Life in China 2016: A Picture A Day, October 24 – China, although thy have a large number of animal lovers and animal rights activists, still has many practices that can be considered as animal cruelty. Tattooing goldfish is one of these. Goldfish themselves are considered to bring good luck to their owners, and people worldwide have gotten tattoos of goldfish for a long time. Then, about 10 years ago, someone got the idea to start tattooing the goldfish to make them even more appealing to people. The idea became popular 5 or 6 years ago, unfortunately, it’s not so lucky for the goldfish. The Chinese characters or patterns that are tattooed on the goldfish are done by either injection or with a laser; either way damages the fish’s scales and it usually dies prematurely. These fish are sold pretty much anywhere you can buy live fish to keep as pets, although I’m sure there are some independent shops who look down on the practice. So, if you live in China, please don’t buy these fish!
Goldfish
Life in China: A Picture a Day 2016, Feb 9 - If you’ve read what I’ve previously shared about gold and fish… I’m sure you'll understand why goldfish are considered to be “lucky fish!” What better activity for kids (and adults!) at a New Year’s celebration than fishing for goldfish! There is a food fair, with some carnival type games, at our nearby shopping plaza and this “fish pond” is set up there. I’ve seen fishing like this at quite a few other places throughout the year, but in much smaller pools!
