
There is now a newer dye that they're using, this dye glow in the dark. It is also injected into glass fishes or some tetra if I am not mistaken and a whole tank of them would glow in the dark. This particular specie are still ban in most countries, as there are question to the danger of the dye, risk if accidentally consume(by children or drunks ;)) and the impact on the Eco-system if they escape into the natural environment. I think this fish is available in Taiwan.
2006-11-24 00:55:08 · answer #2 · answered by dragonfly_sg 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Tiger oscars actually have that natural color. Many fish do.
The other fish you mention haven't been painted, they've been dyed.
It's the process of injecting dyes onto certain scales, or the whole body to make designs (diamonds, hearts, american flag, etc, etc.).
This way the fish is more "pleasing" to the eye. But what usually happens is the fish's growth is stunted, and they often times die earlier than other fish of the same species. Not to mention the fact that the dye, eventually, fades.
2006-11-23 23:41:38 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
While the Oscars may or may not have been painted, painted fish are injected with a dye. Nearly 80% of fish that this is done to die within the first couple of days. Why? For our enjoyment. This is not something we should be doing to fish. It is cruel!
2006-11-24 01:49:38 · answer #4 · answered by timesdragonfly 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not so much painting as tattooing. They use needles to inject coloured dyes into the fish. Usually glass fish, albino tetras, and albino oscars. The process is very stressful for the fish, and leaves them more susceptible to disease. I encourage people to not buy painted or tattooed fish no matter how pretty they are.
2006-11-24 07:24:24 · answer #5 · answered by Lady G 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
they dont paint fish the way you would think the inject the with die bad so very bad
2006-11-23 23:12:46 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 2⤋
They are injected with dye.
2006-11-23 22:54:16 · answer #7 · answered by shaprice1 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
fish CAN NOT be painted cause woudnt it come off by now!!!!
2006-11-24 00:11:07 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
They do not . this would kill them
2006-11-23 22:45:37 · answer #9 · answered by TT Bomb 3 · 0⤊ 5⤋