Hello. I am a newbie to this board and a newbie to the world of fish wrangling. I must say, right from the start, this site appears to be a wonderful resource and I'm so glad I found all of you.
I went to a carnival with my 6 year old daughter a while back. I promised her she could play one game. As it started to rain and we were heading for the exit, she reminded me of this promise as we approached the Win a Fish booth. I paid the $1 for the 8 balls thinking that there was no way she'd win. Sure enough...plop...YOU WIN. What do you win? A lesson in death. Congratulations! Our funeral was brief, but tearful, as "Put" was lowered into the earth the following rainy afternoon.
On our way home we went to our town's little mini Walmart and found meager beginnings of a home & some Betta food (lol..now I know what that means). I wanted to wait until the next day when I'd be in the larger town nearby to get what we'd really need. I didn't think fish could be happy in a bowl of water with nothing else, but I didn't even get 24 hours. I let the water sit out for a while, but not nearly long enough to declorinate. I know why he died now...well at least know of another 30 reasons he could have died. It would have been a miracle for him to survive. I am just happy that he died in the adoration of a little girl who will morn him unlike the other poor little guys.
This brings me here because the few hours we had the live little guy at our house I enjoyed him very much. When I thought he was a goldfish (I now don't think he looks like one), I bought a 10 gallon tank. I decided that this is a hobby which could be very rewarding. My daugther, while young, is calm and intelligent. She has established a firm method of completing her daily chores (emptying cat box, feeding cat, getting mail). I would, naturally, be the 'tank master', but she could definitely particpate, then take over some of the less technical tasks as she gets older. This makes the possiblilty of participating in this hobby even more rewarding.
Researching the web, I quickly found out that even if he had been a goldfish, I didn't get the correct tank (although 2 different guys at the local Petco told me that the 5 gal. tanks were large enough...errrr). So, we're going to aim for smaller fish. I've scoured these posts, but a few questions remain. I want to do this the right way from the very first step. We're going freshwater, for sure. I'll save saltwater for my retirement years.
Must water be dechlorinated outside of the tank? Should I fill a clean bucket with water to let it air out, or is it o.k. to fill the tank with water and let the water sit for a few days. If not, how do you all accomplish this? Many small buckets? One big one? Is that too heavy?
I plan to do a fishless cycle. Once complete, I have read contradicting information on how to get the fish into the tank. I've read that you should put the fish in the tank still in the bag for a while (5-15 minutes), then put small amounts of the tank water into the bag every few minutes, then slowly let him go. The contradiction was being told to not allow any of the store tank water into my tank, but I've read to not use a net as it is traumatic and can harm certain fish. However, I don't want to release any of the shop tank water into my tank after a 4 week cycle (or longer...who knows how we'll do out of the gates), and have to start all over, or hurt the fish.
I may possibly be able to get some media from an established tank. I just found out today that one of my girlfriends has a step-fish. Her hubby has kept lion fish, and has what she called a 'huge, fat, pig of a sucker fish.' Should I be concerned if the pH of his tank is different than mine should be (don't know yet, haven't firmly decided on what we'll have)? And how much will I need? A cup, a half a cup?
I found out that there is an aquatics shop near here, so I will be visiting there soon. I was so disappointed to find out that the people at Petco gave me incorrect information. I would have been devastated to know I'd stunted some poor goldfish, and wouldn't have enjoyed the high level of poo they produce. I would have been cleaning that 5 gal. tank every day! I hope the specialty store is more responsible, but I will probably be getting most of my information here (I've learned so much the past few days). I will probably write only if we have questions or problems, so you all won't have to worry about another book post from me! I've been able to have many of my questions answered by searching the posts, but if anyone could recommend a solid, thorough set up guide, I would appreciate a link.
Wish us luck!
I went to a carnival with my 6 year old daughter a while back. I promised her she could play one game. As it started to rain and we were heading for the exit, she reminded me of this promise as we approached the Win a Fish booth. I paid the $1 for the 8 balls thinking that there was no way she'd win. Sure enough...plop...YOU WIN. What do you win? A lesson in death. Congratulations! Our funeral was brief, but tearful, as "Put" was lowered into the earth the following rainy afternoon.
On our way home we went to our town's little mini Walmart and found meager beginnings of a home & some Betta food (lol..now I know what that means). I wanted to wait until the next day when I'd be in the larger town nearby to get what we'd really need. I didn't think fish could be happy in a bowl of water with nothing else, but I didn't even get 24 hours. I let the water sit out for a while, but not nearly long enough to declorinate. I know why he died now...well at least know of another 30 reasons he could have died. It would have been a miracle for him to survive. I am just happy that he died in the adoration of a little girl who will morn him unlike the other poor little guys.
This brings me here because the few hours we had the live little guy at our house I enjoyed him very much. When I thought he was a goldfish (I now don't think he looks like one), I bought a 10 gallon tank. I decided that this is a hobby which could be very rewarding. My daugther, while young, is calm and intelligent. She has established a firm method of completing her daily chores (emptying cat box, feeding cat, getting mail). I would, naturally, be the 'tank master', but she could definitely particpate, then take over some of the less technical tasks as she gets older. This makes the possiblilty of participating in this hobby even more rewarding.
Researching the web, I quickly found out that even if he had been a goldfish, I didn't get the correct tank (although 2 different guys at the local Petco told me that the 5 gal. tanks were large enough...errrr). So, we're going to aim for smaller fish. I've scoured these posts, but a few questions remain. I want to do this the right way from the very first step. We're going freshwater, for sure. I'll save saltwater for my retirement years.
Must water be dechlorinated outside of the tank? Should I fill a clean bucket with water to let it air out, or is it o.k. to fill the tank with water and let the water sit for a few days. If not, how do you all accomplish this? Many small buckets? One big one? Is that too heavy?
I plan to do a fishless cycle. Once complete, I have read contradicting information on how to get the fish into the tank. I've read that you should put the fish in the tank still in the bag for a while (5-15 minutes), then put small amounts of the tank water into the bag every few minutes, then slowly let him go. The contradiction was being told to not allow any of the store tank water into my tank, but I've read to not use a net as it is traumatic and can harm certain fish. However, I don't want to release any of the shop tank water into my tank after a 4 week cycle (or longer...who knows how we'll do out of the gates), and have to start all over, or hurt the fish.
I may possibly be able to get some media from an established tank. I just found out today that one of my girlfriends has a step-fish. Her hubby has kept lion fish, and has what she called a 'huge, fat, pig of a sucker fish.' Should I be concerned if the pH of his tank is different than mine should be (don't know yet, haven't firmly decided on what we'll have)? And how much will I need? A cup, a half a cup?
I found out that there is an aquatics shop near here, so I will be visiting there soon. I was so disappointed to find out that the people at Petco gave me incorrect information. I would have been devastated to know I'd stunted some poor goldfish, and wouldn't have enjoyed the high level of poo they produce. I would have been cleaning that 5 gal. tank every day! I hope the specialty store is more responsible, but I will probably be getting most of my information here (I've learned so much the past few days). I will probably write only if we have questions or problems, so you all won't have to worry about another book post from me! I've been able to have many of my questions answered by searching the posts, but if anyone could recommend a solid, thorough set up guide, I would appreciate a link.
Wish us luck!