minnows

[medicalert9]

I had an idea to use minnows as a tank starter fish. I live in a small town and none of the fish stores sell feeder goldfish. Can anyone give me some input on this subject?
I have a 30 gallon tank very well filtered and aerated with lots of live plants, but i need to introduce some live fish to get the cycle started and dont want to spend a lot of money on fish that might die while waiting for the tank to cycle.
Please help,thanks.

 

[OohFeeshy]

You want hardy cheap fish? Try platys or danios.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi medicalert9

Welcome to the forum!

One of the problems with using feeder fish to cycle a tank is that they are poorly cared for at most lfs (local fish stores) and often carry diseases which will be introduced to your new tank. Another is that you will most likely end up with fish you don't really want once you have finished. Since you don't want to get off to a bad start when you add the fish you really do want, why not cycle with them instead.

The secret to successful cycling with fish is to go very slowly. Except for being able to completely stock the tank, there is no real advantage to hurrying this important process. If you remember that by testing for ammonia and nitrites, and doing enough water changes to keep them in line, you will be in control of the cycling, you will not go wrong if you start with a few hardy fish.

If you know anyone who also keeps fish, you can probably get some used gravel and/or filter media to jump start the process by actually putting some live bacteria in the tank. Then it is merely a matter of keeping them alive and encouraging them to reproduce.

What kind of fish do you plan to have once your cycling is completed?

 

[medicalert9]

Thank you for the replys. Unfortunately there is no one i know that has an established tank to borrow from, so i'm out of luck there. I have added some bacteria starter to the tank, hopefully that will get things going. I plan to add two or three swordtails once the tank has cycled. then i was thinking about four to six angel fish over a few weeks, then mabey a male and female betta.once all of them are doing fine i might add some more fish but i'm not sure what kind. Any inputas to what kind? I appreciate any help.

 

[rich]

White Cloud Mountain Minnows make a good starter fish, that's what I used. They seem to live anywhere, although you will only get the best colours when the tank is established.

For future reference, not sure about a male and female betta together and you're angelfish will try to eat your minnows.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi medicalert9

Cory cats are always a good addition to a community tank. They come in a large variety of colors and patterns and are perfect citizens of any community tank.

I believe that angels and bettas are not a good combination because the angelfish nip the fins of the bettas. For more information about that, it would be a good idea to post a question in the Betta section of the forum.

For more information about Angel fish in general, ask in the New World Cichlids forum.