Thinking Of Moving To Australia

[Zikofski]

Hello, all i joined the fish keeping business over a year now and i love it sadly i have taken the decision to move to Australia now i know that i cant take my fish or any of my kit with me man i wish i could, but i would like to know what is it like over there to keep fish? im gona be moving to Brisbane so anyone from there would be amazing im hoping its the same as over here, altho when i went over for 2 weeks to visit i didnt see one fish shop and the pet stores i went into looked pretty grim no offence only gold fish to

i know temperature is going ot be more of a problem over there, how do you guys keep the water temp down? or dose it just stay down haha

all comments much appreciated

 

[raptorrex]

Hello, all i joined the fish keeping business over a year now and i love it sadly i have taken the decision to move to Australia now i know that i cant take my fish or any of my kit with me man i wish i could, but i would like to know what is it like over there to keep fish? im gona be moving to Brisbane so anyone from there would be amazing im hoping its the same as over here, altho when i went over for 2 weeks to visit i didnt see one fish shop and the pet stores i went into looked pretty grim no offence only gold fish to

i know temperature is going ot be more of a problem over there, how do you guys keep the water temp down? or dose it just stay down haha

all comments much appreciated

pop over to Crayfishmates.com

Crusty is from Oz and keeps fish too.
he'll give you the low-down. might even be able to put you in touch with some aquarists, over there.

Ok, I'm not from Oz, sorry.

 

[Baccus]

Brisbane does have some amazing fish shops, next time I am down that way I plan to go to one at Morayfield. I know that many of the big shopping centers down around Brisbane have a chain type pet shop called Pets Paradise, this I would liken to Pets at Home or some other overseas pet chain stores which can be a bit hit and miss.

There are a few online fish supply places and I have used LIVEFISH quite often, heres a link to give you an idea on what they can supply http/www.livefish.com.au/ .

As for keeping the temp down, well I live in Central QLD so my temps can get hotter than Brisbane, but even people in Sydney and Melbourne can struggle to keep cool water creatures such as Crystal red and Crystal black shrimp,and axolotls as well as non-tropical sea horses alive without chillers in the heat of summer. Personally I don't use chillers, all of my tanks are fully opened topped and I just ensure I have at least one airstone in the tank and that the HOB filter is really rippling the surface. Some people use aquarium fans to try and help keep the temp down or they have the tanks in airconditoned rooms.
Just remember just as Brisbane can get hot it can also get cold, so heaters for most tanks will still be needed in the colder months, but these can at least be turned off usually from about mid spring right through summer (provided the tank(s) are not in airconditoned comfort ).

The most fun you will probably have with keeping fish etc in Aust is when they get sick, all of the old medications that you knew and trusted pretty much will not be available over here. So my heads up will be to get Science Products medications, I have found these very effective in the past.

Good luck with the move

 

[coolie]

I heard they are dealing with snow at the moment in Oz.

 

[Baccus]

Only in some southern parts, snow in QLD is VERY rare, it has happened but more so at Stanthorpe. The Bunya Mountians has had snow as as has Mt Archer here in Central QLD. We have just had a late blast of cold from Antarctica , but trust me once the heat hits, its here for the long haul.

 

[coolie]

Here in the UK the weather has been a bit chaotic, like many other parts of the world. We started the year with a hose pipe ban meaning the reservoirs are half empty, then had the wettest summer on record, floods, etc. Hail today mixed with rain, again.

 

[Davo86]

I'm pretty sure most of the interesting fish species are illegal to own in oz ?

 

[Baccus]

Shirmp and other inverts are not allowed into Australia but many fish species are allowed in and are currently here. Plus we have some of the most amazing natives that are not available overseas

 

[Zikofski]

WOW thank you all this has helped me allot ye the one fish if posible i want out there is my current torpedo barbs, if i can buy some when i get out i shall be happy haha, they are just amazing fish to watch and look, but ye if not il look for more haha but again thank you all, i shall take a look at the websites much appreciated i just cant wait haha

another question, is are there LFS that are able to make a tank to my specification? like i have done over here in the uk

 

[Baccus]

Some pet shops can and will make tanks to your requirements ( I can't point you in the direction of any in Brisbane since I don't live there), but also places like Bradnams Windows might make tanks for you, or they can at least supply you with the glass you want and you can glue your own tank, This will be expensive.

I can give you a link to a Queensland fish forum, on there they have lots of members selling fish, tanks, filters , plants you name it they will sell it. I often can't get anything from the forum since most of the Brisbane based members refuse to ship/ post. But since you will be in the Brisbane area it might be useful to you.

http/www.qldaf.com/forums/forum.php

 

[Zikofski]

okay thank you again, sorry to be a pain my GF is a huge small pets fan and she really really loves hamsters and gerbils and is kinda a must for us to have one im guessing they are available out there but again i don't know given the different environment and maybe the different laws over there

 

[Baccus]

Definantly no gerbils or hamsters, they are not allowed in. In NSW you can get a permit to keep native hopping mice, but not allowed in QLD. Also not allowed to keep rabbits or ferrets in QLD. She could learn to be a wildlife carer and then raise and release possums, kangaroos, wallabies,and various birds and reptiles.

 

[Baccus]

You can have guinea pigs and the many pet shops sell mice and rats (personally I would always get a rat over a mouse), but the funny thing is the law is a bit fuzzy with regards to keeping mice and rats only Labs, and schoools are supposed to keep them, but you can buy them in nearly every pet shop.
I would love to have a chinchilla but alas even they are not allowed into the country .

If your GF liked lizards we have beautiful blue tongue lizards, pink tongue lizards (I have even seen black blue tongues- WOW ), various colour morphs of breaded dragons and a host of other native lizards/ skinks that you can keep with a permit and some of the more common types are relatively cheap. Also plenty of native pythons and a few fresh water turtles are available through pet shops.

Australila is also the land of parrots and we have some beautiful grass parrots that are about budgie size, such as scarlet breasted wub: ) Rosa bourkes (and a few colour morphs in these), and cockatiels, then we have larger parrots like rosellas. princess parrots and king parrots right up to cockatoos. We also have some stunning native finches.

So just because you may not be able to have the types of pets you where used to seeing in England, I think you will find there is a whole smorgasboard of other options you never ever considered

 

[Zikofski]

Okay thank you so much Baccus for all your help i have another question

what can i take out to Australia, as in equipment, stuff like my filters? heaters? power heads, UV sterilisers, now i know il haft to get a crate to shuv all my TV and crap in, but i would love to take this stuff with me to save me buying it all again sorta thing, not fussed about plugs i can change them or use adapters

 

[Baccus]

Ok this will be a tough one, filter media will be a big NO NO and the only way I could see Aust Quarrantine allowing in any part of a tanks equipment (eg the filter housing, nozzles etc) that COULD hold any sort of organic matter or minute hitch hikers is if the parts are sterilized using some sort of fumigation (and this process costs big $$$), anything that has been above the water I and not had potential contamination with any sort of organic matter should be allowed in but it will need to be super clean.

I know it would be nice to be able to bring the equipment that you know and trust but seriously it will be less of a headache (and cheaper in the long run) to just buy new over here.

Another option would be to contact Aust Quarrantine and find out exactly what their requirements will be. Here is a link to AQIS that should help you http/daff.gov.au/aqis

I know it all seems daunting what you will be allowed to bring in to Aust but it can be very rewarding once here, dont forget too about the Aussie forums I mentioned where you can always find cheap fish and equipment, there is also online pet shops that you can order from as well online pet classifieds and between all of these I am sure you will find almost everyting your after....excpet for certain snail species and almost all non-native shrimp . But the bonus of the native fish and shrimp that you can have here is an interesting trade off, like yesterday I was at a Creek in my region and saw some beautiful little fresh water gobys, along with a few rainbow fish and juvi long arm shrimp and that was without even really looking for them