Quote:
Originally Posted by Aquaria
just because you keep fish healthy and possibly happy does not take away from the ethics of keeping animals in glass boxes Weither there the recommended size or not to me it sounds like another justification I mean is there really a difference between keeping a tang healthy and happy in a 3' as in a 6'. Correct me if I'm wrong but it sounds like ur saying that there is a big diff in someone who keeps a tang healthy and happy in small tank compared to the guy with a tang in a 6' tank with bad husbandry
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I agree. One could even argue that there is more stress in 6' tank than a 3' due to the added livestock and aggression that goes along with them. Fish-fish contagion is greater in a larger tank with more fish. The 3' tank may have one alfa male, while the 6' tank may have many competing for the position at the top.
I think tank size difference is negligible (within reason, and with some exceptions) for anything under 5,000 gallons. Whether it takes three movements or one to cover the length of the tank makes no difference in my opinion.
If you are breeding fish or trying to replicate their natural environment for a public display tank size may come into consideration, but for the most part, a glass box is a glass box.
I often read posts where some poor nano tank owner is being berated for having an ocellaris clown, meanwhile clown breeders use 5 gallon tanks because it is the ideal breeding environment.