Goby fish

Earlier this week, one of our fish died.
Fish have been our choice of pets for 5 years, so it is not the first time one passes away.
And by now, I also know that people usually don’t react empathetic to the death of a fish.

But it’s more emotional than one might think.
It will hardly ever be the case that you wake up one day and find your fish dead.
The days before, when the fish is ill, are the worst.
You will see them breathing heavily, making spastic movements and not eat.
And while they are suffering, there is not much you can do.
I wish I could hold their little fin, give belly rubs and speak words of comfort.

There is no elegant way of ending its pain prematurely either.
Though, I am in favor of that method, my other half isn’t.
He wants to give the fish a chance to survive, but we both know that is very unlikely.

Ourw fish that died this week was the Watchman Goby.
He has these large eyes and grumpy face expression, that you can’t help but love, and a beautiful yellow color with bright blue dots.

Even more likeable about the Goby fish is the symbiotic relationship with the pistol shrimp.
The shrimp is nearly blind, but very good at digging sand.
So, while the shrimp maintains a cave for the both of them, the Goby will protect him against predators and make sure he gets food.
Where ever the shrimp goes (and he moves a lot), the Goby will follow him like a good watchman.
If that isn’t the friendship we all long for, I don’t know what is!

So, not only we have lost the Goby fish, we also have a confused little shrimp.
Although he has been very brave, there has been no discussion about taking the 5 hour drive to get a new Goby.

It took them 2 minutes to find each other and establish their symbiotic relationship.
And trust me when I say, I sleep a lot better at night knowing that those two are happy and safe together 🙂 

here is a video of these two work together https://youtu.be/FpxTY8GkRHE