Who sits and just watches their tank for extended periods?

[Trop65]

There was a great comment on another thread about spending 30 minutes a day just watching the fish. It started me wondering how many people actually do that, rather than intend to do that.

I had a friend whose doctor told him to get a fishtank after a minor stroke, to get him to slow down and appreciate calm. Within a few months he had a huge fishroom with all kinds of challenging fish and was going at learning about them at high speed. True, 30 years later and he's still well...

I'm a fishroom guy, and I like to sit down, with some good music on, and look at the tanks. I pick out one that has something interesting going on, and I watch to see what I can make of it. That's usuyally a solid 5 to 10 minutes. More often than not, I find something to adjust, or decide I need to create some little piece of gear that might work to make whatever more interesting. I see a pair or a group in pre-spawning behaviour, and I decide to arrange a breeding space. I have a very hard time sitting still and watching on a regular basis. My tanks are for adjusting, creating, doing things with...

Because I like to "do", I find that as relaxing as always sitting and watching might be. I think. Maybe. Perhaps.

I'd be terrible at yoga or meditation, and if I were a medieval monk on a rocky island somewhere, I guess I'd ditch the praying and end up trying to figure out the things in the tidal pools... can people really just sit and watch fish swim?

How does it work for you?

I have my tank in the opposite corner of the tv in the livingroom. When there's a commercial, I watch the tank!

 

[emeraldking]

I never get bored looking at my tanks... But I can also watch tanks of others for a long, long time... No problem...!

 

[AdoraBelle Dearheart]

I have never been into soap operas, but watching the residents of a community tank go about their business while eating, courting and producing fry is like watching a soap opera play out, I swear.
Largest 57g community tank has an armchair right beside it, facing the TV, so I've spent many hours sitting and watching, especially just after feeding their evening meal. I never bother putting a film or anything on at that time, I know I won't take it in at all because I'm watching the tank.

Back when it was a packed community tank, it was a hive of activity. Male mollies trying to court the females, who are more interested in turning over every pebble looking for food or algae to eat. Males chasing each other and displaying to sort out their pecking order - right now I have three blue male platies, no female livebearers, and they constantly squabble over who is the biggest and baddest, and gets first pick at dinner time! They show some amazing body language, holding their fins out and stiff while vibrating their bodies, curved towards the one they're trying to dominate, then I swear, they STRUT around the tank when they win the standoff! The one who is currently at the bottom of the pecking order hides away, ducking and diving for cover in between sneaking out to grab some food, and zooming away if the top dog spots him.

Single gourami would be dignified while sedately moving slowly among the floating plant, picking off live daphnia or his favourite, mosquito larvae. A stark contrast to the frenetic energy and movement from the zebra danios.

Meanwhile the pack of nine bronze corydoras tumble and bumble over the substrate, sticking their heads right into the sand while their tail goes up, forming smaller groups of buddies, males chasing chunky females, and getting especially excited right after a water change - zooming all over the tank and occasionally glass surfing, but looking as though they're having a blast. At quite times, they'll hide out under their favourite cryptocoryne in the corner, and sit in small groups on the pieces of slate. Just sitting still and chilling out.

At feeding time, while the cories are zooming about and excited, the two plecos eventually emerge from their hiding spots, making their way towards a decent sized chunk of wafer or the piece of veg that's there, suckering onto it and bristling when a cory accidentally bumps into them while bumbling about. Once they've had their fill they slowly sneak back under cover, and you'd never know they were in there.

My pygmy cory tank is in my bedroom, and I've spent many an evening after a hard day caring for parents just watching the fish do their thing. Spotting tiny fry is always a joy, and they spawn so often, which is fascinating to watch. When they chill out, they very often gather on their sand "beach" right at the front of the tank, and it's lovely to see them all just sitting there. Usually still a few pecking away at plants and sand, looking for morsels of food. After a water change they'll often school together, since there's 30 or more pygmies in there, to see them all swimming together is a real pleasure. You see behaviours from them in large groups that you just don't see in smaller groups.
Apologies for the long ramble. Most of you know what I'm like! But yes, I've whiled away many hours sitting and watching a tank, and not a moment of it was wasted time.

 

[Deleted member 149562]

My aquarium's lighting is on blue ready to switch off and settle the fish for their nap time for the night

Some movement keeps catching my eye....the Cories are busy laying eggs amongst the floating greenery....

Below the floating greenery my Apisto has summoned his inner Praying Mantis.....he is sat vertically watching the Cories intently before diving headlong into the greenery to snatch and scoff the eggs....

The other fish are totally ignoring the Cories....but that Apisto is totally focussed, barely moving then pouncing hard and fast

He's a sneaky devil

The Cories are NOT impressed....at all

 

[Lgrhm215]

There was a great comment on another thread about spending 30 minutes a day just watching the fish. It started me wondering how many people actually do that, rather than intend to do that.

I had a friend whose doctor told him to get a fishtank after a minor stroke, to get him to slow down and appreciate calm. Within a few months he had a huge fishroom with all kinds of challenging fish and was going at learning about them at high speed. True, 30 years later and he's still well...

I'm a fishroom guy, and I like to sit down, with some good music on, and look at the tanks. I pick out one that has something interesting going on, and I watch to see what I can make of it. That's usuyally a solid 5 to 10 minutes. More often than not, I find something to adjust, or decide I need to create some little piece of gear that might work to make whatever more interesting. I see a pair or a group in pre-spawning behaviour, and I decide to arrange a breeding space. I have a very hard time sitting still and watching on a regular basis. My tanks are for adjusting, creating, doing things with...

Because I like to "do", I find that as relaxing as always sitting and watching might be. I think. Maybe. Perhaps.

I'd be terrible at yoga or meditation, and if I were a medieval monk on a rocky island somewhere, I guess I'd ditch the praying and end up trying to figure out the things in the tidal pools... can people really just sit and watch fish swim?

How does it work for you?

I have terrible anxiety and paranoia. Getting my fish tanks has helped me tremendously. I get lost watching my tanks. I can sit for hours and not feel the slightest bit anxious or paranoid. I have family members that’ll walk past me and say “are you still watching them?” “They’re just fish.” They’re definitely more than just fish to me. They help me take a minute and breathe

That got WAY deeper than I was wanting it to but it’s the truth

 

[Valkyrie_Lips]

My tank is right beside my desk in my home office so I constantly watch my betta. I love watching him explore and rotate between his favorite resting spots. I also like to hold up colorful objects/new objects to the tank too and I'll watch him examine them. Sometimes he flares if he's in a mood, but most times he intently stares at it before swimming away only to circle back for another look. He seems to recognize items he has seen before because they often don't catch his attention/he doesn't care to investigate them like he does with new things.

 

[Back in the fold]

I never get bored looking at my tanks... But I can also watch tanks of others for a long, long time... No problem...!

I love looking at other peoples aquariums !

 

[lottabubbles]

i like to look at the front corners of my 125gal aquarium. that way with the refraction it looks like i have twice as many fish. nothing like a big group of silver dollars.

 

[Stan510]

I get caught up in the way the lighting changes as the day goes by from the big window light. The best time is when the sun is streaming down. Later is nice too when the sun and the gro lights blend just right.

 

[betta4ever!]

I would watch my fish for atleast 2 hours daily ... Now that my betta hendras arrived, this became 4 hours. I think I'm getting a biiiiit addicted. I also often talk to them. We have 30 minute chats every morning before school. My fish literally make my day.

 

[Colin_T]

I know a lot of people moan and complain about their wife’s but you never know when anything can happen and your whole world goes upside down. Love your wife everyday

and your kids and pets.

you should also take lots of photos and videos of your loved ones and keep multiple copies on cds, dvds, usb drives and external/ portable hard drives. Photograph and film every special event and even just going out to a park or visiting family or friends. It costs next to nothing to film in HD now and the memories can't be replaced when your family is dead.

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My uncle used to come over and spend the first hour sitting in my room watching fish. He worked in the nut house and was stressed by it. He said the fish calmed him down.

 

[lottabubbles]

my aquarium is 7 ft from the big screen tv. when the frequent commercials come on i look at the tank.

 

[Stan510]

Its in a warm room and sunlight streams in all winter. Hard to beat that. Mostly I think of ways to tweak improvements in the aquarium. Calming creative thoughts.
I can say big aquariums like big TV's never get boring to look at.