A Fishy Kind of Freedom

For one particular fish in the United Arab Emirates, life in an aquarium is a welcome relief!

Ordinarily, we would never promote any kind of zoo or aquarium, but when we heard about 90-centimeter alligator gar Ali’s move from a miserable 1 meter fish tank to a whopping 2.6 million gallons of water, we had to share the good news!

This video is a triumphant slap in the face to those people who assume fish can’t feel pain, think, or express emotion. Watching Ali wiggle and move fervently from side to side as he swims for the first time since reaching adulthood is heartwarming to say the least.

Sadly, though, Ali’s happy ending is one of few in comparison with the number of fish who are subjected to abuse at the hands of humans. Hundreds of billions of fish, along with “nontarget” animals such as sharks, sea turtles, birds, seals, and whales, are caught each year in ocean-ravaging nets or dragged for hours on long-lines by the commercial fishing industry.

Fish are also much smarter than originally thought, with some species even tending to their own gardens! They do so by encouraging the growth of tasty algae and weeding out the varieties they don’t like. They’re also capable of talking to one another using squeaks, squeals, and low-frequency sounds that we humans are only capable of hearing with special equipment.

It’s baffling to us that some people continue to call some animals “friends” while others are labeled “dinner.” For instance, Australian crimson-spotted rainbowfish who learned how to escape from a net in their tank remembered how to do it again—11 months later!

To show compassion for all animals (including our fishy friends)—pledge to be vegan for 30 days!

Posted by Ashley Fruno