North Texas

North Texas Woman Starts DFW Fish Rescue

A North Texas woman has a unique plan to save a common house pet that often ends up discarded or even flushed.

Eli Prachar started the DFW Fish Rescue and said the response has been overwhelming.

She said in about a week’s time the rescue has already saved nearly 200 fish.

“It’s people posting, ‘I don't want this fish anymore,’ or, ‘oh, it got too big so [could you] take this off my hands?’” Prachar explained. “People who are selling the tanks to get out of the hobby because they don't realize how expensive fish care actually is.”

She and her partner have two locations for their fish rescue. They have freshwater fish in Rockwall and saltwater fish in Frisco.

“I didn't expect there to be as much of a need so quickly,” Prachar said.

Some would argue that these are just fish. It’s an idea that angers the 20-year-old.

“I think it is entirely irrational and I think if there was a species any larger than us, [they could] say well these are just humans, flush them, put them in a lake; who cares,” she said.

This is a special mission for Prachar who has a passion for caring for underdogs.

A series of illnesses caused her to be confined to a bed for around a year. She knows what it means to feel like an underdog and marginalized. Seeing an animal so easily discarded broke her heart. Though she is still working through the effects of her illness this has become a way she can do some good.

“I didn't expect it to become as big as it did. In the last week, I've gotten several thousand dollars worth of donations and fish and supplies which is what is entirely keeping this running,” she said.

She recently worked out a plan to partner with the Rockwall Animal Shelter for more space.

Learn more about the DFW Fish Rescue: https://www.facebook.com/DFWFishRescue/

Contact Us