New At This Fish Raising Thing!

[shmee]

I wrote this out four times and each time my internet reloaded the page so excuse me if i am not as polite as i tried to be the first four time ;P (That will teach me to use wordpad..)

I recently aquired some Killifish' eggs which hatched over the weekend after 20 days. (I have not raised fish for a good five or more years so i'm practically a begginer/learner)

They have all hatched, which i am rather proud of as i was told more than likely some will not hatch or will die! I fed them for the first time two days ago but i noticed yesterday morning that one of them (let's call him flipper..) was spending all of his time rolling around at the bottom of the water. Flipper it seems is the only one doing this, his tail is bent around towards his head and constantly stays there so he can not swim around. I read a few posts regarding this behaviour or problem on here and a few other sites so i have done as much research on it (and the fish in general) to gain more knowledge..

I took him away from the other fish today and placed him on his own to see if he straightened himself out, almost instantly he seemed a little better but he is not as the others are. I was advised to leave him a day or two on his own and see if anything changes, with him not swimming around to be safe i like the idea, i wouldn't want him losing out on food due to the other fish. I was also advised to add a tiny pinch of salt water if he is still like it tonight ....sometimes there's a difference of opinion so i am looking for your opinions =)

At the moment (Thanks to missing the delivery guy today) The actual tank i have ordered for them when they get a bit bigger is not here, and with me being in England and this silly royal wedding thing going on i may have to wait until next week for it now due to the long bank holiday. They are growing pretty fast and the containers they are in will soon be too small for them..if not already, so i may have to seperate them into other containers temporarily.

I also wonder, could it be he is injured due to lack of space? As far as i am aware all the fry are from the same parents, but i could be wrong...I do disbelieve it is a birth defect, but what do i know!



And before i forget, if he were to stay the way he is..would it be safe to put him back with the others when he gets bigger or would he risk being injured again?

Thank you

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I'm sorry to hear about the one fish that is having trouble. Its very possible that he may never recover, and that may not be such a bad thing, really. In the wild, he would have already been eaten probably. It may sound harsh, but culling the weak is a necessary part of the natural process.


I don't have any experience with killifish, but in general, the strong are meant to survive, and the weak are meant to be eaten. Harsh, but true.

 

[shmee]

Its very possible that he may never recover, and that may not be such a bad thing, really.

Thank you for replying, i do agree with that, my problem now being.
1) Do i leave him and 'see what happens' which seems cruel to me, leaving a fish in water, that can't swim. It's...wrong in my opinion, the poor thing.

2) Bully myself in to solving the previous problem by 'removing' said fish before he suffers more, because honestly i can't tell if he is suffering, i suppose in a way he is, it would be like riding a bike that has no wheels...

Ah, call me silly but i don't think i could KILL the thing even if it was to help it. I'm glad it's so young though, i think in the morning if he's still the same this may be the only option. Saying this; i'll make my sister do it if need be :0! and on a happy note, the new tank was left with a neighbor, now i just have to find out which one.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Its very possible that he may never recover, and that may not be such a bad thing, really.

Thank you for replying, i do agree with that, my problem now being.
1) Do i leave him and 'see what happens' which seems cruel to me, leaving a fish in water, that can't swim. It's...wrong in my opinion, the poor thing.

2) Bully myself in to solving the previous problem by 'removing' said fish before he suffers more, because honestly i can't tell if he is suffering, i suppose in a way he is, it would be like riding a bike that has no wheels...

Ah, call me silly but i don't think i could KILL the thing even if it was to help it. I'm glad it's so young though, i think in the morning if he's still the same this may be the only option. Saying this; i'll make my sister do it if need be :0! and on a happy note, the new tank was left with a neighbor, now i just have to find out which one.

I can't tell you what you should do, but if you decide to euthanize the fish, there are a variety of methods. One way that I've heard is to put it in the freezer. There are other methods, as well, but others will have to give you some information on that.

 

[fluttermoth]

Please don't put it in the freezer; it's probably not that quick, even for tiny fry

The best method is using clove oil. I think all fishkeepers should keep a bottle handy for emergencies.

Put the fish in a litre of tank water. In a small bottle, mix at least 25 or 30 drops of clove oil with a little of the water and shake until it forms an emulsion.

Then you just add it to the fishes container; the fish will become unconscious within 20 seconds and will be dead within a minute. I'd just leave it there for half an hour or so, just to make 100% sure.

Obviously if the fish is bigger, you need to multiply the amounts, but 25/30 drops per litre is the lethal dose.

Or, a whack on the head with a brick is instant, if you (or your sister) are tougher than me...

Unfortunately some fish are born deformed and there's really nothing you can do to help the little chap

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Please don't put it in the freezer; it's probably not that quick, even for tiny fry

The best method is using clove oil. I think all fishkeepers should keep a bottle handy for emergencies.

Put the fish in a litre of tank water. In a small bottle, mix at least 25 or 30 drops of clove oil with a little of the water and shake until it forms an emulsion.

Then you just add it to the fishes container; the fish will become unconscious within 20 seconds and will be dead within a minute. I'd just leave it there for half an hour or so, just to make 100% sure.

Obviously if the fish is bigger, you need to multiply the amounts, but 25/30 drops per litre is the lethal dose.

Or, a whack on the head with a brick is instant, if you (or your sister) are tougher than me...

Unfortunately some fish are born deformed and there's really nothing you can do to help the little chap

Like I said, other methods...


Where would one procure some clove oil? Regular grocer or somewhere else.

 

[fluttermoth]

Chemists stock it as its used for toothaches, or you can get it online.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Chemists stock it as its used for toothaches, or you can get it online.

I will ask the chemistry department at school if they have any. If not, it's off to online shopping for me then. Hopefully I won't find too much other stuff to buy in addition to it!

 

[OldMan47]

Eaglesaquarium, in the UK they call a drug store a chemist's. It will be on the same shelf as other pain killers like aspirin, acetiphenamin, etc. It is the stuff a dentist swabs your gums with before the needle for freezing your gums for dental work.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

Eaglesaquarium, in the UK they call a drug store a chemist's. It will be on the same shelf as other pain killers like aspirin, acetiphenamin, etc. It is the stuff a dentist swabs your gums with before the needle for freezing your gums for dental work.

...

Ok. I love cultural differences with the same language!


I'll add that to my list of synonyms!

cinema = movie theater - check
lift = elevator - check
chemists = pharmacy - check

 

[shmee]

Thanks
I did decide to pawn the little guy off with a friend, he has not gotten much better so i passed on the advice for when/if she chooses to send him to nodland.
Good advice, i learn something new everyday. All the others are doing great though

 

[OldMan47]

I am still learning "English" here Eaglesaquarium. It is well known that many words we use have very different meanings depending on where we are located. Can you imagine being LudvigVenter? He is a MOD here and does not speak english in any form as a native language, being from South Africa. Even when he looks up a word using a wiki or another source, he is faced with deciding what country the definition applies to before he can interact with us.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I am still learning "English" here Eaglesaquarium. It is well known that many words we use have very different meanings depending on where we are located. Can you imagine being LudvigVenter? He is a MOD here and does not speak english in any form as a native language, being from South Africa. Even when he looks up a word using a wiki or another source, he is faced with deciding what country the definition applies to before he can interact with us.