My First Fish For My First Cycled Tank..

[youngfisher]

Well, As its finished cycling now (Thanks minx ) I decided to go LFS and have a look around today.

And I fell in love with two rams

So I got them! There only small, I believe they are german blue rams, however the person at the LFS was not to sure.

They were priced up at £5.95, so I got two of the babys

I got some frozen bloodworm and tetra prime for them as thats what they had been feeding on.

I will get some pictures ASAP as im just doing the "Drip Method" atm, as they have been kept in a lower ph so she advised me to drip them.

Once they have settled I will get some pictures

 

[minxfishy]

Oh boy, wish you'd have asked about them first, they are so sensitive, not recommended for a newly cycled tank. However, they are now here, so, you are going to have to keep a very close eye on your stats, they will not tolerate the slightest trace of ammonia or nitrIte and your nitrAtes will need to be as low as possible, under 20ppm or they will suffer.

So test 2 x daily for the 1st few weeks, any signs of amm or nitrI, water changes as appropriate.

 

[youngfisher]

God Damnit!

I thought these would be ok, thats what you get for listening to LFS i guess!

I will test later on and do a big w/c anyway and a 25% w/c each day

 

[bagu]

eeeek they should be in a mature tank, i made the same mistake, just keep ontop of everything, mine have up alive and kicking for 5 - 6 moths now xD

piccies plz

 

[youngfisher]

When I do w/c can I put the water in from the tap. I know many people do this but my worry is the water will be cold.

If I do 24% w/c everyday, I think they should ok, hopefully.

 

[bagu]

When I do w/c can I put the water in from the tap. I know many people do this but my worry is the water will be cold.

If I do 24% w/c everyday, I think they should ok, hopefully.

put some warm water in there lol ^^

just keep an eye on the stats =]

 

[youngfisher]

I carnt get warm water from my tap so its going to take me a while to do a w/c lol as its fairly high up (my tank) oh well, got to be done.

 

[minxfishy]

Keep the temp stable around 28c, a small drop at a w/c will be fine, but no more than 2 degrees. Have replied to your pm

 

[bagu]

my rams seem fine though tbh, 1 is younger than the other. At water change time they color up more =)

 

[youngfisher]

How do you sex them? And what size do they start breeding?

As if they start breeding I will be worried as I wont have loads of time to care for the fry

 

[jmkgreen]

Get yourself a good book for starters. I owned GBRs for over a year and they seemed perfectly happy but they were added to a fully mature tank. The front dorsal in will be higher on the male but it can be difficult to tell. Also a pink spot between belly and anal fin for female but again can be difficult to tell.

Grab a copy of http/www.aquatics-online.co.uk/catalogue...sch-atlas-s.asp volume 1 (I got it cheaper on ebay mind you). Also, "The Bumper Book of Tropical Aquarium Fishes" (Interpet), is pretty decent.

What was that about "Always learn about your fish before purchasing them..." Time to change that sig of yours I think!

 

[bagu]

How do you sex them? And what size do they start breeding?

As if they start breeding I will be worried as I wont have loads of time to care for the fry

hey

Pink Belly = female
if its anal fin doesn't pass the junction between the body and tail its female

longer fins = male

if its dorsal fin is rounded at the end its female; if its pointed its male.

piccies plz xD if you do ill upload mine lol

German Blue Rams are picky, they will pick a partner themselves and stick with each other for life =]

dont worry about breeding yet But you could just suck them out if they do lay eggs, but the first couple of times they wont make it; mum and dad will eat them xD

 

[youngfisher]

Ok, just done a 50% w/c, I have no photos yet as all of them I take are terrible! (still learning how to take them)

So instead I recorded a terrible quality video on my phone, and was just wondering could you tell me if there "Pairing up" or "Squaring up"

Every now and again they swim around togther, then leave each other. However I must say since I have done a w/c they are alot more active.

Heres the video:
(Sorry about quality)
http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YsalRHHbhM

 

[minxfishy]

Your right it is bad quality Ok, the one doing the chasing, looks to have a pink tummy, so without clear pics, i will say is female. That doesnt however mean if the other is male, you will get a pair.

That tank needs plants or somesort, to break it up more

 

[youngfisher]

Theres tones of oceon rock that they go inside, and there is a big ornament on the left hand side they can hide around. There are quite a few hiding places IMO.

But however, mags your the master, so if there are problems I will add more hiding places

And leave me alone about the bad quality, you should invest in a camera for me!

Also, Im guessing they are too young to sex perfectly etc?