All animals deserve to be loved and have the correct care, but not all people deserve to have an animal. People get animals all the time without knowing the proper care. Have you ever been to a pet store? They have labels in front of most of the animals that say the basic care requirements and level of difficulty an animal is. These labels are not fully correct! Most pet store workers don’t know much about the individual animal itself. For example Goldfish.
Most people think a goldfish is one of the easiest fish for beginners to care for. Wrong. Yes, goldfish are super laid back and have a variety of fish that can go with them, but there’s a lot they won’t tell you. Goldfish release a somewhat harmful chemical called ammonia. While it is necessary for the goldfish, high levels of it can affect and or harm other fish in the same water. Too much of it can even harm the goldfish. Goldfish also produce a crap ton of waste and can get really big! A single goldfish needs a minimum of 20 gallons. They also have to have constant water changes to make sure the ammonia levels are never too high. Other fish also tend to nip them since they have long, lushes, bright fins. Still, think they’re beginner fish? Another good example is a Mudpuppy.
Mudpuppies or Water Dogs are much like Axolotls. They are both salamanders that never outgrow the larval state, meaning they are fully aquatic salamanders. Even though they are both aquatic salamanders, they are extremely different from one another. Axolotls are cold water, while mudpuppies are tropical. This means they could never go together. Mudpuppies also grow to be double an axolotls size, which means double the tank size. When trying to get an axolotl, the store employees tried to get me to purchase a water dog instead. They even tried to tell my mom they were the same thing! When they realized I actually somewhat knew what I was talking about, they responded with “Well this one turns into a salamander.” This was also incorrect because that would make it a Tiger Salamander, not a water dog. Which is completely different from a mudpuppy.
So before you jump to wanting an Axolotl or any new pet, do your research. Not all pets are suitable for everyone. ABSOLUTELY DO NOT get a pet, especially fish if you don’t have time for it. Every animal needs some love and attention, even fish.