So. . . my dh bought himself a new plasma TV and I got. . .

[Gailey]

And from the top. BTW, I have an aquaclear filter on the back of this 5 gal glass bow front tank. The filter medium consits of a bag of Fluval peat balls and a sponge. This is because I have hard water (as seen by the limescale!) with a pH of 8.1-2.

 

[Gailey]

If you decide to get one, I suggest getting the handy dandy little holder to store it with as well.

Now George has had a bit of a Spring-clean, I will take some more shots of him a bit later once his water has cleared. I`ll try Money`s suggestion.

 

[jewelerman]

If you cats have a need...ive got some great fish recipes!

 

[mochi]

Now, I find this very interesting! I have two beta fish living in one tank, a male and a female. Their names are Bonnie and Clyde. I love the way they wiggle when I come near the tank and great me. It''s so cute.

Gailey, I never thought about planting real water plants in them. I have a couple of lucky bamboo''s growing in them right now and doing pretty well. Granted, their fish container is pretty small but maybe I''ll get a larger one to grow some aquatic plants in them. I use to have a huge 60 gallon tank when I use to live in Phoenix, and goodness, was that a PIA to take care of!! I had 3 large angel fish in them along with a bunch of others. I also had one of those sucker fish which my daughter named ''BOB'' and he must have been replaced a good 3 or 4 times with a different ''Bob'' and my daughter never knew about it. Every day when she came home from school, she would go to the tank and say ''Hi Bob!"

She''s now 21y/o and I finally told her the truth about Bob...she was so shocked!

 

[Gailey]

Date: 8/22/2009 5:57:46 PM
Author: mochi
Now, I find this very interesting! I have two beta fish living in one tank, a male and a female. Their names are Bonnie and Clyde. I love the way they wiggle when I come near the tank and great me. It''s so cute.

Gailey, I never thought about planting real water plants in them. I have a couple of lucky bamboo''s growing in them right now and doing pretty well. Granted, their fish container is pretty small but maybe I''ll get a larger one to grow some aquatic plants in them. I use to have a huge 60 gallon tank when I use to live in Phoenix, and goodness, was that a PIA to take care of!! I had 3 large angel fish in them along with a bunch of others. I also had one of those sucker fish which my daughter named ''BOB'' and he must have been replaced a good 3 or 4 times with a different ''Bob'' and my daughter never knew about it. Every day when she came home from school, she would go to the tank and say ''Hi Bob!''

She''s now 21y/o and I finally told her the truth about Bob...she was so shocked!

Wow, don''t they fight Mochi? Everyone knows that the males fight and you can''t put them together, but I also heard that a male will hound the female so I never bought any of my George''s a wife. Yes, I know what you mean about same name different fish! I rarely keep mine above 18 months, maybe the celibate life is not so good for them after all. I think I''m on about George X by now!

All my tanks have plants in them. I don''t have to worry about water changing so much I just top up most of the time. This is not a good idea for non-plant tanks though.

Do Bonnie and Clyde make bubble nests? Have they ever spawned?

 

[mochi]

Date: 8/22/2009 6:09:10 PM
Author: Gailey

Date: 8/22/2009 5:57:46 PM
Author: mochi
Now, I find this very interesting! I have two beta fish living in one tank, a male and a female. Their names are Bonnie and Clyde. I love the way they wiggle when I come near the tank and great me. It''s so cute.

Gailey, I never thought about planting real water plants in them. I have a couple of lucky bamboo''s growing in them right now and doing pretty well. Granted, their fish container is pretty small but maybe I''ll get a larger one to grow some aquatic plants in them. I use to have a huge 60 gallon tank when I use to live in Phoenix, and goodness, was that a PIA to take care of!! I had 3 large angel fish in them along with a bunch of others. I also had one of those sucker fish which my daughter named ''BOB'' and he must have been replaced a good 3 or 4 times with a different ''Bob'' and my daughter never knew about it. Every day when she came home from school, she would go to the tank and say ''Hi Bob!''

She''s now 21y/o and I finally told her the truth about Bob...she was so shocked!

Wow, don''t they fight Mochi? Everyone knows that the males fight and you can''t put them together, but I also heard that a male will hound the female so I never bought any of my George''s a wife. Yes, I know what you mean about same name different fish! I rarely keep mine above 18 months, maybe the celibate life is not so good for them after all. I think I''m on about George X by now!

All my tanks have plants in them. I don''t have to worry about water changing so much I just top up most of the time. This is not a good idea for non-plant tanks though.

Do Bonnie and Clyde make bubble nests? Have they ever spawned?

They don''t fight at all. Both of these are #2 Bonnie and Clydes. Beta''s don''t live that long, unfortunately. 1st Clyde lived over 2 years. I slowly introduced them together, one living in a open ziplock until they started ignoring each other. And yes, they do make those bubble nests but I have never seen any babies.

I love beta''s, they are so easy to take care of and pretty to look at. I think next week I''ll go looking for aquatic plants and a bigger tank for them.

 

[Gailey]

Date: 8/22/2009 8:04:55 PM
Author: mochi

They don''t fight at all. Both of these are #2 Bonnie and Clydes. Beta''s don''t live that long, unfortunately. 1st Clyde lived over 2 years. I slowly introduced them together, one living in a open ziplock until they started ignoring each other. And yes, they do make those bubble nests but I have never seen any babies.

I love beta''s, they are so easy to take care of and pretty to look at. I think next week I''ll go looking for aquatic plants and a bigger tank for them.

Atta girl Mochi!
I have Cryptocoryne wendtii "Brown", Java Fern, Annubias barteri "nana" in my 5 gallon, along with Christmas moss that got sent to me from Singapore. Tropica is a good place for aquatic plant info.

 

[treefrog]

Awesome. Aquarium pictures are tough. If there isn''t enough light, the shutter speed will be very slow, resulting in blurry pictures. Get a light right over the tank, put the camera in macro mode (but it may do ok in regular mode too), lens right up to the tank, no flash preferably. Here''s a sample with this method. This picture is old. My fish are much larger now!
Treefrog

 

[Gailey]

Cracking shot Treefrog. Let''s see your clowns now they are bigger.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 8/22/2009 2:14:24 PM
Author: MonkeyPie
Yayyyy betta! I love those little fishies, they are so much fun and have tons of personality. I used to have one that I fed on the end of a long, thin stick, and he would leap out of the water to grap the stick and the food the moment it got near the surface. He was so much fun! And he lived AGES.

As for pictures, if you are using a point-and-shoot camera, try turning all the lights off in the room you''re photographing in, and then put one light source (a lamp works well if you take the shade off) on the opposite side of the tank from you. Then when you shoot, get pretty close to the glass and turn on the lamp. Don''t do it for too long as the lamp will heat up the water over time, but this gives you plenty of light with no glare, and less blur.

Thanks for the tips, MP. I had kept the kitchen lights on probably making the glare worse!

The Betta is hilarious. He just casually floats around in his tank and then when he sees me, he takes his own sweet time swimming up over to me and then stares through the glass.

I put a food pellet in and he didn''t even see it, so I kept pointing at it with my finger until he happened to look up and then he swam over to it and ate it. lol

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 8/22/2009 1:51:56 PM
Author: Gailey

Nah, nah, nah!

What you need is a Python. I'll go snap some pictures of mine in a minute to show you how it works!

Meanwhile, Mandarin - meet George. the best way to take pictures is to turn off the flash and put your lens right on the tank.

You know MC, Mr MC is definitely getting the beta end of the deal (get it?). If your not careful this attitude will extend in to the world of diamonds and gems and then where will you be!

That python is wonderful! Who knows why the book I read didn't suggest something like that. The author said I would have to syphon my tanks out the window with my gargen hose and that would be an excellent way to water my outdoor plants at the same time. I'm WAY too lazy to do that!

How long have you had George? Does he have tank mates, heater, & filter? Is that a Marineland heater you have in there? It kind of looks like a heater I bought the other day but haven't taken out of the box yet. The guy at the fish store said I should put a heater in the beta bowl, but I may just move him upstairs where it tends to be warmer. Wrap a scarf around the bowl on chilly days.

ETA - thanks so much for sharing your photos. Makes me feel much more confident about where my hobby is going!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 8/22/2009 5:57:46 PM
Author: mochi
Now, I find this very interesting! I have two beta fish living in one tank, a male and a female. Their names are Bonnie and Clyde. I love the way they wiggle when I come near the tank and great me. It''s so cute.

Gailey, I never thought about planting real water plants in them. I have a couple of lucky bamboo''s growing in them right now and doing pretty well. Granted, their fish container is pretty small but maybe I''ll get a larger one to grow some aquatic plants in them. I use to have a huge 60 gallon tank when I use to live in Phoenix, and goodness, was that a PIA to take care of!! I had 3 large angel fish in them along with a bunch of others. I also had one of those sucker fish which my daughter named ''BOB'' and he must have been replaced a good 3 or 4 times with a different ''Bob'' and my daughter never knew about it. Every day when she came home from school, she would go to the tank and say ''Hi Bob!''

She''s now 21y/o and I finally told her the truth about Bob...she was so shocked!

hahaha That would be my plan if something happens to our Betta. He''s a fairly common color scheme. . .

A few weeks back we had our first fish casuality and when I buried the fish, we made a headstone with a rock and wrote his name on it with a sharpy pen. I cried. My son walked off. Later I went outside and both my kids had taken sharpy pens and written names all over about 10 giant landscaping rocks! (Probably should have quietly buried and replaced the fish!) Ugh, now I''ve got to turn all the rocks around and rearrange them.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Treefrog - BEAUTIFUL!!! Lets see some more photos.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 8/22/2009 8:04:55 PM
Author: mochi

They don''t fight at all. Both of these are #2 Bonnie and Clydes. Beta''s don''t live that long, unfortunately. 1st Clyde lived over 2 years. I slowly introduced them together, one living in a open ziplock until they started ignoring each other. And yes, they do make those bubble nests but I have never seen any babies.

I love beta''s, they are so easy to take care of and pretty to look at. I think next week I''ll go looking for aquatic plants and a bigger tank for them.

Mochi - just another quick reply to you. . .yet, Bettas do seem SO easy. You know, I think that they''ll be my main focus. I love fish, but I''m a bit too sentimental and I want fish that are low maintance as I cannot handle too many fatalities. Plus, I was reading with big tanks, that if an infection starts up, then the whole tank has to be restarted because the water & gravel can be contaminated (say with a parasite - the kinds in livebearing fish - such as Guppies, often everything is ruined and has to be bleached out.)

Gailey - should I get Mela Fix for my Betta?

 

[Gailey]

Hey MC

I''ve had this George for about 6 months I think. He doesn''t have any tank mates. I put a couple of tank mates in with one of my Georges a few years ago and they shredded him within a couple of days. I can''t for the life of me remember what they were. I haven''t had any more tank mates until the previous George to this one when I decided I needed some algae eaters. I put 3 ottos in with him and they disappeared within a week or so. Now that George didn''t last too much longer either and I discovered that the heater had cracked and was no longer working.

This George is currently single and I have wondered about trying some ottos again incase it was the cold water that killed them and not George (dead fish don''t last in my tanks because the snails eat them). I won''t try again until I finish gardening for the year and I am home all day and can monitor what happens. I think if I do try tank mates again I will definitely make sure they are herbivores. I would hate for George''s crown tails to be mistaken for bloodworms again.

My heater is a Marineland - well spotted (see you''re hooked!). I keep the temperature at about 26°F. I would think it would be difficult to regulate the temperature in a bowl and you would get hot spots because the water isn''t being circulated by a filter or a pump. I would buy a thermometer or temperature strip, so as to check what temperature Mandarin is actually enjoying before I put the heater in. I have both, one that sticks on the side of the glass which I have at the bottom and one floating. That way I can keep a better eye on the temperature in different areas of the tank.

Yeah, the python is awesome, so long as you have the kind of faucet that you can adapt to fit it. Before I had it I used to syphon water into buckets and haul them to the sink. I also used to have a garbage bin that I filled up with water and aerated over-night to get the C02 out of (don''t do that any more!). To be honest the python is overkill for George''s little tank, but once you start climbing the gallon ladder, it''s worth it''s wait in gold.

BTW, I tried taking more photos last night but George wasn''t playing ball! He hid behind the heater and point blank refused to move! I guess I need to talk to his agent about a contract!!

 

[treefrog]

Gailey and MC - thanks! I''ll get up some current pics soon. I haven''t taken any recently. That picture was taken shortly after I got them. They''re almost 5 now!

I agree - the Python is great. It may be overkill for a 1 - 2 gallon aquarium but for something larger, it''s great. Unfortunately, I have to use mine manually, without the sink hookup, since I can''t run freshwater through my aquarium. I can only top off evaporated water with freshwater (the salt doesn''t evaporate).

Fish are so much fun to watch. What a great deal MC - your both get something new to watch out of it

Treefrog!

 

[Gailey]

Date: 8/23/2009 10:31:07 PM
Author: treefrog
Gailey and MC - thanks! I''ll get up some current pics soon. I haven''t taken any recently. That picture was taken shortly after I got them. They''re almost 5 now!

I agree - the Python is great. It may be overkill for a 1 - 2 gallon aquarium but for something larger, it''s great. Unfortunately, I have to use mine manually, without the sink hookup, since I can''t run freshwater through my aquarium. I can only top off evaporated water with freshwater (the salt doesn''t evaporate).

Fish are so much fun to watch. What a great deal MC - your both get something new to watch out of it

Treefrog!

Treefrog, I am longing to hear about your tank. Do you only have saltwater or have you got freshwater too?

Gawd, the man keeps fish too. Just how many levels of perfection can you hit Treefrog? I''d say you must be ugly, but I know you''re not. LOL

 

[treefrog]

Date: 8/23/2009 11:19:15 PM
Author: Gailey

Treefrog, I am longing to hear about your tank. Do you only have saltwater or have you got freshwater too?

Gawd, the man keeps fish too. Just how many levels of perfection can you hit Treefrog? I''d say you must be ugly, but I know you''re not. LOL

Hi Gailey, you''re so generous with the compliments, thanks!

I believe you made it all the way through my WW so you probably have a sense of why I am the way I am... we have no idea what tomorrow may bring so I live life to the fullest every day and treat people as I want to be treated.

I had a freshwater aquarium growing up. I even had a small aquarium in my dorm room at college. When I moved out on my own, I started a small saltwater invertebrate reef aquarium with live rock, soft corals, mandarinfish, anemones, yellow coral banded shrimp, small starfish, an urchin, some tiny rock crabs. I could watch it for hours -- I often spotted things in the rock I hadn''t seen before. It was a lot of work and I barely had time to do it right so I finally gave in and went to a much lower maintenance saltwater fish-only aquarium. I had no idea clownfish live this long! Five years and counting!

Treefrog

 

[Gailey]

MC, I''ve just re-read this thread and realised somehow I missed a whole bunch of what you said.

Firstly, I''m sorry about your fatality. It''s not un-common and there will be more. Even Beta''s don''t live that long. Either you will get a little less sentimental about them (that''s what happened to me) or you''ll end up a basket case and have to give it up.

I''ve never had to re-start any of my tanks and NEVER bleach everything out! It is true that by adding a new fish with a disease then you run the risk of infecting the whole tank. I lost a tank full of fish that way. I am very wary about adding new fish to my 100 gal for that reason and haven''t done so for a few years now. If I did, I would almost certainly use a quarantine tank.

It has been years since I have used any pharmaceuticals in the tank, although I did spend a small fortune on them. Invariably they didn''t work. The thing that has kept my fish healthy was time and building up a stable eco-system. Letting the tank mature is the key and you''ve heard my philosophy about the plants, so I won''t re-hash that again.

I always add Melafix to the George tank when I get a new George. You can''t beat it. Especially as you have no way or knowing for sure what killed the previous inhabitant.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 8/25/2009 11:18:21 AM
Author: Gailey
MC, I''ve just re-read this thread and realised somehow I missed a whole bunch of what you said.

Firstly, I''m sorry about your fatality. It''s not un-common and there will be more. Even Beta''s don''t live that long. Either you will get a little less sentimental about them (that''s what happened to me) or you''ll end up a basket case and have to give it up.

I''ve never had to re-start any of my tanks and NEVER bleach everything out! It is true that by adding a new fish with a disease then you run the risk of infecting the whole tank. I lost a tank full of fish that way. I am very wary about adding new fish to my 100 gal for that reason and haven''t done so for a few years now. If I did, I would almost certainly use a quarantine tank.

It has been years since I have used any pharmaceuticals in the tank, although I did spend a small fortune on them. Invariably they didn''t work. The thing that has kept my fish healthy was time and building up a stable eco-system. Letting the tank mature is the key and you''ve heard my philosophy about the plants, so I won''t re-hash that again.

I always add Melafix to the George tank when I get a new George. You can''t beat it. Especially as you have no way or knowing for sure what killed the previous inhabitant.

I''m sorry you lost a whole tank of fish!

What disease was introduced and what did you do to the tank after? Just let it cycle for a while?

Before reading on, be sure you''re not eating!!!

One of my current fishes had something (coming out of it) and I posted about it on another forum and was told that I should just euthanize him and add a strong de-wormer (one made for dogs!) so my tank is cleared of anything in it. The "symptom" disapeared and I was told it could come and go and that my fish probably still is sick. He is swimming and eating normally and I was also told he''ll do that up until the very end. Maybe I should stop reading fish forums???

Any thoughts on "Quick Cure?" When I talked to my pet store sales lady (who recognizes me by now) said that *if* I was worried of parasites, I could add that. She said she didn''t think it is necessary, but I could try it since it is only $3.00.

Oh, and I''ll grab a bottle of Melafix. Thanks. My other son is getting a Betta for his b-day. He has been begging for a large tank to house ghost shrimp, but finally I put my foot down. Just a simple fish bowl for him!

 

[Gailey]

I just finished breakfast!

When you say "coming out of it", are you sure you weren''t looking at your fish doing his daily ablutions (having a poo!). What you would see is a longish brown stringy thing extending from somewhere in the middle of the fish''s underbelly. I say this because if you''ve never seen a fish having a poo before, you might not know what it was. Surprisingly, not many pictures on the web of fish having a poo! But I did find one. If it was anything like that, then no need to worry, just nature taking it''s course.

If they didn''t think to ask you that on your fish forum and you think this is maybe what you saw, quit reading that forum - there are others! The Krib has good information.

I have never heard of adding dod de-wormer to a tank, but then again, I don''t read too many fish forums these days. I can''t remember what Quick Cure is, but sounds like something for "ich".

If the fish seems healthy now, and is eating well, I would just leave him alone. Try and concentrate on keeping your tank healthy first and then your fish will be OK. One thing I do know is that by the time you start noticing that your fish is sick, it''s often too late to do anything about it.

No idea what killed all my fish, but I bought the Vortex around that time.

I have a fairly good book on fish diseases somewhere, but I think it''s buried in my fish cupboard in the basement. I''ll look it out tonight and post the details for you.

BTW, when you pick up Melafix, pickup Pimafix too. Since they introduced that one I use that as well.

Gave George a dose this morning. His fins look a little bit stringy. Must be all the stress from the photo shoot.

 

[Gailey]

Whoops, forgot to add the photo!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Hey, yeah, it''s not regular poo! lol As a child, I had goldfish and witnessed more than my fair share of that!

It was a red thread that was angled back, stiff, about 1/8th of an inch long. I was told it''s Camallanus Nematodes. Okay, well actually, I read the symptoms then said I think my fish has that and everyone was basically it absolutely is that and yep, off with the fish''s head because it''s too late.

Hope George''s fins are looking a better now! Mandarine ate from my finger this morning! I had wet my finger than stuck a Betta pellet to it and dipped my finger just below the surface. He hesitated and then came up and snatched it up! lol

 

[dragonfly411]

I love fish!!!

And I miss them. I had one until a week ago.... Pontus passed while we were at work. But I want another big tank... I miss my guppies. They were my fav!!

 

[Gailey]

Camallanus Treatment

Well that sounds like one nasty little parasite MC. You may have already seen this article if you have been trawling the net for information, but I thought I would post it just in case. I have never had this problem in any of my tanks, so I can''t tell you what works and what doesn''t.

One thing I would do for sure is avoid the store where you bought the fish from originally. I tend not to buy fish at the big box pet stores, but rather seek out the small aquarium only stores. Before I bought any more fish I would thoroughly investigate the quarantine practices the store has.

If there is a local aquarium society in Seattle (I''m sure there musst be). I would consider looking at their website. Perhaps they have a forum. Try and find out where the serious hobbyists buy their fish from. And perhaps more importantly, the stores to avoid.

I would also keep all food, tools, literally everything you use for the infected tank well away from Mandarin.

If the fish in your infected tank die, I would still dose the tank with whichever de-wormer you use and follow the ritual of timing the doses to the letter. I wouldn''t put any new fish in for at least 7 days (if not longer ) following the final dose. Parasites need hosts. I haven''t read whether or not this particular wee beastie can live in the substrate, but I suspect not. I''ll do a bunch more reading tonight and if I find anything else I think you should know, I will post it.

 

[Gailey]

Article about Levamisole (de-wormer)
Old article from the Krib
Info from Guppy Log
Info from Loaches on Line
Info from Yahoo answers

Here''s a few more articles MC

 

[Gailey]

Step by step treatment plan

It seems not all parasitic treatments are created equal and there seems to be a general consensus of opinion that Levamisole is the drug of choice. Although care is needed. If you do use this drug, then make sure you research it thoroghly.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Thanks so much for all the info. I have read up on Levamisole but haven't called any local feed stores to find it yet because I'm still uncertain if the fish (or both fish) have Camallanus yet. No additional red string has come out since that one single one (I saw it in the morning and it was till there in the evening and then gone the next day). If it comes back, I'll just stick the Levamisole in the tank assuming both fish have it. Being unsure is what is frustrating me. I am looking at my fishs' "vents" way too many times per day than any sane person should be doing. My dh also kept moving Mandarine's bowl back next to the fish tank and I kept telling him not too and he thinks I'm loony because of my concern.

The store I bought from isn't a chain store so I thought that the fish would be safe. They're a small locally owned store that focuses on fish and also pet food and gifts (and they do not do the communal water tank sharing). I called them and the gal said the problem I was describing has never been seen in their store and the only issue they have are ancor worms. Maybe she isn't telling the truth? I called over 10 other stores and a few recommended I call that store I bought from! Eh! Not because I purchased from there but because of their excellent and knowledgeable staff.

I'm pretty sure the krib site was discussing whether camallanus would spread via snail, however, on another web, I read that it is on plants and so sounds like I would have to take those out to be safe. That means the parasite could be living on the roots, etc, so maybe it'd be best to bleach it and start over if both fish die before it can be confirmed they have Camallanus.

This isn't exactly the start to a tank that I expected. I still do not have any nitrites in the water so the tank is stil basically at the start (ammonia hovering around 1 ppm). Nothing seems to be progressing except my stress levels.

I'll check all your links. There is "The Fish Store" in Seattle that seems to have tons of reviews on Yelp.com. . .some say it's great. Others say the staff are stuck up and the tanks are over crowded. More frustration. I'll check around and find a Seattle based aquarium society to connect with and find out who they recommend.

Thanks for all your time and help. I really appreciate it.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 8/25/2009 11:46:49 PM
Author: Gailey
Article about Levamisole (de-wormer)
Old article from the Krib
Info from Guppy Log
Info from Loaches on Line
Info from Yahoo answers

Here''s a few more articles MC

Okay, I just read on the loaches site that a person found a single thread then their fish died soon after. I''ll hunt for levamisole tomorrow.

 

[Gailey]

MC

Here is another article (bit more scientific) that explains the life cycles of various nematoedes. It seems the wee beastie that is infecting your fish needs another host such as a snail in order for it produce. I think the plant thing is probably a myth. Although most plants that you buy come with snail larvae on them, so that is possibly where it came from.

Link