What Fish Are Impossible To Kill

[barb-e]

not literally but i'm looking for a fish that wont die after a few months. i though cherry barbs would be a good choice but I started with 8 and now I only have two. I am officially turned off from big chain stores. The first fish I got had ich and when I returned to the store, you could anctually see the white spots on their fish. I wish I had noticed before. And the other fish I got...I am pretty sure they had either a bacterial infection of a parasite before they came home with me. I say this because I consider myself a pretty good fish caretaker even though I am a beginner. I have a ten gallon tank and I will be getting my next fish from a mom and pop shop. What fish do you suggest?

 

[Christine1014]

Hi, i responded to your other post too... did you cycle the tank before adding fish?

to answer your main question, danios are a fun-to-watch, hardy fish. I think they should be in groups of 5 of 6, which would rule out the giant danios for a 10 gallon, but there are plenty of other smaller varieties.

 

[chibi]

I bought 5 gold tetras 8 months ago and they haven't gotten sick once. I also have a 2+ year old flame tetra! Many tetras are hardy.

 

[Don Trinko]

Most of the chain stores get fish in once a week. The fish are moved around a lot including being shipped to the local store. This causes a lot of stress on the fish.
If you can find a "non chain" lfs the quality of fish will probably be better. We found a independent store abought 60 miles from us. They Quarantee there fish for 2 weeks before they go on the retail floor for sale. Of The fish I bought from them I have had no ick and one fish died. ( it fell out of the bag on the floor so I can't blame it on them) I have bought 19 fish from them so far including Angels and discus.
If you have to buy from the "chain" type lfs find out what day they get their new fish in and go the day before . That way you will be getting fish that survived a week. Don T.

 

[rdd1952]

It sounds as though you haven't cycled the tank. All fish are affected by ammonia and nitrite and will die from it if exposed for long enough. Some fish do better than others when it comes to cycling but no fish is immune to ammonia and nitrite. Most diseases are brought on by stress such as exposure tot ammonia and nitrite. Did you test your water for ammonia and nitrite while you had the fish?

 

[barb-e]

Well it's definetly cycled. I went fishless and it took a whole month. I went through the whole ammonia up then down and nitrite up then down. I now do weekly water changes and I last tested the ammonia two weeks ago and it was zero.

 

[rdd1952]

In that case, you are probably correct that the fish were diseased when you got them. A lot of the chain stores are bad, Wal-mart in particular. I am lucky to have a very good Petsmart near me. Their tanks are so clean, I have no problem with buying fish from them.