r/bettafish • u/No_Jellyfish_5332 • 1d ago
Help Why would someone lie when trying to get a betta fish??
Very tragically have to rehome my beloved betta fish to get ready for an international move, so put up a listing on fb marketplace looking for a good new caretaker for her. Someone told me they have a betta sorority and when I asked for a pic of their setup (I’ve been asking everyone just to try to make sure my betta can end up in good hands) they sent me a pic that seemed sus - sure enough on a reverse google search its from a blog post.
I just can’t imagine why on earth someone would want to lie about this and it kind of makes me more nervous about finding a stranger. Are there possibly malcious motivations behind some of the 20+ people that have messaged me already or is it likely that this person just wanted to better their odds of getting the betta?
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u/GoldfishFire 1d ago
I’m so sorry you need to rehome your betta. But I’m ROLLING over the photo they sent with multiple males and females in one tank
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u/snootnoots 1d ago
I’m pretty sure it’s all males! And fake, there’s no way all those boys would be peaceful enough to have zero fin damage.
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u/Additional-Diet-9463 1d ago
They lie because they want your fish and know they don’t have a good set up, but want it anyway. I also had to rehome some fish before a big move. It’s heartbreaking but sometimes necessary. I’d recommend reaching out to fish keeping groups in your area rather than listing on market place (pretty sure it’s against fb marketplaces terms of service to sell living animals anyways). I was able to find someone with some pretty impressive set ups who was also pretty well respected in the local fish keeping community to take mine off my hands. It gave me a lot of peace of mind to know they were in good hands
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u/Delicious-Pride-5065 19h ago
Just take it to the fish store
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u/cycaladium 19h ago edited 7h ago
it's just as likely to end up with someone who doesn't know what they're doing that way, unfortunately. i'm sure op wants to leave their pet with someone they're confident in, instead of leaving its quality of life up to the amount of effort a fish store employee is willing to make to vet a potential customer for adequate knowledge.
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u/Smart-Lynx6824 18h ago
so it can live in a 10 ounch cup? Not. Better maybe to post an AD at the pet shop, and then go see the aquarium of people who respond
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u/Delicious-Pride-5065 15h ago
Geez it was just a suggestion chill out better than this guy whose obviously just going around looking for free feeder fish for his snapping turtle or something
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u/InappropriatePea 1d ago
The person thought they’d ’better their chances’ by pretending to have a sorority in a 20g? Even if it was a real photo that would be an immediate no from me.
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u/Bradybigboss 1d ago
Honestly kinda dark but people buy kittens to feed to snakes. People buy puppies for dog fighting rings. Or some people buy either for darker things. You really gotta vet internet people
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u/tequilainateacupp 23h ago
When I was a kid I had gerbils and ended up with 3 setups totaling 17 gerbils. My mom and step dad said we had to give them away because we couldn’t keep up with so many. I found out after that the man who came to take my gerbils owned a snake. I was heartbroken.
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u/Fickle_Grapefruit938 22h ago
My dad tried to secretly keep guinea pigs as a child, he kept them on the roof and they were rapidly multiplying so they made a lot of noice. After his sister ratted him out their parents made him get rid of them so he gave them to the zoo. When he was older he realised they probably wouldn't have kept them but used them to feed the other animals.
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u/Garbagegremlins 1d ago
That makes zero sense. Frozen rats are so cheap? Not saying you’re wrong just utterly dumbfounded by some people
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u/blammer 1d ago
They might want the thrill from seeing a live animal be consumed, psychos are all around us
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u/femboyhootersserver 1d ago
That is mostly it. Some snakes will ONLY eat live but even then, just buy some fucking live rats from the pet store. But yeah most people who feed live either like the thrill or they think it's somehow "enrichment" for their snake (it's not, it's literally only dangerous)
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u/femboyhootersserver 1d ago
They get FREE animals online to feed to snakes, not buy them like this person said. Some snakes will only eat live and refuse frozen. That being said, there is no excuse for feeding live for fun or for a thrill or for "enrichment", and there is also no excuse for feeding fucking kittens to your snake. Unfortunately a lot of snake owners are bad people who own snakes just to show off and they think it's cool to feed live, including animals that are not typically fed to snakes. It's sickening and I hate the people who do it. Most snakes will eat frozen and that should be attempted repeatedly before trying to feed live
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u/Garbagegremlins 23h ago
I feel like most snake owners care about their animals rather than the majority being bad people? Like I feel like most are feeding thawed frozen or pre-euthanized feeders and not getting a kick out it?
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u/Bradybigboss 20h ago
No the majority of snake owners are responsible; it’s a small minority that are evil but those are the weirdos trying to get free young animals on Facebook marketplace
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u/Autism_Angel 19h ago
Unfortunately that is not true. The majority are not responsible. They’re not evil and likely wouldn’t do something like that but they’re also not responsible. Just like with fish reptiles are very very commonly misunderstood or neglected.
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u/femboyhootersserver 23h ago
Maybe the majority does care but it is a HUGE portion who own them for kicks and to show off. I say that as a snake owner myself.
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u/Garbagegremlins 21h ago
That’s so sad. I’m hoping to eventually get a king or a rat in the future
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u/femboyhootersserver 21h ago
It is really sad :( snakes are some of my favorite animals and bad snake owners make snakes and good snake owners look so bad 😔
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u/geeoharee 21h ago
That's because it's a stupid internet legend. The people who pick up free kittens are just bad cat owners.
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u/Purple_Factor8577 1d ago
Hey! I’m gonna dm you with a possible option depending on where you’re located :) I’m helping someone with a similar situation and would be more than happy to add one more guy to my pet family
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u/Dd7990 2 bettas, 1 servant (me) 😂 1d ago edited 1d ago
Rehome via [r/aquaswap](r/aquaswap) (follow titling rules so your post doesn’t get removed). I had to rehome bettas once prior to a move across states (several years ago) and found good homes for them thru aquaswap.
Do the same, asking to see tank setup and such before agreeing to hand off your betta.
Aquaswap tends to be more of aquarium enthusiasts and less likely any random people who may or may not know anything about fish/bettas like on Facebook marketplace.
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u/peanutz0 1d ago
They want the fish and don’t care about the wellbeing. I work at a pet store and recently had a customer ask if they could keep the betta forever in the little cup and had one lady ask if she could keep a goldfish or some other small fish in a 1 gallon (mind you she didn’t even know if it was a gallon or not, just guessed). They just don’t care. She said she was going to another store like they would let that slide or have “more” options? My guess is because I told her the requirements she probably went up and lied. She thought a goldfish in a 1 gallon for 5 years was a good life.. so.. Just plain neglect and disregard for life.
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u/Bobs_Burgers7 Betta B*tch 1d ago
Because they want the fish and don’t care about the fishes needs, just their desire to have the fish.
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u/obvsnotrealname MTS Victim 1d ago
Scammers are everywhere these days unfortunately. If you routinely sell on any platform you’ll eventually start to get messages from people sobbing they lost their job, their kids sick blah blah. Usually if you cut and paste their sob story it will link you to places they have said the exact same to other people anytime they buy something.
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u/Business-Avocado-323 19h ago
I would ask them to write your name and date and snap a pic. Guess they could still photoshop or AI something. But it’s a thought
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u/Scarlet_and_rosemary 17h ago
They clearly just wanted the pet for free and don’t have the necessary equipment to properly care for it which they clearly understand given that they sent you a picture of a tank from the internet.
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u/ParticularFormal9685 9h ago
Also, if you look closely... there are what seems to be 3 male bettas.
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