Live fish stuck in a ball gown sparked serious animal cruelty concerns after a fashion designer from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, posted footage of a person modeling her questionable product to Beyoncé’s music. A veterinarian has since reacted.
Taking to her Instagram page on Sunday (April 21), Yanedaila, the creator of Ai L’amour, posted a reel showcasing a woman swirling in a gown covered in sequins to Beyoncé 16 Carriages.
Despite the impressive work put in to make the sparkles come to life in a sumptuous dress, the design was a little “too alive” for people’s liking, as they noticed a literal fishbowl placed on the lady’s stomach with real live fish barely able to swim in it.
“Under the Sea Babyshower,” Yanedaila captioned her post, adding: “NO ANIMALS WERE HARMED. The fish are very much alive.”
Yanedaila’s disclaimer didn’t prevent the outrage that was quickly unveiled online, and on Monday (April 22), Yanedaila posted a picture on Instagram with the same model wearing the same fish gown, this time arguing that “art is just art.”
Fashion designer Yanedaila’s footage of live fish trapped in a ball gown stirred significant animal cruelty concerns
The fashion designer wrote in a caption: “It’s not about who loves it and who doesn’t.
“One thing I’m passionate about is bringing my clients’ visions to life SEAMLESSLY and I DID THAT!
“If you knew me fr (for real) you’d know how much passion is behind anything I put my heart to and my hands on.”
She went on to explain that this particular design was a “one and done,” adding:” I told my client idc (I don’t care) if someone offered me a gazillion dollars.”
Her explanation didn’t appease online critics, as a person commented: “Yes art is art. But animal abuse is still animal abuse. Dog cat bird and still fish.
“This vision could’ve still slayed with fake fish.”
“Posting this in hopes of Beyoncé seeing it,” an X post stated, featuring a clip of the fishbowl dress
Girl just use fake fish oh this pissed me off so badly https://t.co/YfYOHGyclx
— hicc 🪺🍉 (@ijimaia) April 23, 2024
Another Instagram user wrote: “Art is art and animal abuse is animal abuse. they are not the same nor can they be.”
Someone else penned: “Absolutely disgusting and you should never work again. Using animals as an accessory for some trashy tacky *ss dress is appalling.”
On Tuesday, this time on X (formerly known as Twitter), a Beyoncé fan account posted Yanedaila’s Instagram reel with the same woman modeling her sparkly live fish dress, writing: “Posting this in hopes of Beyoncé seeing it.”
It is unclear whether the X account was run by Yanedaila, but once again, backlash grew, with more and more people slamming the design, as someone commented: “Those poor fish need more water than that.”
Another person chimed in: “Please ma’am, don’t keep a living creature in a cup-sized home. It’s like living in a one-room house.
“Pooing where you sleep. Bad oxygen levels.
“Free all creatures so they can remain in their favorite habitat. Free.”
According to Doctor Ben Rosenbloom, a veterinarian working at Wet Pet Vet, the gown is “an example of animal cruelty.”
He told Bored Panda in an email: “Unfortunately, people often think less of fish than other animals we keep as pets regarding welfare.
“Partially, this is because it is harder for a fish to express that it is in distress to us than some other animals, but also, many people have an attitude of ‘oh, it’s just a fish’ or think of them as lesser animals.”
Veterinarian Ben Rosenbloom explained that a fish would not be able to survive very long “in that situation”
The animal doctor explained that a fish would not be able to survive very long “in that situation.”
Dr Rosenbloom continued: “Firstly, it would be incredibly stressful for them, with the person moving around and the vibrations this causes.
“Fish have a special organ for sensing water movement around them, and this would be overwhelming to them.
“Stressed fish get sick quickly — the same way that stressed people are more likely to come down with an illness and have general bad health.”
“Assuming that the container is sealed to prevent splashing, they would have only a limited amount of oxygen and be consuming more because of the stress.
“They’re also in an incredibly small volume of water, so the water chemistry would get bad fast, as they excrete directly into the water that they need to respirate.
“If the person wearing the dress wanted to do something similar, they should [have] put some water in and fake plastic fish, rather than abusing a live animal.”
Bored Panda has contacted Yanedaila for comment.
Fishing for compliments at the expense of live animals has unfortunately happened before.
In September of last year, a woman in India went viral after modeling a gown that featured a tiny fishbowl with multiple small fishes attempting to swim in it.
The controversial fashion design drew concerns, with many people accusing the designer of inciting animal abuse.
“Fish are not props,” a reader commented
