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| Sunday, 26 September 2004 |
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Junior Observer |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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Relax with your pet fish
Today let's take a look at the world of fish. Most often people with limited living quarters decide to have fish as pets because a) fish do not need a lot of space and b) they need very little attention unlike other pets. However, when it comes to fish there are certain rules to keep in mind.Maintaining an aquarium, whether it is marine (sea) or freshwater can be a challenging task. You must know the type of fish you put into your fish tank because certain types of fish don't 'get along' with all kinds of fish. Read as much as you can about the different types of fish before you decide to have them as your 'pets'. Whether you have one or more fish in your tank, the ground rule is, keep the tank clean and ensure that nothing harmful to the fish gets into the tank. Never leave a tank uncovered in an open area where birds and stray cats could reach it. Your pets could end up as a tasty meal for them. Ensure that your pets are fed regularly. There are special food available for fish too. If you have, a large aquarium then it's best to have one or two 'cleaner' fish to go around cleaning up the tank ! Less work for you then.Having a pet fish can be fascinating. Some children give names to their pet fish and even 'talk' to them. Watching these beautiful creatures swim about is an ideal way to relax after a tiring day at school.
No more gold fish in bowls ? Italian region imposes ban
Also, this type of receptacle generally doesn't have a filter and doesn't allow for good oxygenation of the water, unlike in rectangular aquariums" according to Giampietro Mosca, an official of the town council."This story about the goldfish, which has gone around Italy, seems a little irrelevant and people have mocked it a bit, but it has a very specific educational sense, especially for the little ones", he added."The ruling is intended to transmit a message about the correct treatment of domestic animals", Mosca said. "In Monza, Italy where we have no less than 15,000 dogs for 120,000 inhabitants, you have no idea of the hygiene problems caused by animals and people living together and we don't want to see animals treated like objects any longer", he concluded.Other regions, such as Reggio Emilia, have rules on the treatment of animals derived from a 1991 national law, but the goldfish clause is a "singularity of Monza", according to Mosca.
Pets have a healing effect ... You may have heard that pets have a therapeutic effect on people. Pets can help reduce high blood pressure, depression and several other illnesses that affect us. 'Pet therapy' whereby pets are used to speed the recovery of hospital patients is practised in about 100 hospitals in the United States. Medical research conducted by an Australian Research Institute in the early 1990s involving thousands of patients had revealed that the average cholesterol level of pet owners was two per cent lower than the others. Pet owners also had lower blood pressure levels. Further research had revealed that cat owners visit the doctor 12 per cent less frequently than non-cat owners, and dog owners, 8 per cent less than non-dog owners. So having a cat or a dog as a pet can be good for your health! |
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| Politics | Produced by Lake House |
A cat, a monkey, a dog, rabbit or squirrel, a bird or a fish, anyone of
these creatures could be your pet. While many of you would like to bring
up an animal that you could play with and cuddle as a pet, there are those
who like birds, fish and even reptiles !
A Northern Italian city best known for its Formula 1 Grand Prix, has
become the first place in Italy to ban pet owners from keeping their
goldfish in bowls.The town council passed a ruling "on the treatment
of domestic animals" which went into effect in July."A fish kept
in a bowl has a distorted view of reality ... and suffers because of this.
