I got fish! - Page 2

alessia55 · 01-25-13, 11:17 AM

You can also see my one golden mystery/apple snail in the corner.

A nice background will be coming in over the next few days, until then I just have white paper in the back.

I built a fish tank stand/cabinet, but have to wait until I get a few manly friends over to carry it there for me.

DragonsEye · 01-25-13, 01:43 PM

If you're feeling creative, you could paint a scene on the exterior of the sides and back.

Quote:

Originally Posted by alessia55

Oh, I forgot to add. My fish store made me aware that my shark and the barbs will grow too large to share the 10gallon, so eventually they will need a bigger tank. .

You mean they won't stop growing to remain the proper size for the tank?

(That oft spouted nonsense always annoys me.)

Deva · 01-26-13, 01:36 PM

I have kept many fish over the years. No rosy barbs, but cherry barbs and tiger barbs. Danios, all these are good hardy fish. The shark as well. And yes, only one shark per tank.

Strangely enough, I have never been able to keep the long finned guppies alive more than about two months. Their tails seem to fray and they they just die suddenly. I love them, they are beautiful, but I cannot keep them. The regular ones, yes, they are fine.

Ich is the only disease problem I have had. It breaks out with adding new fish into an established tank sometimes. Some fish can survive and others cannot. Cardinal tetras are the most susceptible and they die almost immediately. I lost a whole group, about 12 in two days. It was tragic.

Corey209 · 01-26-13, 02:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pareeeee

You've had a very unusual experience with fish then. I've been member on fish chats and forums for years, and even veteran fishkeepers and breeders have disease outbreaks from time to time. Back in the day, I was often the one people would ask for disease advice, and it helped me learn a lot about treatments, causes, etc.
Larger tanks usually see fewer problems, smaller tanks are more difficult to maintain. Other variables apply, age of fish, fish species (fish like rainbowfish are very hardy, others, like discus, are prone to health issues if not properly maintained), number of fish, type of filtration, tap-water quality, pH, and so on. It's smart to always have meds on hand. After buying new fish is when sickness most commonly occurs. If at all possible, a person should have a quarantine tank for new and sick fish. I've treated worms, ich (easy to eradicate), bacterial infections, etc. The most common maladies are ich and tuberculosis. Tuberculosis, unfortunately, is almost impossible to cure, and very contagious (even transmissible to humans), therefore the fish in question should be destroyed.

I try to have these on hand: aquarium salt (multiple uses), parasite medication, Maracyn-Two (for bacterial infections), malachite green solution (for ich or velvet), Melafix and Pimafix. Read the instructions carefully, some meds kill catfish and crustaceans.

If your tank is well-cycled, you should not have many problems, except when introducing new fish. I've also found that live plants help a lot, for several reasons.

How big was your tank? If it was large, that could have been one of the reasons your fish were disease-free. For a person like me, with a relatively small tank (33 gallon) it takes a bit more effort, especially with tap-water which is not ideal... I also overstock a little, so it would be irresponsible for me to overstock and not have meds on hand.

Edit: I've learned over the years that adding a small amount of salt to the aquarium after each water-change helps a great deal in preventing disease. When fish are stressed they lose their slime-coat, which makes them vulnerable to disease. Salt aids in the production of this slime coat. (I put one teaspoon in my 33 gallon after each water change)

The tanks had to have been around 50 but below 75 gallons, we had kept Convicts in one and Mollies in the other. We even introduced different species without anything ever getting sick like small crabs. But we also managed the pH level of our tanks and had an expensive filter running at all times.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Aaron_S

it's why I stay away from ever buying a molly.

I don't think we ever put salt in our molly tanks and they thrived the entire time. We must have had at least 100 at one time when they were breeding but we'd give the majority to the local fish place.

alessia55 · 01-26-13, 05:41 PM

Well, I'm taking the rosy barbs back to the store tomorrow. They are 2 males and fighting on and off the whole time. I will be getting 2 more zebrafish to join the already existing 3, and that will be it.

I have since moved the tank onto a stand/cabinet that I got. I'll update photos again once I change the fish out and get the background.

ericschuh00 · 01-27-13, 08:55 PM

IME red tail sharks are more aggressive toward there own kind rather then other fish

**Aaron_S** · 01-27-13, 09:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ericschuh00

IME red tail sharks are more aggressive toward there own kind rather then other fish

Depends. They are a finicky animal. If they've established themselves in a tank and then you add another fish they tend to believe they are dominate.

If you add the shark last as the final fish in the tank, they generally get along with everyone.

alessia55 · 02-06-13, 02:27 PM

Updated photo of my tank

puffinluffin · 02-06-13, 02:30 PM

I love fish!!
Very nice looking ones you have there. Love the shark.

puffinluffin · 02-06-13, 02:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alessia55

Updated photo of my tank

Wow it's gorgeous.

Hurrok · 02-06-13, 02:32 PM

Looks very nice Alessia

I could stare at a tank for hours and be entertained.....

alessia55 · 02-06-13, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hurrok

Looks very nice Alessia

I could stare at a tank for hours and be entertained.....

You know... I find myself WAY more intrigued by the one snail in there than by the fish, lol

Hurrok · 02-06-13, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alessia55

You know... I find myself WAY more intrigued by the one snail in there than by the fish, lol

I haven't had a snail before so I guess I'm missing out!

alessia55 · 02-06-13, 06:32 PM

They were curious about the camera ...

Sophia'sSophia · 02-07-13, 12:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alessia55

You can also see my one golden mystery/apple snail in the corner.

A nice background will be coming in over the next few days, until then I just have white paper in the back.

I built a fish tank stand/cabinet, but have to wait until I get a few manly friends over to carry it there for me.

What a lovely snail! Such a nice colour, the ones I see around here are always green with algae!

I hope you don't mean you intend on transporting the tank while its full, do you? Thats going to be really difficult! Its at least 100 pounds of sloppiness. If you must though, good luck! (and don't forget to take out the critters! Don't want 'em getting all shook up.

)