Categories: News

It’s known that watching fish swimming in an aquarium relaxes people.

A new effort by the Capital District Marine Aquarists Society aims to expose more military veterans to aquariums and fish care, since finding ways to unwind is among the issues vets face — along with reconnecting with their families after deployments. Some have made that connection through tropical fish.

The organizer of what’s being called the Tanks for Tanks program hopes to raise $10,000 this year, enough to provide nice aquarium set-ups for free to 100 veterans.

“Even if they can afford it, I still want to give them a tank to thank them for their service,” said organizer Kate Veitch, director of sales and marketing at Eddie’s Aquarium Centre in Latham.

Veitch said spending time around fish can help veterans who are dealing with PTSD, insomnia, substance abuse or other issues — and some local veterans who are already maintaining aquariums agree.

“I can see it helping people get through tough stuff,” said Kevin Swint of Rotterdam, a National Guard helicopter pilot and combat veteran who’s been through three overseas deployments, to Bosnia, Iraq and, last year, Kuwait.

Such observations have some scientific backing, with studies done by Purdue University showing those who watch fish before medical procedures report less anxiety.

In the last several years, the mechanically inclined Swint has dived full-bore into the aquarium hobby, which he started during the stressful period when he was returning from Iraq in 2010, reconnecting with his wife and three young children, and then going away again to flight school in Alabama.

“It’s definitely stress relief,” he said.

Today, Swint’s basement contains a 120-gallon tank for a stingray and a 180-gallon tank filled with plants and other fish, both of which he built and installed, and which his 8-year-old son helps him care for. He also has two daughters, ages 5 and 4, who like to look at the fish.

“The way I look at it, it’s helping me with my kids. It gives us something to do year-round with them,” Swint said.

Tanks to Tanks has been spearheaded by Veitch, who said she’s been unable to find any similar programs anywhere else.

Well aware of studies that show watching and caring for fish is relaxing and that many of her customers were veterans, Veitch decided to see what could be done to expand the connection a couple of months ago. “I took the bull by the horns and went down to the Albany VA Hospital,” she said.

“Eventually I’d like to see everyone who comes out of the chemical dependence unit get a tank so that they can have a new hobby,” she said.

A VA counselor agrees that caring for fish can be good therapy for troubled veterans who are interested in such the hobby.

Interacting with and caring for many kinds of animals has been shown to be therapeutic, said Paul Postiglione, director of the outpatient behavioral clinic at the Albany VA Hospital.

“The opportunity with a fish tank is that it’s there at 3 a.m. when you need to zone out,” Postiglione said. “It’s available at all hours of the day and night … You focus on that and not the bad memories or tensions.”

A video screen showing swimming fish was put in the clinic’s waiting room a few weeks ago, and he had positive feedback, he said. Disease concerns prevented the introduction of an actual fish tank at the hospital.

“Kate has reached out to the VA and done an amazing job starting this organization,” Postiglione said.

Staff Sgt. Esther Rodriguez of Saratoga Springs, a National Guard medic, said a fish tank has helped her bond with her 10-year-old son, who sometimes suffered from separation anxiety after she was in Iraq for both his second and third birthdays.

“One of the things we share is fish. We have a lot of conversations about things related to that. The tranquility is awesome,” Rodriguez said. “We watch the fish together before going to sleep instead of watching television.”