Is Reefing Directed More toward Men?

[JHOV2324]

My girlfriend wanted a tank...so i set one up for her....but i soon realized it was because she wanted me to be at her house more often.....it was trickery that i caught on too....i saw she wasnt even paying attention to the darn thing....so i sold it......Pfffftt....WOMEN...:flirt:

 

[Josh]

Clearly, women love seahorses, for whatever reason,

Ask Lisa Simpson. She is clearly the most developed and educated character on the Simpsons, yet the sight or mention of a pony basically turns off her ability to reason.

 

[masterswimmer]

I think if it were a solitary reason that men are more involved in reefing it would be an easy marketing fix. Unfortunately, I believe there are a multitude of reasons. So many of which have been brought forth in this thread. Kudos to you Leslie, this is a fantastic topic. Do I hear MMR?

Why are there so many less women in race car driving, piloting, seamanship, machine shops? Why are there so many MORE women involved in knitting, floral design, wait staffs (I chose to wait on tables during school BECAUSE there were more women), pilates, etc. Could a lot of these gender biased activities be the result of corporate marketing directed at our children (us included)? Has the barbie doll and GI Joe truly effected the way the entire world choses employment and hobbies?

When my wife and daughter look at 'our' tanks they oooh and ahhh. They will say they know nothing about it. It's a mystery to them. Yet when we have guests over our home, I hear each of them recite the names of animals, the equipment supporting the system and how the internal ecosystem works. They don't know I hear them. When I question them about starting their own systems they will tell me that's MY thing. They can't be bothered with the maintenance. The fish and coral are beautiful to look at, but they don't offer the 'cuddle factor' like Scooter does (our Shih Tzu).

Again, great topic Leslie. Now how does everyone propose we even the playing field to entice more women into the hobby?

 

[prattreef]

I agree with your premise(s) and think that if for whatever (bad ) reasons women are put off/intimidated/disinterested in the gear head part of the hobby that the recent nano craze and the plug and play systems now available should begin to change things.

I also think, that the way the hobby gets spoken about particularly on the boards---skimmers and reactors and closed loops oh my---does not help at all, and as Solbby alluded too, probably keeps already participating women from joining in the on-line forums that obscure the true numbers in the hobby.

 

[Deanos]

No offense, but you can't "entice" someone into a hobby. Many hobbies start off as a nagging interest (import cars, radio controlled airplanes, knitting, goldfish in a bowl). Depending on personality, expendable funds, available time, etc...an interest may develop into a hobby. Programs such as those at prattreef's son's school is where you'd begin to plant the reefing "seed" and show little girls that fish aren't "icky little slimy thingies".

 

[prattreef]

Thanks for the plug And I agree those are exactly the kind of exposures and encouragements that need to take place. The same goes for science and engineering ( I would also submit that an aquarium is a great introduction to these worlds). I believe this is what Russ was getting at too.

 

[cybermeez]

Girlfriend, I don't have kids, don't cook, and don't clean. That's why I have time to have a tank

Ditto!

 

[DrGonzo]

I tried with no avail, as I'm sure many others have tried as well, to get my girlfriend into the hobby. She has mentioned how pretty a tank looks, but thats about it. Her only participation thus far has been naming the fish. If I can only get her to spend 1% of all the money she spends on clothing on reefing, I'd have one hell of a setup.

 

[Savager]

I tried with no avail, as I'm sure many others have tried as well, to get my girlfriend into the hobby. She has mentioned how pretty a tank looks, but thats about it. Her only participation thus far has been naming the fish. If I can only get her to spend 1% of all the money she spends on clothing on reefing, I'd have one hell of a setup.

LOL. Exactly how I feel. If Louis Vuitton, Prada, Gucci and Channel get into reef tank design business, my wife might show some interest though.

 

[ellebelle]

Thanks for the plug And I agree those are exactly the kind of exposures and encouragements that need to take place. The same goes for science and engineering ( I would also submit that an aquarium is a great introduction to these worlds). I believe this is what Russ was getting at too.

When I went to the school to check out the aquarium and look at the kids projects and ask questions, one of the girls in one of the classes told me that she thought this hobby was for boys.

As far as getting your wives interested in the hobby ... the fact of the matter is that sometimes people just have different interests. Are you all participating in all of your spouses interests? Do you invest fully in all of their hobbies?

There is a difference between making a hobby approachable for the opposite sex and being able to entice someone to want to do something. I think that's an important distinction to be made.

 

[LeslieS]

When I went to the school to check out the aquarium and look at the kids projects and ask questions, one of the girls in one of the classes told me that she thought this hobby was for boys.

Did you ask her why she thought that?

I hope that everyone realizes that this was a question that was asked of me, and I wanted everyone on the board to have an opportunity to share their thoughts. To see my original response, go to MRMagazine.

I think the discussion has been really great so far!

I will say that the plug and play option was extremely attractive to me. I really wanted to get one of the 24 gallon aquapods. Then I was just going to get a hang on back skimmer and run a really simple set up.

It was my boyfriend who convinced me to get everything separately, build a stand, plumb a sump and get a big skimmer. I am really happy I did it this way in the end, but had been setting it up myself, I would have ended up with a much simpler set up.

I also wanted an all in one nano until my boyfriend said he would help me with it if I got a bigger tank.

i think leslie i should ask why do you feel that way in regards to this hobby? i hope its not because of a couple of guys in a hardware store.

My hardware guys think I'm pretty cool - They just think the tank is trivial

Ask Leslie how she nurtures her green palys. :biglaugh:

You guys are such tattle tales!!!:Blurp:

Girlfriend, I don't have kids, don't cook, and don't clean. That's why I have time to have a tank

I felt so guilty for actually admitting this that I made dinner tonight.:redface:

LOL. Exactly how I feel. If Louis Vuitton, Prada, Gucci and Channel get into reef tank design business, my wife might show some interest though.

These are some of my favorite people.:inlove: I also would like them to design fish tanks.:party:

 

[JHOV2324]

My girlfriends hobbies consist of Sudoku, getting her nails and hair did and shopping...and of course I participate in most of those things i go with her what more can i do...pshht...sometimes i fund them....now when i tell her hey babe check out this new coral i got or look the shrimp is cleaning the fish again.....she still goes ahhh..when u getting rid of that thing....:lol2:

 

[jaymo]

Until I joined MR I had never met a girl who was intrestred in fish at all . I think it's cool.

 

[reefnewbe]

i think at this point , the males are into it more.
With that being said, there are some big time female reefers.
(it's true some of them are teamed up with their husbands.)

i think her name is Salley joe from G.A.R.F. .org (bullet proof reef)
she doesn't just reef, she kicks ASS !!

 

[Paul B]

I have had fish before I met my wife and I still have them.
(Actually, today is our 34th wedding anniversary)
She has been diving with me all of those years. The only interest she has in fish is eating them or swimming with them in some exotic place.
I also believe most females shy away from the technical end of reefing such as plumbing and electric. I also think females are just as capable as men in keeping animals alive except for that technical thing.
My wife will ocasionally come to an LFS with me but it is usually only to use the Ladies Room.
Here we are in Bora Bora where I am trying to get her more interested in fish. No those old people in the bottom picture is not us (although that is my wife on the right. She saw so many fish on that dive that we had to find that restaurant stuck on a volcano. Those "rocks" in the water are mostly tridacna clams which grow all over the place in the South Pacific.
Maybe on our fourteith anniversary I can get her to have more reefing interests :biggrin:

 

[jgiordano]

only us men are stubborn enough to risk sticking our hands in a tank of bacteria without gloves, and cut little organisms that could quite possibly squirt some of the most toxic compounds ever out.

 

[Phyl]

only us men are stubborn enough to risk sticking our hands in a tank of bacteria without gloves, and cut little organisms that could quite possibly squirt some of the most toxic compounds ever out.

?! Really ?! I must respectfully disagree.

 

[jgiordano]

?! Really ?! I must respectfully disagree.

It was kinda a joke...

 

[NYreefNoob]

reefing

i dont think there is any reason either way why more men dominate this hobby more, it isnt a sex oriented hobby. not like cars or sports, which isnt always the case either { alot of men have no idea about cars either } i do think that alot of women are turned off by the hobby that are in relations with someone in the hobby because they see the time invested and money { plus the lack of extra time spent with them because of the hobby } tinker with reef or go look for corals or scroll the site's { or go to dinner with wife :arg:. this is from personal experiance and what i have seen with a few others