A Queens lawmaker is advancing a proposal that would prohibit live fish from being handed out as novelty prizes at fairs, carnivals and festivals across New York City.
Councilwoman Vickie Paladino’s legislation takes aim in particular at the familiar carnival tradition of giving goldfish to players who win Ping-Pong tosses and similar games.
Those fish are often distributed to winners in small plastic bags.
Animal-welfare advocates, including the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, have long objected to the practice, arguing that it can expose fish to severe stress, shock and oxygen deprivation — conditions they say often kill the animals before they even reach a winner’s home.
Under the measure, introduced June 30 by Paladino (R-Queens), event operators who violate the ban would be fined $100 for a first offense, with penalties rising to as much as $2,000 for repeat violations.
Paladino’s push followed a late-May incident at a carnival hosted by St. Luke School in Whitestone, where a group of teenage boys allegedly tried to win goldfish specifically so they could abuse them, according to the councilwoman’s son and chief political strategist, Thomas Paladino Jr.
“It was ugly,” the younger Paladino said, alleging that the teens threw the fish, “stomped on” them and tugged at their fins in an effort to upset a group of teenage girls.
“While this may seem like a small issue in a city facing many challenges, this incident made clear that live animals should not be treated as novelties or prizes,” the councilwoman wrote in a June 1 Instagram post.
“They deserve humane treatment and responsible care. No animal should be subjected to cruelty.”
St. Luke School did not return messages.
Councilman Frank Morano, a Staten Island Republican, said he’s backing the bill because it’s about protecting animals, not spoiling the fun.
“This is a small but sensible animal-welfare reform that brings a little more humanity to how we do things in New York City,” he said.
“If you want to give out prizes at fairs or street festivals, there are plenty of better options: stuffed animals, gift cards, toys, or even tickets and vouchers.
“Anything but a living animal.”
If the bill is approved, NYC would join a growing list of jurisdictions that already ban the practice, including the states of Connecticut and Iowa and the city of Berkeley, Calif.
New York State prohibits giving away most live animals as prizes — except fish and purebred livestock such as cattle and horses.
