Never return anything to the ocean!!!

Over the past week I have seen a couple posts about people saying they could return their livestock to the local beach if it outgrew their tank, which prompted me to make this thread.

You should never return anything to the ocean and it is against the law to do so. Even if your species is found locally, it still came in contact with other animals, rocks, plants, bacteria, etc. from other parts of the world. Unknown to you, the animal could have contracted a parasite or disease that does not occur at your local beach. If you released that animal with a parasite or disease, it would spread rapidly because none of the local animals would have built up an immunity to it.

As sad as it may be if something outgrows your tank and you can not find a suitable home for it, the best thing to do would be to put it down.

While looking for suitable homes you could try public aquariums. They will occasionally accept animals, but you should not use planning to donate as a reason for buying animals that will outgrow your tank. They won't always accept it.

 

Locally, the public aquarium swill not take your livestock.

 

Heck no!!!!!

I didn't see those threads or I would have commented myself. I wouldn't have stated it as nicely as you did either.

 

NOOOO if a fish out grows your tank then i always found take him back to the lfs and get some store credit. In hopes he will find a proper home for the fish. I would never recommend putting the fish back in the ocean thats how some types over run an area cause they have no natural predators

 

Agreed! Seems like the lfs will almost always take them back.

 

Or you could just bury it near your plants for fertilizer and make some use of it instead of dropping in the ocean. My jalapeno plants are happy

 

I think the talk was about living fish, not dead ones.

 

I take it no one watch animal planet-- monster fish. Some one released some snakeheads there in Florida and now there eating everything in the water.

 

There's a big difference between releasing a non-native species into local waters, and releasing a native species into local waters. There's still the issue of parasites and hitchhikers, however.

 

One way to not have to worry about it is to not buy fish that you know will outgrow the tank