i rescued some tiger barbs...

[masterfishes]

today i rescued 3 tiger barbs from walmart....they r aprox 3/4-1 on long and seem to be in good health.....they seemed so healthy and so cute i couldnt resist...not sure what do u with them but im keeping them quarantined for at least 2 weeks.....amazingly my local walmart has 90 day gauranty on all fish....but sadly they have a poster of what the emploies r supposed to in the fish department but they dont obviously....all those por fish ....anyway i have a quick question....ive never had tbs before so.....is it normal for them to be kinda jumpy....is it just because theyre not used to haveing someone around

 

[fish_r_great]

Yeah its normal tiger barbs will chase each other and can be pretty aggressive.

 

[afireinside]

yes it is normal. all of mine were at least. and because of my reason experiance, i'm never, ever ever ever gettting tiger barbs again. oh and a report, they had like 20 2 inch long oscars in a 12 gallon tank, i wanted to get one so bad, but i am still in a state of shock.

 

[tttnjfttt]

Tiger barb basic care -

Very active - need to be kept in a large tank, ideally 30 gal or more (mine are in a 20 gal, but I wish I could give them a larger tank)

Agressive - Tiger barbs can be agressive and fin nippers. To reduce agression, keep them in a school of atleast 6. This will reduce agression between barbs and against other fish.

Schooling - Like I said above, they are schooling fish. They are always together, even more so than my zebra danios, who are also schooling. Because they are always togethre, they can be very amusing to watch

Feeding - little pigs who will eat anything

max size - 3"

EDIT: I should also add, when I first got my tiger barbs, I bought three with the intent to buy three more in a week. Within two days, they were so agressive I had to immediately buy more to mellow them out.

 

[masterfishes]

well thanks.....if they do ok i think ill keep them for a whille but if they get to aggresive ill see if my lfs will take them....they r just so cut right now

 

[tttnjfttt]

What other fish will they be kept with?

Seriously, if you get a few more (2 or 3), it will solve the problem. The barbs will spend all day chasing eachother around, and there will be enough to spread out the agression over 5-6 fish.

 

[masterfishes]

i was thinkin either my shark or my gourami(once im over the ich of course but it appears to be gone)
might be able to get some more around the 16th not sure though

 

[tttnjfttt]

I'd go for the shark (assuming its a red finned shark) because they are more agressive as well.

 

[masterfishes]

its actually a rainbow....those ones with all the fins and tail red

 

[masterfishes]

ok well ive been watching my tb babys closely and they r very healthy and active....how much longer should i keep them quarantined before i add them to the tank with my shark....its been almost 2 days already.....would a week be enough or longer

 

[tttnjfttt]

General rule of thumb is two weeks, just to make sure they don't have any bugs that take that long to see. Remember, they did come from walmart so they have definately been exposed to stuff.

 

[@ombomb]

seem to be in good health.....they seemed so healthy

So how exactly was it a "rescue"?

I'm sorry but threads like this just wind me up.

I buy fish becasue I like them, why do people have to justify the fish they've bought by calling it a rescue when there's nothing wrong with the fish? I completely understand that some fish get kept in poor conditions but, certainly on the Betta forums, every fish that comes from a chain store is "rescued".

 

[Ami]

@ombomb

So how exactly was it a "rescue"?

I'm sure we've all been guilty of 'rescuing' something before - I know I have!

Plus, it seems like there is a general low opinion of the ability of Wallmart to look after the fish and keep them alive. Some people have sigs stating that they kill more fish than they sell, so I reckon it's still a rescue even if the lil guys (girls?) were healthy.

Ami

 

[@ombomb]

No, as I have already said, I buy my fish because I like them, not to "rescue" them and not on a whim. Personally, I don't buy fish from places where I don't feel they're correctly cared for. Surely buying fish from places like Walmart only encourages them to stock MORE fish.

 

[dualexcess]

I've always had tiger barbs, previously in larger groups, but in this current tank only three. (I don't kill them, just have moved a few times.) It's true that you need several, at least 3, but more than 5 or 6 just makes a gang, which needs a good-sized area for play. They do well with the red-tailed sharks, which I've also never had trouble with, other barbs if they're not too tiny, and any other active fish I've had. Just no slow fluffy swimmers. I know people disdain them because they're common, but they're just so much fun to watch, and will entertain each other on into the night after the other fish have calmed down to their corners of rest.

If you ever see green tiger barbs, steer clear. They're one of those hybrids that tend to be weak and problematic.

I do agree with the sentiment that if you buy from a place like Wal-Mart, you encourage them to continue on. However, I've gotten some good plants there, and don't feel much compunction about it. They sell my premium dog and cat food and all-natural cat litter, and the plants tempt me from just around the corner. The guy who works in that department in our local one really does his job.