What To Stock It With

[dwarfgourami]

Hang on, genesis, haven't you got some overstocking problems you need to sort out first? And I seem to remember something about a lonely cory in your other tank. The first thing to do, before you even think about starting up something new, is to take stock of your current situation: are those fish really kept under optimal conditions, is there anything you could do to make their lives better? Are all schooling fish in schools of appropriate size etc.

 

[Genesis]

which of my fish are schooling fish?

and btw my cory is getting 2 more buddys and my khuli loach is getting 4 more buddys


edit: also, im getting a new tank for Xmas which will be a 120 litre, i will move my current fish in there

 

[sylvia]

genesis, list your fish, how many of each you have and in what size tank you have them. If you don't know which of your fish should be in schools, you haven't done enough research.

 

[Genesis]

2 Dwarf Guoramis (M,F) (full size 2")
1 Angel Fish (N/A) (small 3")
3 Kribensis Cichlids (M,M,F) (small 1.5")
1 Red-Tailed Black Shark (M) (small 2.5")
1 Sucking Loach (N/A) (medium 4.5")
1 Khuli Loach (very small: 4mm thick) (M)
1 Albino Corydora (small 2cm)

tank size: 15 gallons
new tank size: 31 gallons
total water capacity of both tanks: 46 gallons

 

[dwarfgourami]

Let's do the maths:

2 dwarf gouramis = 2"x2= 4"
1 angel fish = 6"
3 kribs 3x4"= 12"
1 redtail shark 5"
1 sucking loach 10"
3 albino corys 3x3= 12"
5 khuulie loaches 5x2 = 10" (as you prob know they grow longer but I'm counting them as less because
of their relatively small body mass)
------------------------------------------------------------------
59"

Add to this that some of the fish above will have to be in separate tanks before long and I think you will see that the next thing on your agenda should not be buying more fish.

For instance, you are not going to be able to keep an angelfish with a sucking loach (assuming this is a CAE) in the long run, and 2 male kribs fighting over 1 female could well mean trouble.

I know this seems silly while your fish are all small, but they will grow faster than you expect, at least if looked after properly.

Admittedly it will be a long time before the sucking loach grows to his full size, but it may not be that long before he grows too aggressive to be kept in with the other fish.

You will need to read up very carefully on each individual species you've got and not buy any more fish for the time being. And decide whether you can run a separate species tank for the CAE when he needs it or whether he should be returned now.

 

[Fella]

Yeah, I've told him all about this, before he bought 2 new fish.

 

[dwarfgourami]

I know you did, Fella, it's possibly a hopeless case but at least one feels one ought to keep on trying. Particularly as some members don't realise the situation so might unintentionally encourage some very inappropriate purchases. Why is it that the people who seem to know the least about the fish they have are often the ones with the strongest urge to buy more? Is it because fishkeeping actually gets more interesting the more you know? So if you don't know enough to observe interesting behaviour in the fish in your tanks, you are reduced to fishkeeping as retail therapy? Just a thought....

Genesis, please, working with the fish you have can be a lot more fun than just buying more! Read up about them, try to create natural habitats for them, learn about their behaviour, try to understand how it relates to their natural milieu; this is a lot more fun than collecting them. Fish are not Pokemon cards!

 

[Genesis]

1.) im getting a new tank in less than 2 weeks
2.) the CAE has got his own tank (currently cycling)
3.) buying the new fish was an attempt to make life better for the other fish (removing nitrites)
4.) fish are not a retail therapy in my eyes, i treat my fish with respect
5.) i hate pokemon cards

 

[annka5]

Am I missing something? How does adding more fish reduce nitrites?
-Is the total new gallonage of your tanks not including the new one to arrive in 2 weeks time, or did I pick that up wrong?

 

[Genesis]

no

 

[Bloo]

Would that be " no" to all three the questions ?

 

[Genesis]

the " no" was in awnser to the "Is the total new gallonage of your tanks not including the new one to arrive in 2 weeks time"

 

[Bloo]

In that case, I'm intrigued to find out how more fish lower nitrite in a tank

 

[Genesis]

by consuming decomposing pant matter in a tank

 

[modernhamlet]

[quote name=''genesis' post='987501' date='Nov 28 2005, 02:54 PM']
by consuming decomposing pant matter in a tank [/quote]
Where did you come up with that silly idea?