Parents using the local fish store for entertainment

We go to the local aquarium store here and I was there yesterday. The guy that worked in there admitted that after Christmas parents use the place as a free public aquarium. The sprogs get cabin fever on the winter weekends after Christmas and decide that the local tropical fish business is free fish entertainment.

The only way to go to this store is on the weekdays when sprogs are in school as they block everything and use the employees for fishy education and then leave with nothing. Actual customers have had to leave on Saturdays as there is no way to get the attention of an employee to buy fish as a screaming family is in the way. The parent's know there is no way for the employees to tell if they are going to buy or not and they use that to their advantage.

What would have me annoyed is if these breeders were actually buying the fish. Because people in general seldom educate themselves on how to prepare to bring fish home and learn about their needs, and I'm sure tropical fish have special environmental and dietary needs. Parents have a tendency to buy their kids pets because they think they're essentially toys and have no inclination to give those pets the care they need because they don't care. For breeders, it's "just a fish."

But since parents are cheap bastards and (presumably) tropical fish are more expensive than a goldfish or a betta fish, the price tag for these creatures is likely enough to deter a purchase.

But I can see why it would be bloody annoying to go there to try to actually buy fish or supplies for fish you already have and you can't shop because someone's fucking snot goblins are in the way. Pet stores are not playgrounds. I assume the staff doesn't get paid enough to tell them to fuck off, but maybe they should consider doing it if breeders and sprogs who don't buy anything are driving away paying customers.

I used to raise fancy goldfish in a 75 gallon tank. I had some absolutely gorgeous fish in there and I had a lot of them for several years. They would follow me around everywhere in their tank. I had this incredible velvety blue black oranda that probably could've been entered into shows. He was huge too. Most black goldfish turn brassy once they reach a certain size, but he was jet black.

I also noticed that they all have their own little personalities. Sometimes it would be a soap opera in there, lol.

One fish was a rescue. My partner went to use someone's bathroom and found a half dead feeder goldfish floating in the toilet. He took it home immediately and gave him to me. I named him Bubbles and had him for several years. (I hate people who do these things and my ex stopped speaking to this person afterwards.)

I sincerely wish that people would stop thinking fish are stupid and cheap pets. I don't have an aquarium now (I rehomed my existing fish and sold the aquarium because I couldn't take them to my new house without them dying) but people think everything just exists to entertain their kids. If a person is a responsible parent and wants to teach their kids about how to properly raise fish? I say great! It's a nice way to show kids to appreciate all creatures and develop empathy. I just take issue with people who think they're disposable and don't GAF. These are the assholes who don't research fish care and just stick them in a bowl to let them die.

People probably see fish as "easy" pets because you put them in a bowl, give them flakes, never take them to the vet, they don't make a mess or get aggressive toward people, and you can throw them in the toilet when they die. Obviously people who give a damn will put their fish in a proper size tank and get all the necessary gear to keep them happy and healthy, but that's not breeders. Breeders do the bare minimum in every regard, especially when it comes to pets because they're "just animals."

I remember I went to a birthday party when I was like six and the birthday boy's family decided to give the kids goldfish as party favors. Like they were in little plastic containers about the size of a small Heluva Good dip tub. About half of them wound up dying before the party ended because the party guests were putting ice cream and cake into the containers and no adult thought to stop them. I'm sure it came from a place of innocence like giving the dog table scraps, but who was supervising these fuckers while they were killing these fish??