This is completely off the topic (sorta) but I was reading my new issue of Aquarium Fish magazine and noticed a newsworthy item. In Rome they have outlawed keeping goldfish in bowls or giving them away as prizes (such as at carnivals or fairs). I like the idea of this, its not foolproof but its at least an attempt to get people to give proper care to their pets and prevents them somewhat from being taken advantage of by people who are just out to make money.
I think it would be good to stop the 'fish as prizes' games at fairs etc - lets face it, we'd be outraged it was a win a kitten game or something!
But I was wondering if they article said exactly why they banned it, and was it only in Rome?
I too love reading a fishy book....When I kept fish as a youngster, my local bookshop stocked 1 (one) book on fishkeeping. I lived in a small town in Sweden, with one tiny bookshop, no secondhand bookshops, no other towns within travelling distance.... These days you surf the net for a book and order it in 5 minutes, wherever you live. And most people have more money.
One book!? You'd almost think there wasn't any point in that!
I can't imagine being so restricted in my reading choices.
I've just bought yet another fishy book and have got to the point where I'm having to pretend that they came from 2nd hand stores.
) I've always been fascinated, ever since I used to read my uncles fishy encyclopedia as a kid, and there's so many different species of aquatic lifeform out there - many of which haven't even been discovered yet!
I've just started flicking through another encyclopedia of fish, which has so much info and lots of photos of everything from tetras to whale sharks, I'm bound to be posting some 'guess what I just read!' posts soon!
Glad you came back to the fishy business DG!
As a new fish enthusiast I find that I have to rely on my common sense a lot....I also think that caring for fish is what you make of it. Of course there are minimum requirements for caring for your fish, but just like any other pet there are the minimalists and the maximalists (is that a word)...I am very grateful for all the information. It helped me avoid the usual fish cycle (my lfs hadn't even heard of fishless cycling and was totally uninterested in hearing about it)
Hi again Debra
I agree that caring for your fish is what you personally make of it and am pretty sure that maximalists isn't a word - but will allow you this one as it fitted in so well with what you were saying!
Some people do too much by my own standards and others far too little to help their fish lead healthy and happy lives. Not sure what the equivalent of painting a dogs toenails are though, but I'm sure someone will be able to think of a comparison!
You'll find that there's still a lot of people in the trade who either don't know what cycling is or aren't interested because they've always done things another way and it seems to work. Did you try asking if they had ammonia to help you cycle the tank?? My LFS were like, 'no, surely you mean an ammonia test kit??'
Doh
I must admit I think I'm very lucky when it comes to keeping my fish...I don't think I'll ever be tempted to put chemicals into my water just to neutralise another chemical ...I personally don't think that the water quality here in Leeds is that great but its certainly not the worst, well I'm still alive after drinking it for most of my life lol!
Hey Natsuko
I think I was lucky to an extent, but also know that I made some stupid decisions in the past that could easily have resulted in the deaths of all my fish, but fortunately they had developed an immunity to me by that stage! Just don't ever use mineral water to top up a softwater tank....
)
It does seem silly to add more chemicals to the water, however I don't think leaving your water to stand gets rid of everything in the water. I think it gets rid of the chlorine, but not the chloramine or something. Just read that somewhere yesterday and can't remember exactly what it said. Though I'm sure someone will correct me!
I will still add a de-chlorinator to mine going forward as I don't want anything to go wrong and risk losing any of my fishy babies.
As for you still being alive after drinking Leeds tapwater all these years, maybe it's because of all the 'helpful' chemicals they add! How do you feel knowing that you digest the nasties (I know they stop the
real nasties)?
Makes me a tad concerned at times when I see levels of lead and copper etc on test results from tap water, knowing there are lots of young kids and elderly people around for whom the lead especially could cause problems.
I have had an aquarium now for 30+ years and definitely thinks it's WAY easier to keep fish today....Now I set-up a new tank and add fish as soon as the water has warmed to the correct temps. I use less filtration now, less equipment specifically. I don't use air pumps. Use less additives. The main thing I do less is fuss with the set-up. I also lose less fish.
Wow Elliott - that's definitely the minimalist method!
Do you wait for a new tank to cycle or do you seed it from another tank? Or do you not worry at all? Regarding filtration, what do you mean you use less now - what filtration do you use?
Sorry for all the questions, but I'm always interested in possible methods to prolong the lifespan of my fish!
While chlorine is completely removed ... there are other elements.... highly toxic to aquatic organisms and if left untreated will build up in the internal organs of fish causing a break down in the immune system and eventual death, some more sensative species will die before it even gets to that stage, most catfish, characins, oddballs and scaleless species are copper intollerent. A decent conditioner costs very little equating to pennies per water change for most people but could improve the quality and length of life for your fish, is it really worth not using one?
Thank you hun, come to my aid again even before I'd needed something cleared up this time!
What brand of conditioner do you use CFC and how much do you get through in a year with all those tanks? Is there any brand that's better at taking out all the nasties than others?
I didn't keep fish 30 years ago (wasn't quite born yet), but I did keep fish 10 years ago and I have to say it is definately easier now. 10 years ago I .....seldom found answers to many of my questions. I never knew why some of my fish died and had to simply try things out to find what worked.
I completely agree with Debra. We can choose to inject CO2 and buy $500 worth of lights, or we can get low light plants and $90 worth of lights with no CO2. Either way you'll probably have happy fish.
Hi TammyLiz, I wasn't born 30 years ago either! Although give me a couple of months and I won't be able to say that anymore.
I'm glad you can find the answers to your questions now. The key thing is you find them quicker and before you make the mistakes rather than afterwards, which is what still happens to a lot of people.
I sometimes wish there was someway we could send out leaflets with basic fish keeping facts, questions to ask your LFS before you buy a fish and that type of thing, that we could distribute and maybe tell folks to come here if they need further info. Maybe we should make some sort of suggestion and see what happens.
As for the lights and CO2, I'm trying Nutrafin at the mo and not being very successful so far! Don't even know where to start with the lights as my cheap, powerful T5 idea has gone down the pan now that they're a potential fire hazard!
