Here Fishy Fishy Fishy

[bunnybunbunb]

Anyone else here have fish? What kind do you have? Just a small set up or a big saltwater set up like I want?

I currently have 4 adult platies, 2 adult bettas and some baby platties. When I first got into fish again this year I had like 40 babies born in 2 months time, I had them in their own tank, then out of no where they all kicked the bucket(lived for awhile). About a month ago 1 of my 2 mickey females had babies, I kept them in my community tank and 1 baby is left. So yesterday morning her mom popped babies again(I was waiting ) but by the time I got there all butone had been eaten! You would think I starve them! SoI took the adults out and put them in a smaller diffrent tank to give the one time to grow, the adults arn't liking it.

I checked today to find only the 1 month old baby was left, I was like "well h***, dying even with theadults gone!". Just when I gave up looking I see a tiny fish by one of the live plants... no, 2... NO 3! So there is 2 of the newest babies left and their big sister :biggrin2:I hope they all make it. I figure in a week or two I will put theadults back. They stopped trying to eat theone baby(and it's sibling that went missing about a week ago) at 2 weeks old, soI figure that will be good timing.

I have wanted a huge 200 gallon tank with saltwater fish for so long, now I learned you can make a live reef salter water tank andI want it even more! They look so cool, coral, snails, shrimp, beautiful salty fish, it's just to awesome. Saltwater tanks cost so much and to get the stuff you need you have to order it.

I would get pictures of my fish if it wasn't almost impossible to get a good picture of a moving fish in water behind glass. :?

 

[bat42072]

I have guppies... I bought a male and female .... the female came from a tank that was suposed to only be females... guess what the next day she had 20 babies... theadults died with in a week but I still have 17 babies..

 

[bat42072]

sorry double post

 

[Alexah]

I love fish, but I don't presently have any. I did have a betta named Bamboo Blue, but sadly he jumped ship and I didn't find him in time. I'm considering getting another betta soon, but I don't like getting them from the pet stores because they always look sick and the water is grimey. I'd rather find another place to find a betta, but I haven't thought of a way yet.

One day I'd also love to have an active saltwater tank. But I'd need to have the space, money, time, and resources before that could ever be a possibility. I'm beginning to do some research, but it's still a long ways off right now.

Fish are beautiful and I admire people who have large tanks and know a lot about fish and their care. I love watching fish - they're so calming. And I also love the sound of tank filters. It puts me to sleep in no time!

One day I'll have the tank I want, but until then I'll live vicariously through other people who do .

 

[NorthernAutumn]

My boyfriend and I keep over 300 african cichlids (mostly mbunas) at home here. They're just as colourful and beautiful, but they're a lot less work than saltwater fish.

I had the fish hobby first with my Amazonian cichlids (Black and Pink convicts) which bred like ... you guessed it.... rabbits! They're mouthbrooders, and the Mommies took great care of their babies!

Anyhoo, he decided he wanted his own tank. We started with a 15 gallon, and we're up to the 65 mark now... Needless to say, I am thankful for the joists in our house.Currently have 5 tanks up and running, and we're producing baby peacocks (really colourful "mutts" that are beautifully striped and marbled..) that are sold to local dealers.

My boyfriend once worked with a guy who had a saltwater setup, and the fella said that he couldn't leave home for the weekend without having a reliable friend (who knew a lotabout fish) taking care of the tank! Being such a fragile marine ecosystem to start with, and then trying to take care of it "in vitro" is a REALLY challenging job that needs a lot of equipment and monitoring devices AND time.

Sadly,most saltwater fish are poisoned lightly in the wild, then transported to dealers who sell them to the aquarium market. Many specimens don't make it past a year in captivity (dietary issues and stress). I'mso glad that most freshwater speciesaredomestically cultivated in tanks; If yo're in Florida, lucky you! So many fish farms!!!!

Let me see if I can find some pics of my fish Mafia...

 

[bunnybunbunb]

We tried African Cichilds once but as I said before, our walmart's fish sucks. They wasn't cheap(for a fish) and then died right after. We have tried many diffrent species of freshwater fish and only Platies and Bettas seem to be able to live.

 

[NorthernAutumn]

I hope everyone with fishes knows that walmart has a 5 day return policy, dead or alive... I bring them dead fish in baggies whenever possible

Am also notorious for savingdead fish whenever they kick off, sticking them in the freezer, going to Wally world to get another fish, &"faking its death". Unethical, but it makes the hobby cheaper...

BTW, Africans need coral in order to have the correct pH ,8<(don't know if you knew that )

What kind of.... filtration system are you running? Water conditioning? food?

Poor products will really sink ya...

 

[BlueCamasRabbitry]

I have four bettas and I am getting some tetras today! Well, actually, theircoming with an 18-gallon tank that my older sister is picking up today, but she is going to get cichlids and just let the cichlids eat the tetras, so I am rescuing the tetras and putting them in with my two female bettas - whom eventually I will be moving in together in a community tank.

Emily

 

[naturestee]

If you're looking for better quality/healthier fish, see if there are any fish clubs in your area. An old friend of mine was in one and a lot of them bred their favorites and sold extras to particular favored shops (Milwaukee, so they had some choice). Either find out where they sell their fish to and go there, or ask if they have a show or a swap meet kind of thing cause you can get tons of awesome fish, plants, etc. that way. He really helped me get going.

I've let my tanks fall to the wayside since I got the bunnies. I used to have a 2.5 g (betta and live plants), 5 g (male guppies and live plants), 10 g (assorted small community and plants) and my "rescued" 29 g from an old neighbor who was going to flush the fish and chuck the aquarium... assortment of mismatched tetras + other community fish. Planted of course. I love me my low-light aquarium gardens. I can't afford the tech for high light.

All I have left right now is the 29 g, the rest are in storage. I was letting the tetras slowly die off of age without replacing them, then got a handful of platies two weeks ago... which apparently carried ick which is killing the last of the ancient tetras off. Poor buggers. Oh, and a Kribensis. I'm hoping he'll keep the baby platy population under control... And 3 cories for a cleanup crew. I luv me some cories, they're like playful little puppies.

My hubby wants me to do salt water but even though I get paid to DO chemistry, mainly water chem now, I don't want to do that much work at home!

 

[bunbunbinkie]

I have always had fish. Bettas in the beginning, then I got a Red Devil (a South American chiclid I believe) and he lived about 8 years. When I lost him I tried (and am still trying) my luck with African Chiclids. They are mean little s#@&* and at one point I had 6. Now I'm down to one, a Jewel Chiclid who I hardly ever see. She always hides and Ive seriously thought about getting rid of her because I have a 40 gallon tank with visualy NO fish in it. Then I feel really bad, and decide to keep her...but she is ferocious and will attack anything I have yet to put in with her. Shes less than 2 inches long and the other fish in with her were almost 6 inches.... UGH. ullhair:

I also have a betta on my desk in a little 2 gallon aquarium. Maybe I should just stick to those!!!!

 

[bunnybunbunb]

I have real seashells in my tank to keep correct PH for my community fish, I also got this "Correct PH" stuff that I put a tablet in every 2 months or so.

I use AquaSafe for conditioning my water, didn't know there was really anything else that took more than the chlorine out.

As for food I use Tetra Tropical Flakes as well as a mixture of some other things I have(bloodworms, krill, etc) which they get once every few days. My Bettas will ONLY eat bloodworms, they just spit the betta pellets out :X

I have 1 Platy that doesn't look great. I got her pregnant quite a few months ago and thought I was going to loose her after she had them but she lived. She hasn't gotton pregnant or been whatI would call "healthy looking" since.

As for filtration I just have what comes with the normal "starter kit".

As for Ick, naturestee, it is caused by stress. I have had a couple outbreaks just the little bit of time I have had my fish. When i bring new fish in I now add half dose for treatment of Ick to prevent it. Your Platies didn't have to carry it, just caused it.

NorthernAutumn, you might not believe this but our walmart has a NO LIMIT garentee on fish. They started it just before they moved and turned into a super center. I have bought fish from other stores and taken back to them, haha. Half the time they don't ask for a receipt and even if they do and you don't have one they will give you a replacement but it has to be the same species. If you have a receipt you can get any fish that cost the same or less. It's nice because their fish dies so much and I find fish always die RIGHT after the end date but with no end date it is great

 

[YukonDaisy]

I have:

A29 gallon with three goldfish it it. A Fantail, a Telescope frantail and a Black Moor that is turning orange. X)
A new-to-me 25 gallon with 1 Giant Danio, 1 Rosy Barb, 1 Black Neon Tetra, 1 RedEyed Tetra and 3 Neon Tetras.These are my first tropicals!
A 15 gallon with a Chinese Algae Eater
A5 gallon with a crown-tail Betta
Two 1 gallons with Bettas.

 

[bunnybunbunb]

You can't get crowntails around here, only veiltails. I love halfmoon crowntails, they are so lovely!

I have 1 Purple and White male veiltail and 1 white with pink(red when mad)tips female veiltail. I have tried breeding them a few times since I have learned how to care for the babies but the male just cases the female. I mean I have *only* tried about 15 times... ugg. I know it is hard but normally it is the raising of the babies that is hard not the breeding.

 

[LadyBug]

i have three small-ish (fresh water)angels(Lily(white), Lizzie(calico) and no-name(stripey)(anybody got name ideas? this is what she looks like(not my pic

))

and i also have three panda corys and a otto cat.

Alexah, here's a few web sites that sell bettas-

http://royalbettas.com/

http://www.liveaquaria.com/

(i used to have a betta that looked just like the one on the home page on this web site! his name was Indigo, Indi for short)

http://www.bettas-jimsonnier.com/
Edited To Add(on June, 17, 2008): the fish has been named! Emily(little sister)wanted Ella, so i said ok. and the fish has also died:grumpy:. i don't think i'm gonna get another new one, Lily and Lizzie seem to get along fine together, and the other angels keep dieing(sp?):X

 

[NorthernAutumn]

bunbunbinkie, we've found that a major key to dealing with our Africans is to pack the tank full of fishes, and throw on an awesome filtration unit plus weekly/biweekly water changes.

When I'm talking packed, I'm suggeting at least 35 big cichlids in the 65 gallon that I have. When my bf started out, we had 12 stupidly expensive babies; a number that quickly dwindled down to 5 or 6. And that's when the real fights started....

Another theory we use is the concept of "no territory". Using a large pile of live rock down the center of the tank, it turns the place into a racetrack with hidey-hole shortcuts inbetween the rocks. That's where the wusses and babies hang out. THe rest of my guys shove gravel around, mate like crazy, and get into pushing matches.

I agree with the little S**** comment, wholeheartedly.

BTW, the latin name for your jewel is Hemichromis bimaculatus. Throw that into google and head for the compatibility pages.

Here's something I found for you:

[align=justify]Spawning aggression. Hemichromis bimaculatus, widely known as the Jewel cichlid, is a truly magnificent fish. However, when spawning in the limited space of an aquarium it becomes as deadly as it can get. Even the female may be killed on the spot if "she" doesn't accept the males courting. Certainly, getting six of them in a community tank will always result in big troubles. This species is simply incompatible because of its spawning behavior.[/align]
[align=justify]http://www.malawicichlidhomepage.com/aquainfo/fish_compatibility_2.html.[/align]
[align=justify]You could always trade him/her back to the pet store/another hobbiest, and get yourself a mbuna setup (much easier to mix and match...)[/align]
[align=justify][/align]

 

[NorthernAutumn]

bunnybunbunb, that's awesome!

Try this on for size some time. Bring the dead fish in a big ol' bait bucket to customer service and hand it to the kid in training.

I didn't mean to do it, but the reaction was so good!!!

 

[maisy126]

Currently we have:
An extemely old pleco (common)
A male blue gourami
1 silver tipped tetra, female
4 neons
2 male peppered corydora's
1 ringed crayfish, female (MO species, we're in MN lol took her up with us)

Before we moved, we had two F ringed crayfish, and the bigger one ate ALL of our 5 silver tipped tetras except that poor, lonely girl.

Even before that we went to Wal-mart to get me and my sister our first fish....

Guppies *sigh*
The lady there told us two have like 2 females for every 1 male, we got 2 males, 2 females which went to 2 females and 1 male.

Our itty, bitty, teeny, tiny 10 gallon was full in a month. Aaaand, the filter blew *yuck!* so we moved all the guppies that were alive into a 30 gallon (our current one, none of them are alive now though) and it really looked pretty with all those rainbowish tails swimming around.
You can look on my zootoo page (same username) and see my other pets.

 

[bunnybunbunb]

I'm going to have a spastic attack! We went to a petstore we know of in lexington today and OMG GUESS WHAT?????? Crowntails!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I got the most beautiful yellow with black male! If only he was half mood but I'm counting myself lucky Also picked up some Tubifix Worms... can't get them here. They was onsale and very cheap for the big thing of it Didn't see any brine shrimp/eggs, oh well.

We also went to Meijers, well what can I say? I have an illness. I love Meijers, they have such beautiful tanks, loads of plants, fish, and snails. Everytime we go I have to get some fish, always. I got me another Blue Mickey Platy(pregnant, wee!), one female guppy(you can't get females here. I got the cheapest healthest looking one whichI thought was pregnant but maybe not), a nice BIG male Golden Apple Snail(my3 smaller ones died awhile back... not sure why :?) and 3 plants! They lost the prices on the plants so he priced any plant for $1.49! I was like WOAH! They are beautiful plants, too.

Update: The "male" Apple Snail is a female(got a better look and remembered what I was looking for) and also found out she is a Canata insted of a Bridgs! Woot!

The Guppy IS pregnant, I can see her gravid spot better. She has very colorful fins

 

[LadyBug]

no-namehas been named! Emily(little sister)wanted 'Ella', so i said ok. andno-name/Ella has also died:grumpy:. i don't think i'm gonna get another new one, Lily and Lizzie seem to get along fine together, and the other angels keep dieing(sp?):X

 

[bunnybunbunb]

Mom said a few years ago my Mamaw(grandma) tried to do Angle fish. Said she bought and bought and boughtbut they never lived long. Maybe they are a fraggle breed?

Do you know if it is illness, stress, or not eating? Do you make sure the fish you buy are healthy looking, not only clean looking but not thin? I find stores don't feed or don't feed enough.