Most fish will only grow to the size of the aquarium, but that is a VERY bad thing... This is what is called stunting the fishes growth, and they will be unhealthy, disease prone, and will die much earlier than they should. Some fish seem to not realize that they are in too small of a tank and keep right on growing, you will feel guilty when they are too big to turn around :laugh: !!! There is really no set time to say when he will need the bigger tank, but it is inevitable, so really the sooner the better. IF you are not interested in getting a larger tank there are plenty of great fish that can happily live their whole lives in a 10g. Many stores will take back fish so you might want to call around and see if you can find a place, as an option :idea:
I have so much to learn! Please help...
- Thread starter mokoni
- Start date
gunk is just gunk - the bacteria, even in large amounts, will be invisible to you.
as far as fish only growing to the size of their aquarium - your husband is right and very wrong. the fish will not get any bigger than the habitat can sustain, but they will try. the growth hormones produced float around in the water, and when there is too much hormone, the fish's body responds to it by stunting the growth of the fish. however, the organs of the fish are not on the same "alarm system", and so while the outside stops growing, the insides continue to grow, interfering with the natural functions. the fish will be stunted, and its overall health and immune system, as well as general quality of life, will be negatively affected. even if the fish is kept only temporarily in a small home, the growth and health can be affected for the rest of its lifespan. the problem is - how do you know when the fish is simply still small, or when it is actually not able to grow? it's better to overdo it on tank size than keep your fingers crossed that everything is still okay.
as far as fish only growing to the size of their aquarium - your husband is right and very wrong. the fish will not get any bigger than the habitat can sustain, but they will try. the growth hormones produced float around in the water, and when there is too much hormone, the fish's body responds to it by stunting the growth of the fish. however, the organs of the fish are not on the same "alarm system", and so while the outside stops growing, the insides continue to grow, interfering with the natural functions. the fish will be stunted, and its overall health and immune system, as well as general quality of life, will be negatively affected. even if the fish is kept only temporarily in a small home, the growth and health can be affected for the rest of its lifespan. the problem is - how do you know when the fish is simply still small, or when it is actually not able to grow? it's better to overdo it on tank size than keep your fingers crossed that everything is still okay.
