I’ve lived my entire life alongside animals. My house has always had at least one pet, if not more. Now that I’m in college, I have a pet-shaped hole in my heart. Though my family frequently sends pictures of my dogs’ and cats’ cute antics, nothing can replace the actual, daily, face-to-face contact I used to have.
This is a problem many college students face. You don’t have to have a diagnosed illness to experience noticeable positive effects when in the presence of animals—or noticeable negative effects when you haven’t seen any in a while. However, with very few exceptions, college students are not allowed to keep pets while living on campus.
I believe it’s time for this policy to change. I’m not calling for all colleges to allow students to bring cats and dogs of all shapes and sizes into residence halls—I understand why that is impractical and even dangerous. No, instead I’m calling for all colleges to allow small, easily contained pets in on-campus housing. Specifically, I believe all colleges should allow students to keep pet fish.
This may seem an insignificant change to be fighting for. After all, what good can a fish do? It’s not like they can snuggle up with you, or play games, or do tricks. How can a fish fill any part of my pet-shaped void?
Well, it’s actually a common misconception that fish are in any way inferior when it comes to pets. This misconception is exactly what I will clear up by listing the top three reasons why colleges should allow fish in residences.
- Fish are good for mental health
-
There’s a reason fish can count as emotional support animals! Just like any other animal, fish can have positive effects on their owner’s mental health. Though you may not be able to hug a fish, and they might not give you any reason to squeeze in extra walks, there’s documented evidence that just watching fish swim around in their tanks has a relaxing effect on people.
For example, one academic study involving measuring people’s heart rates and blood pressures as they viewed an empty, partially stocked, or fully stocked aquarium tank found that “the greatest drop in heart rate occurred in the Fully Stocked condition, and this drop was significantly different from the Unstocked condition.”
Another study in which participants were asked to watch live fish, a decorated tank, or a completely empty tank similarly found that “Relaxation scores were higher and anxiety was lower” after the participants viewed the live fish.
These studies’ results shouldn’t come as a surprise. After all, there’s a reason dentists and doctors often keep fish tanks in their waiting rooms. Being around fish tanks can be so calming that a type of animal-assisted therapy called “aquarium therapy” has been created.
- Fish are easy to care for
-
Though the exact needs of each type of fish varies as much as it would with any other pet, it’s undeniable that some species of fish are incredibly low-maintenance. According to PetMD, the main things to worry about with fish care are food, water, filtration, and heat. With some species, fulfilling their needs in these areas is very easy.
For example, goldfish are a very hardy species that don’t need too much food and can survive in water that might be too cold for other fish. Bettas are similar, except that they’re much smaller and cleaner than goldfish and can therefore survive in smaller tanks with less frequent cleanings.
When it comes to caring for bettas, I can speak with some experience. My family had a beautiful betta fish for a few years (a long and healthy life for that species), and aside from his escape artist maneuvers whenever we cleaned his fish bowl, caring for him was simple and stress-free.
- Fish do no harm
-
This may be the most important reason colleges should allow students to keep fish. They do no harm, but as explained in Reason #1, they can do so much good!
Fish are a hypoallergenic pet, meaning that they can’t cause the people around them to have allergic reactions. The only thing a fish owner has to worry about when it comes to allergens is making sure the tank and the area around it stays clean, as damp areas can grow mold.
On top of being hypoallergenic, fish can’t do any damage to the rooms they’re staying in—after all, they’re confined to their tanks! They’re quiet and take up very little space, and they won’t smell or make messes in the room as long as their tanks are cleaned when necessary. This means fish will have no impact on their owner’s roommates or on the college’s property.
- Everyone else is doing it!
-
I don’t want to include this as a main reason because it’s a bit of a flimsy argument compared to the others. It’s the classic “but mom, so-and-so’s parents let her have one!” But I think it’s worth at least noting.
Speaking from the perspective of a BU student, it seems as though everyone is allowed to have fish except for me. A cursory look at the pet policies of the other colleges that call Boston home reveals that many of them allow fish in tanks of varying sizes. Harvard, MIT, UMass, Emerson, Northeastern, and even our sworn rival BC allow fish. And we’re not just going to sit here and let BC one-up us by having better pet policies, are we?
But speaking more generally, it is true that many colleges have begun to relax their pet policies in the light of research revealing how much pets improve mental health and mood. According to a CNBC article, although only 4% of the more than 1,000 colleges they looked at allowed dogs and cats, “Most colleges accept fish, and many allow amphibians, reptiles and small, caged pets, such as hamsters and chinchillas.”
Considering the reasons I’ve listed above, allowing fish seems to be a no-brainer. This is precisely why all colleges should reevaluate their pet policies and remove fish from the “do not bring” sections of their suggested packing lists.
Fish can be good, undemanding friends, and their pros far outweigh their cons!