Dumb brother

[viboy]

I just talked to my brother who bought a 10 gallon tank for his wife. This is there first fish experience.

Apparently he set up the tank and failed to follow any of the directions I gave him. He started with 2 fish and then 3 days later added another 6. This is in a brand new tank that has been set up for less than a week.

He was not too enthused about fishless cycling (plus the fact of having a stubborn wife) and decided to just start adding fish. I set him up with an extra ammonia and nitrite test kit that I had and told him to pick up a decent hob filter. The aquarium kit he bought of course came with an ugf.

I only found out about him having the tank set up because he phoned to ask about feeding frequency. He does not even know what type of fish he has. He must have gotten his advice from one of the big chains because when he realized that I was alarmed by the amount of fish he stated "I only have 8 inches of fish!".

I set him up on a daily water change regiment which I think he will at least adhere to. Hopefully this will keep the fish healthy until his tank cycles.

I just wish he would have taken some of my filter media when I offered.:(

[Grassguy]

Sorry to hear about that, I guess some people just don't get it, even if they DO get good advice. Course, it could be the stubborn wife and not your brother at all. I know how that can be as well, sometimes you'll do just about anything for a little peace.:shake:

[Cearbhaill]

A lady at my job picked up a 10 gallon tank and the same day bought a couple of goldfish, a betta, and assorted platys and swordtails- which of course all died.
I offered to give her some tesk kits which she declined- next day she mentioned her new fish- which also died. I tried to give her a first grade introduction to cycles and fish waste- she really could care less.

She just cannot get over how "lucky" I am that my fish live, yet her eyes just glaze over when I try to explain why.
Some people are just not willing to invest in any sort of research or learning- this is what I call voluntary ignorance and I find it unforgivable, irresponsible, and even vile when living things are being killed. Total disrespect for life.

Not that I haven't lost my fair share but at least I go looking for answers. I am firmly convinced that a zest for learning is essential to personal growth and if you aren't willing to learn new things then you shouldn't be trying new things.
Especially when your negligence causes deaths.

Arrgh.

[TKOS]

Its like when I was wandering through WalMart and heard a lady say she wanted to get a common pleco for her 10 gallon tank. I told her that it was going to get way too big and she said that's okay. I also told her that she should at least get some algae tab for it but she said there was little green spots on her glass so that was enough. Ahhhh

[SayersWeb]

Your brother may want to get some Bio-Spira to help cycle the tank more quickly. It has worked well in my 10 gallon fry/quarantine tanks.

[Dangerdoll]

ugh..... when it's those people that decide to start the hobby because it's cool or whatever and then run out, grab a 10 gallon, a filter, couple of bottles of "stuff" and then a tank full of fish, sometimes (more often than not) even too many..... who's the biggest sufferer...... sure, these newbies are boggled and think fishkeeping bites at that point, but it's the fish that suffer...... for shame.

I couldn't believe it, I was in Petsmart the other day for dogfood, as usual, I went through the fish section to see how things were going there and check what they had..... I saw a woman holding a 5.5 gallon setup kit in a box as she was talking to the worker. She's pointing to the feeder goldfish asking"can I get 2 of those"? The worker is like, not even 1 of those will do good in that tank. Aggitated, the girl stomped off muttering how she was off to another petstore with tank in tow. Now, the girl never got a chance to explain anything about adding the fish as soon as the water is added but I sure was glad to hear her at least tell this girl that what she wanted was not going to work.

[Soulcoffr]

Sometimes I wonder if even pet store employees get frustrated with clueless customers. Granted, it's their job to help, but some people are just dense.

Yesterday I was at Petco, and this middle-aged woman was asking whether a Cory cat would peacefully co-exist with a Clownfish (Nemo-type). The girl behind the fish kiosk asked what kind of tank she had FW or SW. The woman said she had a FW tank.

Thankfully the clerk pointed out that it would be inadvisable to buy a Clownfish as they are saltwater fish. The woman then looked up at the big placard that said "SALTWATER FISH," and said, "Oh. I guess I missed the sign up there." She sounded really disappointed.

She then decided to get some Red Platies instead and was making the clerk catch specific ones. Oy.