College...Worth the hassle?? Anyone in same situation??

I hate moving every year, so that is what I would change. If I had to do my undergrad over, I'd find an appartment and stay there the whole time. That way fish wouldn't be a problem--four years in one place is fine!
 
If you live on campus I wouldnt do it, too many strangers and variables that could make it harder. If you're off campus and do year leases you could be OK. I had a 29 all 4 years of college and I moved 3 times, all off campus.
 
In a dorm, I think I'd probably go with a smaller tank. A little betta tank could be fun without all the hassles of moving a 15 gallon.
 
i am in an apartment, i know my roommates and theyre friends and ill lock the door for parties, so they wont mess with it i dont think, and i dont have to move it for christmas. I would have to bring it home for the summer, take it back, possibly bring it home and take it back the next year. i think it could be possible because i would get the feeder over christmas. i appreciate all the help. hopefully this comment im making sparks some more specific help. time also will be okay. ill be there atleast everyday, maybe come home a weekend here or there but thats it. time and money isnt a concern, the main problem is moving it around. thanks fellas
 
hmm

Nah I wouldn't worry about being gone on weekends. I have a 10 gallon at my office, that does fine with me not there 2 days a week. Now if something critical goes wrong, that would be another story.

I would advise against anything bigger then a 10 personally and keep it lightly stocked. The less fish you have to haul home in buckets the better.
 
Moving back and forth is stressful for fish, some dorms turn off heat during breaks, even great roomies can be awful fish keepers (I know from experience), and loud music and vibration isn't great for fish. So, there is a lot to keep in mind.

That said I had fish my last year of college, and still have two of those fish. But if I were to do it again I might have tried an animal that was easier to transport. A hermit crab for example. If you just want to be around animals you could always volunteer your time at a local shelter.
 
Can anyone else help? thanks but i dont want hermit crabs. thanks for the idea though. any other suggestions? is it really that hard to move if i properly prepare?
 
if you want a fish tank, it would be cool to move it to college, im thinkin about the same thing, but more and more a tropical terrarium with frogs seems better and better, i set up my terrarium, and its a TON easier to keep up with than the aquarium, of course ive got no problem with catching insects for the frog once a week with my bug net outside...

if you like to keep your freshwater setup, go for it, and have fun! something like that would be a great de-stresser in college and a nice addition to a (hopefully large) dorm
and if you properly prepare, moving isnt such a big deal, if its a long move you can even get sedative stuff for the fish..
 
hmm, "sedative stuff" for fish? I've never heard of that. The best thing to do to reduce the effects of stress while moving fish, is to not feed them for the day or two before (if they need to use energy to digest, they have less available to deal with stress), put them in a covered container to reduce the stressful effects of light and visual stimuli, make sure there isn't anything in the container that they can hurt themselves on like hard decorations, but provide soft things for cover to make them feel more secure like plants. Also, if you can slowly reduce temperature that will also reduce stress. Fish, being ectotherms, will react more to stress if their body temperatures are high. Keeping them cool will lower their metabolisms (thus reducing ammonia produced, too), and keep them sluggish. The cool temp is the best "sedative" for fish, in my professional opinion :)
 
so is the tank a good idea? i figure either a 10G with 3 bronze cories and 5 neon tetras and maybe shrimp, or a 15G with a dwarf gourami, 3 bronze cories and 6 neon tetras... sound good?
 
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