Interesting Fish Seen About Town - 3/18

[rdebonis]

At Petland Discount in the Home Depot Mall on Avenue U, I saw some beautiful very large Black Neon Tetras. For all you Tetra lovers I have rarely seen Black Neons this large and this nice, it's worth a visit. I also saw a striking 5" juvenile Arowana with really nice markings and beautiful shape. I have always wanted to keep one of these beauties but never had a tank big enough. Not inexpensive, but in my opinion worth the money.

[stevem]

I have tryed arowanna's before, they have always been one of my favorite fish, but they grow so quick.
They are great fish even so, just need alot of space.
Most recommened at least 180 gal.
One of those rare big fish that doesn't tear your tank apart, they are very gracefull.
They usually don't bother many fish unless they are small enough to swallow, but when full grown not much they can't swallow.

[JoeyG]

Buying fish in local stores is always an interesting treat. Just remember to always isolate any new fish you purchase or trade for by maintaining them in a quarantine tank. This quarantine tank should match closly the water envirnment the fish came from. You can easily find this out by testing the bag water that the fish came in for pH, temperature and hardness conditions. These test kits are readily available and are very handy when dealing with expensive or stressed out fish.

Test the water parameters the fish came from and then try to mimic that in the quaranteen tank. Keep the fish in that tank for 30 days. Always have a cave or somewhere the fish can feel secure and some java moss or other plants to enable the fish to feel comfortable. If the fish does not become sick within the 30 days then net and enter the fish in the established tank with your other fish. Always do this at night, when tank is dark, and move around the existing pieces in the tank so all the fish must seek out new territories to protect.

If the fish becomes ill within the time frame then all you will be treating with medication is the newly purchased fish and it/they will be in a smaller tank. I would rather lose one fish to sickness then an entire tank of fish that may have cost thousands oif dollars.

Think safety first!

[stevem]

When afish is netted and bagged, they get stressed and they releave themself in the bag, which in turn bring up the ammonia, and will lower the PH.
So it is not a good idea to test that water, you will get a false reading as to what is needed.
You can ask your local store as to their water parimeters, but you may not get an accurate answer. Unfortunatly not all local pet store have a knowledgable staff.

[MartyK]

I absolutely agree with the importance of knowing the pH level of the dealer's stock tank that your new fish was taken from, But to get the correct data from the store you will need to have them test in front of you at the time of purchase since any answer they rattle off when you ask will most probably inaccurate due to the changing conditions in most stores crowded tanks." Spot-Cleaning" and water changes are usually being done on an ongoing basis, so the data anybody repeats from memory is usually outdated.

[stevem]

I agree with testing the water if the store would do that for you.
If the store is good they should, if not maybe it's time to find another store.