Home Aquariums

Master Of Puppets · Posted: Sep Wed , 2007 10:55 pm Post subject: Home Aquariums

I'm big into home aquariums. I currently have 3. One is a 55 gallon, one is a 33 gallon and the other is a 15 gallon. I've been keeping fish for 15 years now. I love it! It's a lot of work, expense and some heart-break. My fish are as close to me as my cat.

I put a lot of time and effort into it. What about the rest of you? Any hobbies you'd care to share?

mad42 · Posted: Sep Thu , 2007 5:13 am Post subject:

Salt water ? We have a Beta & he has 2 white spots on him , is it fungus ? My kids will be devastated if he goes, we've had him a long time. My kids have hermit crabs too ( yuck).

Master Of Puppets · Posted: Sep Thu , 2007 9:00 am Post subject:

All of them are freshwater tanks.

Do you have pics of the spots on the betta? Are they small like grains of sand? Only two?

mad42 · Posted: Sep Thu , 2007 10:54 am Post subject:

No, not like sand, theres one above his eye, & 2 on his back fin, whitish, like a smudge ! He seems fine & he's eating. My friend was watching him while we were away, maybe he was over fed ?

mimnim · Posted: Sep Thu , 2007 2:28 pm Post subject:

The aquarium thing sounds very cool! I'd like to do a saltwater now that we are in a place we don't want to move from. Do they require alot of time?

Master Of Puppets · Posted: Sep Thu , 2007 8:03 pm Post subject:

If it's a smudge it's probably part of his coloring and nothing to worry about.

Mimnim,

Saltwater tanks take a lot of work. They are a huge undertaking and are very expensive. I would suggesting getting a 30 gallon or so tank and setting up a freshwater aquarium. This will give you a taste of the work involved for freshwater. You can times that work by 10. Here's a thread from another forum I run. It's on Saltwater Basics. It'll give you a good idea on what to expect.

http://fishgeeks.forumwise.com/fishgeeks-thread65.html

mad42 · Posted: Sep Thu , 2007 8:15 pm Post subject:

No, it looks like ick, you think we should give him stress coat ? He didn't have it last week the poor guy.

Master Of Puppets · Posted: Sep Thu , 2007 9:19 pm Post subject:

Stress coat isn't a cure. How big is the tank he's in? One tsp of salt per 10 gallons will do the trick. If he's in a bowl Crying or Very sad

you'll have to find a cure at your LFS (Local Pet Store) that you can treat him with.

Make sure they are aware of the size of the tank he's in. Even a cure can be deadly if the quarters are too small.

Keep me updated. Wink

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mad42 · Posted: Sep Thu , 2007 9:25 pm Post subject:

He is in a bowl, is that bad ? Its a large bowl. Now I feel really bad for him swimming around aimlessly in that bowl !

Master Of Puppets · Posted: Sep Thu , 2007 10:03 pm Post subject:

Yeah. It's a common misconception that bettas can be kept in bowls. The fact is that they come from some areas that are standing water and swampy. Some come from fast moving waters. All bettas are swimmers and like to have a territory to call their own. I recommend bettas be put in nothing smaller than a 10 gallon tank. It gives them room to move. Imagine yourself in a room 10 feet X 10 feet, a small window that doesn't open, no air movement and 5 gallon pail for a bathroom that's emptied weekly. In most cases this is what bettas are living in. Or worse.

Sorry for my rant. This is very close to my heart. I hate how North American LFS's have degraded the life these beautiful and intelligent fish.

mad42 · Posted: Sep Fri , 2007 5:14 am Post subject:

Thanks for the guilt trip, lol. Just kidding !
What are "LFS"?

Master Of Puppets · Posted: Sep Fri , 2007 8:16 am Post subject:

Local Fish Store

mad42 · Posted: Sep Fri , 2007 8:35 pm Post subject:

My Husband bought him some medicine in the LFS , the man said its a fungus, now it looks like cotton. Poor guy

Master Of Puppets · Posted: Sep Fri , 2007 8:59 pm Post subject:

What did he buy exactly?

mad42 · Posted: Sep Fri , 2007 9:28 pm Post subject:

I'll let you know tomorrow, I am upstairs in bed,lol.