No More Garfish For Me!

[donporter]

First pic of tank after a thorough clean and removal of the gars. Is it me, or are they smiling?

I noticed that the tin foils have lost some scales though - could that be trauma, or disease?

Don

 

[donporter]

If I catch you, I'm gonna eat you.

 

[CFC]

That last comment couldnt be more true i'm afraid, crayfish will eat any fish they can catch, especially during the night while the fish are asleap near the bottom.

Did the shop not mention to you that the tinfoil barbs will reach 14 inches long as well?

You're not having much luck with this are you

 

[donporter]

That last comment couldnt be more true i'm afraid, crayfish will eat any fish they can catch, especially during the night while the fish are asleap near the bottom.

Did the shop not mention to you that the tinfoil barbs will reach 14 inches long as well?

You're not having much luck with this are you

No, I suppose not.

But I don't have access to A. a decent fish shop, or B. appropriate advice in Saudi where the main criteria seems to be, put money in the cash register.

Concerns expressed about compatibility are met with the usual "No problem, no problem sir"

However, I now intend to give up. It's clear from reading other threads on this forum, and replies to my posts, that I have no idea what I'm doing.

 

[paul_219]

Very nice. Wonderrful.

 

[Straydum]

i think the lost of scales on your tinfoil could be due to your crayfish as well. nasty creatures they are to put in a community tank.

 

[CFC]

That last comment couldnt be more true i'm afraid, crayfish will eat any fish they can catch, especially during the night while the fish are asleap near the bottom.

Did the shop not mention to you that the tinfoil barbs will reach 14 inches long as well?

You're not having much luck with this are you

No, I suppose not.

But I don't have access to A. a decent fish shop, or B. appropriate advice in Saudi where the main criteria seems to be, put money in the cash register.

Concerns expressed about compatibility are met with the usual "No problem, no problem sir"

However, I now intend to give up. It's clear from reading other threads on this forum, and replies to my posts, that I have no idea what I'm doing.

It would be a shame to give up just because of poor service from the shops, to be honest a lot of shops in the UK are just as bad. I'd advise investing in a copy of Baensch Aquarium atlas volume one and familiarising yourself with the fish you like the look of, that way you can go to the store pre armed with the knowledge of what you want to buy.

 

[clareandkarl]

Don`t give up!! Okay so you made some mistakes, we ALL have made mistakes when we started out.
All you need to do is listen to the advice given, take a look at your fish store, see what they have to offer, go home, look it up on the net or ask advice about them on here. There will be plenty of people willing to give you advice, then you can make your choices more carefully rather than impulse buying.

You have the general attitude that you want to do right by your fish, so despite making a few mistakes, you are willing to learn and put things right. I am sure that given time you will end up with a healthy happy batch of appropriate tank mates.

 

[HooleyHoop]

I agree, dont give up! I've only recently entered the world of fishkeeping and made some horrendous mistakes due to my LFS in Manchester. Following great advice from people on here I now have a nicely cycled and well stocked 200L community tank.

btw, your tank looks very nice and if you cant get a good book on the subject, posting on here always seems to do the trick. I've started to visit my lfs, check their stock and then come back on this site and do my research before going back to make my purchases

Chris

 

[Straydum]

i remembered when i first started fishkeeping, i took advice from the lfs as though they were gold. now i realised what i was doing then was dumb. all the info i need now comes from research.

everyone has their obstacles, once you get pass them, it should be rather smooth sailing.

 

[connorsbala]

I thought that lobster would have had a go at the plec by now...

 

[donporter]

Thank you all for your comments, advice and encouragement.

I admit that I'm no expert, but with the exception of the crocodiles with fins, and buying hybrids before I knew what a hybrid was, I don't think I've made too many mistakes.

OK, I've got crayfish and they eat fish. They haven't eaten any of my fish, and they've been in the tank for 6 months. The female is hidding in a cave. clutching eggs under her abdomen, and I can't wait to see what happens. The male may give a nip to a passing fish at feeding time, but isn't this normal behaviour?

If I'd had my camera handy at the time, I'd be posting shots of the pleco swimming along with a crayfish surfing on his back, or the pleco lying on top of the crayfish as if it wasn't there. I find these moments fascinating. Is this wrong, or cruel?

Tin Foils get big. I know, but they are beautiful fish and I like them. BTW their scale loss is caused by a small but mean rainbow tetra who is very protective of a single, silver dollar female that he keeps trying to mate with (priceless).

I've had a rare day off today, and finally had a chance to observe and appreciate what I've acheived. It may not be to all tastes, but I'm happy and so are my fishies.

Regards Don

 

[DiscusKeeper403]

The crayfish haven't ate anything yet, because they haven't gotten big.

The tank would be real nice, if just a few fish where removed, and the tank size increased. I would keep an eye out for any aggression from that electric yellow. You may need to remove him, along with the crayfish. If you got a bigger tank, then everyone could grow to a decent size, and be very happy!

 

[Chrispixx]

Tin Foils get big. I know, but they are beautiful fish and I like them. BTW their scale loss is caused by a small but mean rainbow tetra who is very protective of a single, silver dollar female that he keeps trying to mate with (priceless).

Tin Foils lose scales easily, because they tend to spook easy all it takes is a good whack into something like a decoration, heater, filter intake tube etc. to lose scales. My tins have lost scales many times over the years and never had any ill effects.
They should heal up fine, just keep the water quality good.

Have you caught your tins "yawning" yet? Mine open there mouths real wide like when a person yawns, usually late at night. Its as if their saying turn out the lights i want to go to sleep.

 

[donporter]

Tin Foils get big. I know, but they are beautiful fish and I like them. BTW their scale loss is caused by a small but mean rainbow tetra who is very protective of a single, silver dollar female that he keeps trying to mate with (priceless).

Tin Foils lose scales easily, because they tend to spook easy all it takes is a good whack into something like a decoration, heater, filter intake tube etc. to lose scales. My tins have lost scales many times over the years and never had any ill effects.
They should heal up fine, just keep the water quality good.

Have you caught your tins "yawning" yet? Mine open there mouths real wide like when a person yawns, usually late at night. Its as if their saying turn out the lights i want to go to sleep.

Thanks for that, I will keep a watch out for yawning fish.
The entertainment just gets better and better
I woke up to find a crayfish walking across the living room carpet this morning

Cheers, Don