Fish Feel Pain, Too!

If you still eat fish or other sea animals, you’re not a vegetarian. They’re not swimming vegetables, you know! Just because they’re not as cute and cuddly as dogs and cats, doesn’t mean that they don’t suffer.

Commercial fishermen use huge trawlers—boats with gigantic nets trailing behind them—along with high-tech electronic equipment and even satellites to track fish. These huge nets—think football-field size—are sometimes miles long! They stretch across the ocean, collecting everyone in their path, including turtles, dolphins, birds, and other sea animals who are then dragged for hours along with rocks, wood, and garbage that the nets have picked up. The minute that fish are taken out of the water, they begin to suffer, slowly suffocating. Once on a ship, some are crushed to death, and others are still alive when their bellies and throats are cut open.

Fish are also raised for food, just like other factory-farmed animals—it’s called “aquaculture.” Fish raised for food live in crowded, unnatural conditions and often suffer from painful infections. Because of the close quarters that they live in, infections spread pretty quickly.

Studies show that fish not only feel pain, but also experience fear when they are chased, confined, or threatened. Their hearts start to race, and they even begin to breathe faster, just like we do when we’re scared! Fish have nervous systems and fully developed brains—that’s how we know that they have the ability to feel pain. They also have really sensitive mouths. Did you know that fish use their mouths and tongues in pretty much the same way that we use our hands? They use their mouths to build nests, catch food, and even to hide their babies!

Imagine how scary it would be to be swimming along, minding your own business in the deep blue sea, when suddenly, you’re swallowed up by a huge net or impaled by a hook! Remember: Fish are friends, not food!