SniperY
15-03-2006, 10:19 AM
Not as thick as you think?
A fancy goldfish has been taught to do tricks by its owners.
The calico fantail goldfish, aptly named Albert Einstein, has been taught to swim through hoops and push a tiny football into a goal net.
Dean and Kyle Pomerleau, a father and son team, used animal training techniques to see if the fish would recognize and respond to them. The fish was won by the children and father Dean wanted to create more interest and a bit more fun in keeping their new pet fish.
Dean started the training by using a feeding wand to reward the fish for approaching the ball: "With the encouragement of the food reward, fish can quickly learn complex tricks like pushing a miniature soccer ball", said Dean.
The Pomerleaus have applied to the Guinness Book of World Records to have Albert recognized as the smartest fish in the world.
Dean says that his training methods work on other species of fish too including Oscars, parrot cichlids and Siamese fighting fish. The fighting fish named Isaac Newton, was trained to swim through hoops in only two weeks: "The key is to reward them at the precise moment of the appropiate behavior", says Dean.
Dean has produced a training manual, instructions and a diploma.
Don't try this at home
Fish health consultant Dr Peter Burgess has warned that this shouldn't be tried at home, as it's potentially stressful to fish if done incorrectly.
Dr Burgess told Practical Fishkeeping: "I must point out that behavioural training can be extremely stressful to fish if performed incorrectly, and I doubt whether most fish species are suitable subjects for such training activities.
"With animal welfare in mind, I would strongly advise hobbyists not to try and emulate Dean and Kyle Pomerleau's work."
A fancy goldfish has been taught to do tricks by its owners.
The calico fantail goldfish, aptly named Albert Einstein, has been taught to swim through hoops and push a tiny football into a goal net.
Dean and Kyle Pomerleau, a father and son team, used animal training techniques to see if the fish would recognize and respond to them. The fish was won by the children and father Dean wanted to create more interest and a bit more fun in keeping their new pet fish.
Dean started the training by using a feeding wand to reward the fish for approaching the ball: "With the encouragement of the food reward, fish can quickly learn complex tricks like pushing a miniature soccer ball", said Dean.
The Pomerleaus have applied to the Guinness Book of World Records to have Albert recognized as the smartest fish in the world.
Dean says that his training methods work on other species of fish too including Oscars, parrot cichlids and Siamese fighting fish. The fighting fish named Isaac Newton, was trained to swim through hoops in only two weeks: "The key is to reward them at the precise moment of the appropiate behavior", says Dean.
Dean has produced a training manual, instructions and a diploma.
Don't try this at home
Fish health consultant Dr Peter Burgess has warned that this shouldn't be tried at home, as it's potentially stressful to fish if done incorrectly.
Dr Burgess told Practical Fishkeeping: "I must point out that behavioural training can be extremely stressful to fish if performed incorrectly, and I doubt whether most fish species are suitable subjects for such training activities.
"With animal welfare in mind, I would strongly advise hobbyists not to try and emulate Dean and Kyle Pomerleau's work."