Fact or myth Do fish really only grow to there environment/tank?

  • Thread starter Thread starter I am the troll detective
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• "A common old wives tale is that fish grow to the size of the aquarium. Actually they will continue to grow as long as they have a quality environment. To find out, a group of researchers kept several trout in 3-inch diameter tubes. Clean water was constantly circulated through the tubes. The trout eventually grew to fill the tubes completely!"

A similar experiment which supported the above results, was conducted by a man named Jack Wattley who writes for Tropical Fish Hobbyist. I may have the article, and if I find it I will post it as well.

~June issue of 2009:
"The water in the one-gallon tank (with no filtration) was changed seven or eight times daily; each change was taking out 90 percent of the water. In the 20-gallon tank with the sponge filter, I changed 90 percent of the water once daily. After a period of four weeks, the fry in the one-gallon tank were nearly double in size compared to the fry in the 20-gallon tank!"

The only excuse for a fish that hasn't grown to potential is poor care which is inexcusable. So who won the argument?
 
Total and complete myth.

Let's take goldfish as a prime example. The common goldfish gets around 10"-12" inches long, sometimes larger. Many will tell you that they keep one in a bowl "and it lived for 3 whole years"- they should live 15+ years. That would be like saying "My sister lived a good, long life- died at the ripe old age of 12!

The size of the tank is in reference to volume and with a smaller volume of water to dilute the fish's wastes (while it is proccessed by helpful bacteria) the toxicity levels of Ammonia and Nitrite from the waste rise. These toxins will stunt a fish's growth and this is where the "grows to the size of the tank" myth comes from. It also damages organs, particularly the kidneys, and dramatically shortens the fish's life
 
Yes it is so very true, shouldn't it be obvious?

Fish are different from humans,a fish living in a huge, spacey environment will thrive, as it has plenty of space to swim, exercise, have a good immune system, and make their heart stronger (exercise, happiness, etc). Stronger hearts help to make a goldfish grow. It will also be very happy!

A fish living in a small, cramped home will find its life to be shortened immensely, its happiness to be ever so limited, and its growth to be stunted. Like bees/wasps, they need exercise. Ever tried keeping a bee as a pet? You keep it in a container, it will die because they need lots of space to fly..except in a fish's case it will need lots of space to swim. Keeping it in a small container, it will barely grow (if it's lucky enough to ever grow) due to its weakened heart from lack of exercise, depression.
 
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