From: Lucy
Subject: Can goldfish bug breeding betta?
I Have a small tank of Goldfish(4 comets)right next to Ricky and Lucy's breeding tank can that bug them?
From: Marianne
Subject: Sick Betta!
One of my bettas is acting strange. What's normally a beautiful red fighter, is looking scrawny & greyish, acting like it's shell shocked, won't eat and is hanging out at the top corner of the tank. When I get near the tank the fish flips out. I put a teaspoon of salt in the tank this morning in the event it's Velvet, but is there anything else that could be wrong?
From: karen
Subject: Re: Sick Betta!
Try a medication with the salt, I used Melafix with good redults but there are others. Make sure he gets fresh water every few days depending on how big his bowl or tank is.
From: Don
Subject: Dropsy
I have a beautiful goldfish that has regular bouts with dropsy. He also developed slight scoliosis about a year ago, which I have come to find out was from malnutrition. The dropsy will clear up after a matter of days, but after feedings it comes back, and the amount of food I give him helps determine how much he swells up. I suspect that the slight bend in his back is obstructing the kidney. He stays lethargic but immediately gets up at feeding time. Very friendly, beautiful fish. Is injecting with penicillin a possibility?
From: Karen
Subject: Re: Dropsy
Dropsy is a symptom, usually of a bacterial infection. Usually fatal.
I am assuming he swells up, do his scales stick out giving him a pinecone appearance?
If his curve is enough to block his kidneys penicillan won't cure it.
if it is dropsy an antibiotic, preferably in his food is needed. Then you need to ise the bicket to bucket method. Two buckets of identical water, each day you transfer him to the fresh bucket and clean the other one and reset it up.
From: Clint
Subject: New chat room
I have set up a new chat room. Tried another one from a hosting company but it just had too many ads and popups etc, so I think this one will be better. I am ure there will be some bugs, I have already fixed all of them that I found.
Unfortunately it's time for me to go back on the road again for a couple of weeks (work), so I hope it will run on it's own. I can check in remotely but I can't manage closely.
See you all in 2 weeks or so.
Clint
From: Leslie
Subject: Euthanasia
Could someone please give me some options for humanely disposing of dying fish? I have read about different sorts of ways to do it, but they all seem so brutal: freezing, alka seltzer, etc. When I have a dying fish, especially one in obvious distress, I really don't know what to do to put it out of its misery. Of course, I remove the fish at once into a small isolation tank so the other fish won't start munching on it, but after that, I'm at a loss and some fish seem to take soooo long to die.
From: Rebecca
Subject: Calling Dr. Kevorkian...
You can give fish an overdose of fish anesthesic.
At most drug stores, in the first aid section, you can find small bottles of clove oil (eugenol.) This is used for toothache pain. Get a little bottle. Also buy an small syringe like an oral syringe (no needle)... you only need to measure a few ml (or a few cc... they're the same thing.) You'll also need a bit of vodka. If you're old enough to buy vodka, buy lots, as it's nice to have a few cocktails at this sad time.
The standard recipe is as follows. Mix 1 ml of clove oil with about 5 ml of vodka. (You can suck them both into the syringe and shake it) The alcohol is needed to dissolve the oil, since the oil doesn't mix in water very well. It will turn cloudy. (I use 2 ml of clove oil, to make sure)
Then squirt this mixture into a gallon of tank water in a clean bucket (the bucket will reek of cloves for a long time afterwards, so don't use your regular aquarium buckets.) Add fish.
It will go to sleep in less than a minute. Death apparently occurs within a few minutes. However, I use extra clove oil, leave the fish in for an hour, and freeze the body aftewards, because I'm paranoid about fish waking up somewhere in the toilet drains.
Flushing fish alive is bad. The colder water might kill them fairly quickly, but basically they die in chlorine soup.
Chopping off the head is considered humane, but honestly, how many people are comfortable doing this? I couldn't even hold a fish still enough and would probably whack my finger off.
Freezing is still recommended by some people. I honestly don't think it's traumatic... I think their metabolism slows to the point they're sort of comatose by the time they freeze. But some people say the ice crystals forming in the body is very painful. Hard to tell unless you're a fish.
I've used the clove oil on 2 fish and aside from the smell, it was very stress-free and I feel the fish did not suffer at all. Look up clove oil for fish euthanasia with a search engine and you might find some recipes you like better than mine.
Hope this helps.
From: Leslie
Subject: Re: Calling Dr. Kevorkian...
Thanks a lot, Rebecca. The clove thing sure sounds a lot more humane than freezing or chopping off its head (yuck!). How could anyone chop the head off their pet??? I'll get the clove stuff, and yes, I am definitely old enough to buy vodka :) ! I never, ever flush any of my fish until they are without a doubt dead. My first and most favorite fish, a male betta named Dominic, is buried in my palm/flower-bed island in our front yard. Everytime the daisies bloom, I think about him.
From: Rebecca
Subject: Re: Calling Dr. Kevorkian...
Well the clove oil is supposedly what veterinarians use to sedate fish (obviously they don't leave them in it for as long) and to euthanize them, which is why I tried it. It does reek, though... I don't mind the smell of cloves but that was ridiculous :)
Dominic would probably be happy to know that he provided some wonderful fertilizer for the daisies... I stopped burying pets after the neighbor's dog dug up the bones of my long-departed rabbit... eww....
From: Karen
Subject: Re: Euthanasia
One method I have heard of is chopping off the head.
I have yet to find a way to do it that I am even remotely comfortable with.
From: Leslie
Subject: Re: Euthanasia
Yuck! I could never do that!
From: Leslie
Subject: Fry Size?
I have six, one month-old guppy fry and I was wondering how large they need to be before they can go into a community tank. I have 2 community tanks, the smaller one with neons, rasboras, one male betta and one dwarf gourami. In the larger tank, I have everything from white tetras to dwarf angels and one dwarf gourami. I don't know how big the fry need to be before they won't be eaten by the larger fish. There are many hiding places in both tanks, but I don't want to put them in a community tank until I know they'll be ok. Thanks!
From: Clint
Subject: Re: Fry Size?
The fish needs to be too big to be eaten. Thats about the only thing you really have to decide.
From: Christopher
Subject: am I crazy??? small fish in 55 gal
Ok. I am about to start a 55 gal aquarium. I want about 30 to 40 fish, all small schooling fish (less than 2 inches each) but my wife thinks that I am insane. She thinks that I should go with fish that grow bigger and have fewer fish. I just like the idea of a lot of small fish in schools swimming around and living out there little lives in a large environment. I have a 10 gallon with: 3 bettas(1 male; 2 females) 2 black fin tetras, 4 ghost shrimp, 3 dwarf cats, 2 otocinclas, and a frog. My idea for my 55 gallon is basicaly a larger virsion of this tank. I just like the fish that are in it. Should I branch out and have a angelfish tank like she wants or have a large population small fish tank like I have in mind. Any advice would be nice.
From: Rebecca
Subject: Re: am I crazy??? small fish in 55 gal
It's funny, we were just having this discussion on another board a while back.
Whenever people get a large tank, they tend to get large fish. Personally, I like small fish in a big tank. Large fish in a large tank is just a bigger version of small fish in a small tank (limited numbers, small schools, fish with not much room to swim.) I guess people just like big fish.
However, with a big tank and small fish, you can have large schools which will move around in the space in a beautiful way that they can't do in a smaller tank. Even non-schooling fish look better when they have room to really move around.
There's a tank at a LFS which is huge, must be several hundred gallons, and except for a couple discus in one corner, it's all schools of small fish. I could watch it for hours. It's all planted, it's about 4 feet tall, and the many schools of dozens of fish gliding around are just amazing to watch. They look so much different than they do in a 10 gallon. Beats the hell out of looking at 2 oscars all day.
I say go for it.
From: Karen
Subject: Re: am I crazy??? small fish in 55 gal
Who is gong to do the most work and spend the most time looking at this tank?
Personally I like the small fish large tank idea as it looks more natural. I also like an understocked tank.
From: Christopher
Subject: Re: am I crazy??? small fish in 55 gal
:) I do the work. The only thing that she does is hand feed my male betta. So it is the big tank with small fish:) Thank you for your input:)
From: AJB
Subject: to Clint....
I was wondering if you have recieved the emails I have sent you recently.
About the chat room thing; I love it, but I think it could use a set date in which people are encouraged to come in. Like on a saturday at night sometime. That way we could maximize the amount of people in there.
AJB
From: Christopher
Subject: Re: to Clint....
Hey! well, if you are the one hosting this thing...Thank you! I am on line from about 12:30 am. to about 2:30 am and from around 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm EST. The am hours I am usualy a little tipsy, so a chat room I just "listen in" on, so as to keep from offending ppl. But daytime hours I hope to run into ppl here. I am new to aquariums (less than a month) but am constantly researching and looking. I have a 10 gallon finnished, and am about to buy a 29 gallon and a 55 gallon. I am compleetely hooked on aquariums and this message board. I check it at all hours of every day. Anyway, as for the chat room, I hope that ppl will be on when I am able to be on, as I love to share and collect info. Thank you again :)
From: Clint
Subject: Re: to Clint....
Yes I know what you mean. This chat room is crappy anyway. I'm working on another one that is hosted here at petfish, but the code is giving me problems. It will have a history of the last 25 lines written, so people can schedule themselves some as they like.
Thanks for the suggestions.
From: AJB
Subject: Re: to Clint....
Sounds good about the chat room.
Did you get the emails I have sent you recently?
You know those compact fluorescent bulbs sold for lamps that are brighter than usual light bulbs? Will these work in an other wise incandescant (SP) hood? Just wondering, I have asked others and they don't know.
Thanks,
AJB
From: Clint
Subject: Re: to Clint....
No I haven't gotten any emails? I'll have to see whats going on.
You mean those flourescent bulbs that will screw in a regular socket? Yes they will work fine as long as they aren't too big (in size) to fit in the hood. They usually only come in soft white, but for plants that seems to work pretty good.
Now I'm going to go see why my email isn't working.
From: jason
Subject: keeping fish alive, it's a big problem.
hi i have a 29 gallon tank that now contains 2 gouramis' 2 swordtails and 2 high fin tetras'. i would like to add a plec to my tank but i have a very bad history with them. are there any tips i should know inorder to help me keep a plec alive?? I also have trouble with tiger barbs. i really would like some of them too, but i can't keep them alive and i have know idea what i'm doing wrong. my other fish are fine but my tiger barbs and plecs always die. any help would be great.
From: Karen
Subject: Re: keeping fish alive, it's a big problem.
I don't recomend pleco's, especially the common brown ones. They just get way to large for even 100 gallon tanks. There are some that stay around 4-6 inches but they tend to be expensive. (I consider any fish over $20 expensive)
If you go with an algae eater don't depend on just the algae to feed it, give it pieces of zuchini or blanched spinach or leafy vegetable and they sell algae wafers for them. Feed them at night after teh lights go out so the other fish don't eat it before they find it.
Tiger Barbs will nip each other to pieces if not kept in large groups, I find 5 to be a good number, the more the better for them but do not overstock your tank.
From: jason
Subject: keeping fish alive, it's a big problem.
hi i have a 29 gallon tank that now contains 2 gouramis' 2 swordtails and 2 high fin tetras'. i would like to add a plec to my tank but i have a very bad history with them. are there any tips i should know inorder to help me keep a plec alive?? I also have trouble with tiger barbs. i really would like some of them too, but i can't keep them alive and i have know idea what i'm doing wrong. my other fish are fine but my tiger barbs and plecs always die. any help would be great.
From: Lucy
Subject: For any expierenced Betta breeders
I breed my pet bettas for fun, but I can use some advice. I've read lots of sites but they all seem the same. So if any betta breeder on this site knows any helpful tips, ot sites please answer.
Lucy
From: Laine
Subject: swordtails
My swordtail recently had fifteen babies and I'm interested to know what the gestation period is for this type of fish. Does anyone know or have an idea where I could find out?
From: cheryl
Subject: Re: swordtails
Hi Swordtails carry there fry for 28 to 30 days. Cheryl
From: Laine
Subject: Re: swordtails
Is it possible for my swordtail to mate with a different species of fish? I had a black molly in the tank with the swordtail and I believe it must have been the fish my swordtail mated with. Is that possible?
From: Hannah
Subject: Re: swordtails
Swordtails can mate with other fish species, such as the 2 platies (common and vairated). I don't think they breed with mollies. By breeding swords with platies and then back-breeding the swords, new, interesting colours, variations and fin shepes are obtained.
But, how long have you had your sword? Swordtail females can store the males' sperm for months, using it to give birth to usually around 30 fry every month. So, it is most likely that your sword was storing sperm from tankmates where you bought her, or from a male that was kept with her a few months ago.
Hope this helped, I am a great fan of swordtails!
HANNAH
From: fire ice
Subject: to Clint about grindal worm cultures
hi, I thiink it's wonderfull that you're selling microworms and griindal worms! I was wondering, though, what would the shipping charge be to Ottawa, Ontario? thanks!
From: Clint
Subject: Re: to Clint about grindal worm cultures
I think it's only slightly more. But they are priced postpaid so I would pay for it.
CN
From: fire ice
Subject: Re: to Clint about grindal worm cultures
great, thanks! I'll order some soon, in a few weeks.
From: cheryl
Subject: For everyone that remembers the unusual birthing of my guppy fry...
The fry are turning 7 weeks old and after the initial loss of the week ones, I still have 23 left....they are 1 and a half inches long now, and developing there colors. Yesterday I moved them from the 10 gal to a 20 long estlabished tank...very soon now they will be ready to take a trip to the local pet store. I want to get out of the livebearers, but I may have to keep a male, they are kinda special to me...lol. Cheryl
From: AJB
Subject: Re: For everyone that remembers the unusual birthing of my guppy fry...
Yes I remember and congratulations on the good save of them. Make sure you keep a couple to remember their mother by!
Good luck with them, although I don't think you need a lot. :-)
From: cheryl
Subject: Re: For everyone that remembers the unusual birthing of my guppy fry...
Thank you for the support AJB, Cheryl
From: Leslie
Subject: Re: For everyone that remembers the unusual birthing of my guppy fry...
Wow, that's neat! I have six guppy fry that are four weeks old today. I lost only one out of the ones taken from the breeding tank that I had out their mother in. She died the next day. You said yours are seven weeks and are showing colors. Could you see any colors before now? Mine are still quite small but extremely healthy and growing very fast. They seem to put on weight everyday! They are mostly clear except for the darker areas of their organs showing through. I can see their tails if I look close and they just started showing that guppy shape in the last four or five days. I'll be glad to see some color! Good luck on yours!
From: cheryl
Subject: Re: For everyone that remembers the unusual birthing of my guppy fry...
Hi Leslie, My guppys started showing there colors at about 4 weeks. I have fed these little guys, and gals live baby brine shrimp that my hubby hatches for me every other day. They eat 3 times a day 2 feedings of crushed flakes and 1 feeding of baby brine. I couldnt beleive the rate that they grew once I started live baby brine.
You said your momma guppy died the day after birthing....I have had this problem with livebearers...so I called 4 pet stores and they have all said many people have commented on there livebearers, dropping fry and dying, and that its gotton worse in the past 6 months, but no one seems to know why.
Good luck with your babies, Cheryl
From: cheryl
Subject: For everyone that remembers the unusual birthing of my guppy fry...
The fry are turning 7 weeks old and after the initial loss of the week ones, I still have 23 left....they are 1 and a half inches long now, and developing there colors. Yesterday I moved them from the 10 gal to a 20 long estlabished tank...very soon now they will be ready to take a trip to the local pet store. I want to get out of the livebearers, but I may have to keep a male, they are kinda special to me...lol. Cheryl
From: cheryl
Subject: can a redtailed black shark be kept with......
Can a redtailed black shark be kept in a 30 gal, with 6 zebras, 2 platys, 1 guppy, and 2 mollys? I have plans to give my livebearers away, but I have to do it slowly as to not shock my 5 year old, lol. shes rather attached to them....I just want a new look. Thanks Cheryl
From: Karen
Subject: Re: can a redtailed black shark be kept with......
If you have room set her up with a ten gallon for the livebearers.
The shark might get a little nippy, some are real peaceful and some aren't. The 30 gallon should be ok and the zebras are fast enough they can stay out of his way.
From: Hannah
Subject: Re: can a redtailed black shark be kept with......
Sounds good, apart from i would not keep one guppy on its own - i'd say keep 3 at least.
(They don't take up much room!)
HANNAH
From: Patti C
Subject: Ripped tail on Gold fish
Anybody know if this will heal?She can swim fine.It is sliced down the bottom of her tail fin in the back.if anyone knows. Let me know. Thanks Patti C
From: Rebecca
Subject: Re: Ripped tail on Gold fish
Melafix is a very good treatment for fin damage. It's completely harmless to the biofilter, plants, fish, snails... but it prevents secondary bacterial infections where there has been an injury, so healing tends to take less time.
I used this on a platy whose tail was ripped right to the body, and it healed up very quickly like new.
Melafix does have a funny smell and the water might look a bit foamy temporarily but it works very well. Good to keep on hand for injuries. And no, I don't work for Melafix :-)
From: Karen
Subject: Re: Ripped tail on Gold fish
Yes it will but how did it happen? Is it only on rip?
If that is all that is wrong, no fungus, red streaks, spots or other tears it will heal fine.
From: TO KAREN FROM PATTI C
Subject: Re: Ripped tail on Gold fish
Its only half way. I think as he was chaseing her to get the eggs out again the plastic plants must of done it. I can't notice anything else that would of done this. I hope she won't get sick because of this.She keeps having eggs every week.I'm leaving them alone. They seem to be happy campers. Patti C pssss The babies are doing just fine in the other tank.
From: Karen
Subject: Re: Ripped tail on Gold fish
Glad the babies are doing well. Just keep an eye on the tear to be sure it does not get fuzzy. I am sure it will heal just fine.