Where We Started: Philip’s Story

Day 1:

We first met Philip on a pet store shelf, where he was languishing in a tiny cup of water. In the United States, bettas like Philip are typically sold in small plastic cups. These are often said to be necessary to keep them safe because bettas are too aggressive to be housed together, but in reality it just allows stores to stock huge numbers of these fish to encourage more and easier sales.

Countless bettas die because of this treatment each year, and Philip would have met the same fate.

Luckily, our founder was allowed to adopt Philip instead, and he came home to a new life!

Recovery:

Philip’s recovery story mirrors the stories of the dozens of bettas we’ve helped since bringing him home in June of 2019. His first few days home were very scary for us (and certainly for him too) as we watched and worried about our new friend.

Philip came home from the store in a state that we now know to be extremely poor. He was pale, malnourished, and dealing with substantial fin rot, all a result of the chronic stress and poor water quality that he experienced as part of life on a pet store shelf.

Within days, his colors brightened, he was eating well, and his bright, inquisitive nature started to shine through.

Life after the Pet Trade:

Philip’s life after rescue was a pleasure to witness and facilitate. He quickly recovered from his mistreatment and became a beloved member of our family.

Our relationship with Philip grew and grew as we got to see him recover. He charmed us his intense curiosity and fierce antics, and we quickly fell deeply in love with fishes of all species as a result.

Several months after Philip came home we rescued our next two bettas, Frankie and Ozai. And from there things continued to grow!

During his life, Philip motivated the rescue and rehabilitation of over 100 individuals of many different species, and Friends of Philip continues to rescue and advocate for fishes in his name. Philip passed away in April of 2023, and we miss him dearly.

Day 1: June 18, 2019

July 2, 2019

September 2019