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Freshwater Fish |  |
 Aquarium Fish |
Bettas -1- |
Bettas -2- |
Bettas -3- Spawn |
Pictures -1- |
Pictures -2- |
Pictures- 3- Bettas |
Pictures -4- |
Diseases |
Favorite Links |
Contact Page |
| News! NEW!! May 8, 2002. I added a new link to the link section. It's actually my other site. I'm still starting, so it's not really finished, but you can go check it out if you like. Guess What! My uncle brought me a tank yesterday. He told me he wasn't sure of how many gallons it can hold, but it looks pretty big! I've still got to clean it out and check. I've gotten my uncle to order a pump, gravel, thermometre, and a 100 watt heater, because he can get it cheaper for me. Let's hope I can stay on my budget. *.* All that stuff came to 35 buckS! =] --April 5, 2002-- Ok, I finally got the gravel for my tank. 20-25 pounds for...!!! :0 and a hood for only !! Just the fluorescent long light bulb is ! I was checking out the hoods for my tank, but they were all so expensive, so I asked my uncle to see if he could get me one at his friend's place/warehouse. Sweet! --update April 7, 2002-- ok, I went out to get a pump, airline tubing, a big air stoneand 3 bunches of plants. expensive..that all came to about ! that's cause i didn't get it at the warehouse. When I first set the tank up, the water was all murky (this was before I got filter)because i hadn't cleaned the gravel enough. I didn't know that it would be harmful then, so I put in my 3 Common Goldfish to cycle the tank. They are really tough and can survive almost anything. But i noticed that even they were unactive, and the strongest and biggest one was just lying there not moving after a couple hours. That's when I immediately scooped them out back into their original 10 gallon. Later than night, I siphoned out all the water. Added more, swirled the gravel around while siphoning it out for about 4-5 minutes. I did this repeatedly until the water was no longer murky. I then put in the new water and plants with the new filter and it looks great now! I'll try cycling again tomorrow morning with my Common Goldfish again (poor them :( --update-- Ok, I tried putting the goldfish back in. They were starting to lie on their sides (argh!) --update-- I noticed that the murky stuff had settled and wasn't as bad, so I tried putting in my goldfish again. They were fine! =D. The bad thing is, my uncle lent me his undergravel filter, but I won't be able to use it now, because it's fine =D + =[< -Tell Me- Hello, if there are any questions or comments, please contact Me, Sarah. Do you have some pictures, information, or stories that you would like to share? Contact Sarah |
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| Maintaining Your Tank and Fishies --Tank Setup-- Most people like to begin with 10 galleon tanks. you should put the tank on the stand or whatever before you put all the gravel/water/plants/decorations in it. Gravel MUST be washed! Try not to put the aquarium on the floor. This can cause problems later on. You should have all the equipment (filter, pump, hood with light, heater) ready with you at this point. To wash the gravel,you can put it in a collander and spray it with water several times to get all the yucky stuff out. When it comes to putting the gravel in the tank. It is a good idea to put more gravel at the back of the tank, as to make a slope. This way, when the fishes poop, the wastes will slide to the front of the tank, so it will be easier for you to siphon out! The plants should also go in the back because you want your fish to swim in the front of the tank. Make sure your water is treated with water conditioner. When pouring the water in, place your hand under the water flow to break the force. You don't want to just let it pour in, because all the plants that you spent so much time putting in will float up and the gravel will go everywhere. The Heater should be placed near the pump, so the warm water will be pushed throughout the tank. The heater must be submerged in water at all times. You should keep the heater in the tank for a while before turning it on. Or you can read the instructions on the back of the package to see what they want you to do. If you have live plants, you want to make sure that you have some source of light if it isn't included in the hood of your tank. You also need to know what plants your getting to see if you have enough light in your tank to keep them alive. Keep your tank running for a couple weeks or longer to give it time to cycle. --Introducing New Fish-- When introducing new fish to the tank for the dipping method, clean the outside of the bag that the fish are in well. You don't know what or who has been touching them. Then just float the bag in your water for about 30 minutes. When 30 minutes is up, open the bag, and net the fish out. Don't get any of the water from the bag/store into your tank. The water from the bag/store is very dirty. Don't expect your fish to eat right away. The fish will most likely feel stressed and won't want to eat. They may even explore. The fish may not eat for up to a week. My uncle got a new tank of Angelfish, and they didn't eat for a week. Did they ever have HIM worried. =] You should provide plenty of plants for them to hide in. If you're going to have moss in your tank, don't pack it too tight. I've tried having fish stuck in my moss before. Not good. >=[ -Maintaining- It is a good idea to change around 1/5 to 1/4 of water every week. If not, your fish may get sick of ammonia poisoning. A good way to change the water is to use a siphon. It can be hard to siphon around plants, so it is a good idea to put the plants in the back while the gravel is sloping down, so you can just siphon the front. Be careful when you siphon. Be as careful as you can so you don't suck up any fish. You should have your finger over the other end, so you can control the force. If a fish is coming near, just put your finger over the other end of the siphon. You should turn off the heater before you siphon. Depending on what kind of fish you have: Usually, you should feed your fish 1-2 times a day. Or more often, but feeding less. That is the best way to keep them healthy. It is way better than feeding them a whole lot, but not as often. If you find that there is a case of bullying going on, you should get a tank divider, or just separate them into different tanks. It's worth the work. =] If you notice your fish acting strangely( floating around, not eating, fuzzy stuff on body, salt like grains on body) then visit the Diseases section. If it's not there, there are some sites in the link section that will tell you. If you have any questions on what to use to treat your diseased fish, just email me at sarahliu@telus.net Euthanasia Flushing We all know about the flush method, but as one site said "death by toxic waste will certainly work, but there are better ways to help your fish pass along to that big bowl in the sky." so I would accept that as a not acceptable method. Blunt Trama Blunt trauma to the head is also considered not to be a preferred method because sometimes the fish are only stunned and not killed and then get buried or flushed and wake up. This method needs to be followed by decapitation (info posted by Dr. Barb at the Aquamaniacs web forum) Releasing some might think that 'letting an animal go' is a kind thing to do.. but it's not, they have never lived in the wild, and do not know how to survive.. also as one site said "Introducing tropical species to new habitats can have a detrimental effect on other native species" so that is obviously another non acceptable method MS-222 also known as Finquel or tricaine methanesulfonate. From what I understand, this is only available to Vets... bringing your fish to a vet to be put down does sound like a good idea, though in some situations not possible. MS-222 is an anesthetic, so after being put in a mixed solution your fishie would simply go to sleep. pentobarbital and ketamine are other such drugs that can be used as well. Carbon Dioxide As some may know, carbon dioxide poisoning causes sleep as well.. some methods suggested at one site included putting baking soda or Alka Seltzer in a small container. Death is supposed to be very quick with this method. Freezing a) putting fish in the freezer This is another common practice. The desired effect is to stop all body functions to result in a quick and painless death. Some argue that fish do actually feel the water around and within them Turing to ice crystals, resulting in pain and fear. b) extreemly cold water The better freezing method is to get a bowl, add water and lots of crushed ice, and when it's ice-cream-headache-cold, add the fish. This is quick and sends the fish into immediate cardiopulmonary shutdown and brain freeze. This way is pretty well immediate and the fish will not realize he's going until he's gone, it's that quick. And the price is right, cost-wise (info posted by Susan313 in the aquamaniacs forum) Clove oil and Vodka Clove oil is an old fish anesthetic standby, and in a higher dose is used for euthanasia. You can get it at the pharmacy or health food store and it's cheap. The euthanasia recipe is 1 ml clove oil, 9 ml vodka. Mix this together and pour into 1 gallon of water. The vodka is a solvent for the non-water soluble clove oil, and not meant to be used as a painkiller or sedative. Not for the fish, at least! If you need/want a stronger solution, either use less water or add more clove oil, not vodka. Alcohol stings while clove oil numbs. The fish should go quickly in this solution, and relatively painlessly. |
Do's & Don'ts Never Overfeed Your Fish Don't feed your fish more than they can eat in 5 minutes Get Aquarium Test Kits The title says it all Water Changes You should change about 20-25% of the water for every week. It depends. eg. Tank size, type of fish. Do Not Overcrowd Your Tank Overcrowding your tank can lead to stress and more ammonia build up, which leads to many other things. The rule is 1 inch of fish for every galleon Don't Refurnish Don't move plants and rocks all over the place whenever you get bored of the looks in your aquarium. Fish mark their territory with plants, rocks, and by making marks in the gravel. If you move any of these, the confused fish may wander into another fish's property and get nipped or chased right out! Don't Use those Kitchen Utensils! Don't use anything that you use in the kitchen for aquarium uses. Especially if it has seen soap...or oily stuff *.* Place your Aquarium on something Sturdy Don't put your aquarium on anything that rocks, creaks, or is "riggity". The shift in weight could stress the tank sides. You wouldn't want to have all the water spilling out of your aquarium with fish flowing out, would you? Unplug Heater Unplug the heater when you change the water. You don't want to expose the glass part of the heater. Or shock yourself for that matter.. Wash Your Hands! Wash your hands before and after you feed, change the water, or do any work on your aquarium. Dirty, dirty, dirty! Don't Add Too Many Fish at Once Try to add fish over 30 day periods. Choose Fish that Live in Similar Conditions When choosing fish for your tank, choose fish that live in the same water temperature, water chemistry, and make sure they are ok living together. Have a Set of Medications On-Hand You should have some medications ready in your "fish medicine cabinet" for when your fish are sick. You may want to include medications for: Fungus Bacterial Infections Antibiotics etc...etc.. |
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Water Parameters Livebearers-4 Most Common |
Picture from Boise Betta Company Send an email |
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