Needy fish loves cuddles from its Missouri owner

  • This blood parrot cichlid flares his gills and ‘dances’ every time it sees Bon Shaw
  • Owner from Blue Springs, Missouri, had 1.4m views on his video of needy fish
  • He said the pet even leaves its food in the hope that Mr Shaw will play with it

A needy fish that thinks it’s a dog loves cuddles so much it even ignores its food to be stroked by its owner. 

The blood parrot cichlid flares his gills and darts from side to side every time its owner Bon Shaw from Blue Springs, Missouri, walks into the room.

Mr Shaw’s video of the bizarrely affectionate fish has racked up more than 1.4million views since he shared it on YouTube.

The blood parrot cichlid is a hybrid of the midas and the redhead cichlid and was first bred in Taiwan around 1986

Fishy fido: This blood parrot cichlid thinks it’s a dog and will do anything to get the attention of owner Bon Shaw from Blue Springs, Missouri – even ignoring his food

He said: ‘This little guy just loves to watch me wherever I am in the room, he’ll do anything to get my attention.

‘When I look at him he flares out his gills and dances from side to side just hoping that I’ll come over to play. If I drop food in the aquarium he’ll ignore it and hope to play. 

‘I have to walk away to get him to go find the food which has floated away by then.’

Mr Shaw said that in another tank he has a second blood parrot cichlid that doesn’t want to be touched – although he believes it still loves him.

Mr Shaw said: 'This little guy just loves to watch me wherever I am in the room'

Mr Shaw said: ‘This little guy just loves to watch me wherever I am in the room’

He added: ‘It’s like having one dog and one cat. You just have to love the differences.’

Other blood parrot cichlids have been known to enjoy a good pampering session, such as one that was only satisfied by a 15-minute daily massage from its owner, Roland Giroux.

The blood parrot cichlid is a hybrid of the midas and the redhead cichlid and was first bred in Taiwan around 1986.

Mr Shaw's video (above) of his affectionate pet has racked up more than 1.4million views  online

Blood parrot cichlids aside from this one that have been known to enjoy a good pampering session include one that was only satisfied by a 15-minute daily massage from its owner, Roland Giroux

Mr Shaw’s video (above) of his affectionate pet has racked up more than 1.4million views online

'It's like having one dog and one cat': Mr Shaw said that in another tank he has a second blood parrot cichlid that doesn't want to be touched - although he believes it still loves him

‘It’s like having one dog and one cat’: Mr Shaw said that in another tank he has a second blood parrot cichlid that doesn’t want to be touched – although he believes it still loves him

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