My New New fish!!!YaY!!!
- Thread starter Leginess
- Start date
I have a red tail in my 80 gallon and he doubled in size in a few months. Right now he is hovering around 4 inches long and has slowed down a bit. I've had him since December when he. He is a VERY active fish and is constantly in and out of the rocks. He's also very aggressive and territorial. I worry yours might not tolerate your other bottom dwellers in a smaller tank. I only have syno catfish with mine and it's a large enough tank they can both find their place.
Yes you can keep him in a 29 gallon for a while, but eventually he will need a larger home. You seem very attached already, while you be able to give him up when the time comes?
You do realize plecos can live 10+ years right? Goldfish can live for 20+ years. Can you see how their lives were shortened due to stunting?
Yes you can keep him in a 29 gallon for a while, but eventually he will need a larger home. You seem very attached already, while you be able to give him up when the time comes?
You do realize plecos can live 10+ years right? Goldfish can live for 20+ years. Can you see how their lives were shortened due to stunting?
GuppyGirl1230
Snails, Guppies and Corys, OH MY!!!
Ok, Here is my 2 cents, not that anyone asked. I think Rhiannon said it best. I think the important thing is that the OP is now aware of what his fish is going to need. I think keeping them in a small tank until they require a bigger one is not a problem. In fact, how many people have come here asking advice on their goldfish bowls? How many people have had fish like clown loaches in a small tank? Nobody flamed them. We are here to give advice, not bully people. This is not the first discussion I have seen get offensive and downright rude. Everyone chill out. Leginess was literally asking what we thought, was open to advice and suggestions and then got flamed. Everyone just chill.
Leginess~ sorry you got flamed. I have a good friend who is the aquatic specialist at petco in my area. She is really smart and actually knows what she is talking about. Petco policy is to accept large fish, but they will not reimburse you for them, they re-home them as adoptions. I have seen the inner workings of petco. They have one huge tank, non-display, that they put all the fish that need to be adopted in. They do not sell them. So, if that person told you they would take the fish back and give you credit, they lied. Sorry. My advice, (given freely, taking it is optional), is to get a 55 gallon so you don't ever have to give the fish away. You don't have to do it right away, but have fun with it. Get one you love, spend time on gravel and decor, plant choices etc, and just have fun with it. Good Luck!!
P.S. There! That's my 2 cents. If you would like to flame me, please do it in PM. Thanks!!!
Maribeth
Leginess~ sorry you got flamed. I have a good friend who is the aquatic specialist at petco in my area. She is really smart and actually knows what she is talking about. Petco policy is to accept large fish, but they will not reimburse you for them, they re-home them as adoptions. I have seen the inner workings of petco. They have one huge tank, non-display, that they put all the fish that need to be adopted in. They do not sell them. So, if that person told you they would take the fish back and give you credit, they lied. Sorry. My advice, (given freely, taking it is optional), is to get a 55 gallon so you don't ever have to give the fish away. You don't have to do it right away, but have fun with it. Get one you love, spend time on gravel and decor, plant choices etc, and just have fun with it. Good Luck!!
P.S. There! That's my 2 cents. If you would like to flame me, please do it in PM. Thanks!!!
Maribeth
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age never matters when it comes to fish keeping, or anything else in life. I bet that I'm smarter than millions of people regarding fish (yes humble I know) and I'm 14.
I like how you have said "months" also I read your tank description and your severly overstocked. Even the nit wits that ussually can be encountered at your LFS(some ARE knowledgable, but most are not) would agree with me. A single oscar in a 55 gallon is pushing it, not to mention that your sailfin will outgrow the tank anyways. And by returning him to the petstore you give him/her an opprotunity to be able to live in a better set-up than what he is currently being provided.
the way i look at it, and explain to others....
imagine living in your bathroom ( and you get fed as needed ) its pretty comfortable in there, livable for sure. Well then the toilet paper runs out....that sucks you aren't going to die from it but it sure makes things less comfortable. Then the shampoo and soap run out....that sucks even more. You can still survive in there. Happy? maybe. Alive? yeah.
just an analogy
imagine living in your bathroom ( and you get fed as needed ) its pretty comfortable in there, livable for sure. Well then the toilet paper runs out....that sucks you aren't going to die from it but it sure makes things less comfortable. Then the shampoo and soap run out....that sucks even more. You can still survive in there. Happy? maybe. Alive? yeah.
just an analogy
Ok. Here goes another $0.02 from me..which will probably be looked at as $0.00 and not wanted but here it is.
PetCo is a corporation, they do not care about the animals as much as they put out. I worked at one (so you've seen the inner workings, I LIVED the inner workings of the store (do you know about the chest freezer in the back "wellness room" where they keep dead animals that die in the store?) and mostly in the aquatics department. I couldn't treat as needed with what was needed. I couldn't move fish to a hospital tank without getting permission, I couldn't put things in quarantine without management approval and to be quite honest the store manger of the store I worked in, would NOT touch the fish, would NOT touch the reptiles would touch only the birds and a few small animals. She wouldn't even get crickets for customers. You could ask her a question about a goldfish and she would say I don't know and get a book off the shelf and LOOK for the answer. Now I must say, I didn't expect her to know EVERYTHING off hand, but things like food, habitat (including temperature etc) I would expect the store manager (who also happens to be the general manager) to know.
I agree, taking them back to the store isn't the best option but when it comes to the possibility of them going to another home where there is the optimal conditions, I'd chance it. That being said. I've got through an aquarium science program in a college, I'm in the process of getting the rest of my certifications to become and animal cruelty officer. I'm not flaming anyone. People ask for input and advice and when its not what they want to hear, they get mad. I don't remember who said it, but they are right. You're taking the life of another creature into your hands. You are responsible for that animal, and in the eyes of the law, properly housing and proper care is REQUIRED!
I'm not bullying or flaming anyone, I'm passing along the knowledge I have that I've paid for through college and certifications. If I don't know or cant prove the answers, I don't respond. Unless it's opinion question which everyone is going to have different views (not necessarily wrong ones.)
What we all as hobbyists need to realize is if we don't do it how it SHOULD be done, how can we expect future hobbyists (children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews etc) to do it right. "Well you didn't do it that way!"
Do as one says, not as one does.
PetCo is a corporation, they do not care about the animals as much as they put out. I worked at one (so you've seen the inner workings, I LIVED the inner workings of the store (do you know about the chest freezer in the back "wellness room" where they keep dead animals that die in the store?) and mostly in the aquatics department. I couldn't treat as needed with what was needed. I couldn't move fish to a hospital tank without getting permission, I couldn't put things in quarantine without management approval and to be quite honest the store manger of the store I worked in, would NOT touch the fish, would NOT touch the reptiles would touch only the birds and a few small animals. She wouldn't even get crickets for customers. You could ask her a question about a goldfish and she would say I don't know and get a book off the shelf and LOOK for the answer. Now I must say, I didn't expect her to know EVERYTHING off hand, but things like food, habitat (including temperature etc) I would expect the store manager (who also happens to be the general manager) to know.
I agree, taking them back to the store isn't the best option but when it comes to the possibility of them going to another home where there is the optimal conditions, I'd chance it. That being said. I've got through an aquarium science program in a college, I'm in the process of getting the rest of my certifications to become and animal cruelty officer. I'm not flaming anyone. People ask for input and advice and when its not what they want to hear, they get mad. I don't remember who said it, but they are right. You're taking the life of another creature into your hands. You are responsible for that animal, and in the eyes of the law, properly housing and proper care is REQUIRED!
I'm not bullying or flaming anyone, I'm passing along the knowledge I have that I've paid for through college and certifications. If I don't know or cant prove the answers, I don't respond. Unless it's opinion question which everyone is going to have different views (not necessarily wrong ones.)
What we all as hobbyists need to realize is if we don't do it how it SHOULD be done, how can we expect future hobbyists (children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews etc) to do it right. "Well you didn't do it that way!"
Do as one says, not as one does.
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GuppyGirl1230
Snails, Guppies and Corys, OH MY!!!
You are right, petco is a corporation...I know about the freezer... you are not shocking me:shakehead:. I know what goes on. I also know that the friend I was talking about has been written up and disciplined for going against policy to care for the fish, MANY TIMES:grinyes:. Everything she has told me about fish and fish keeping has been right on with what I have gotten here. She owns 10 sw tanks and about 50 fw tanks. She is the friend I am getting my 125 and 100 gallon tanks from. So there are some employees that KNOW what they are doing. That said, I never said finding a better home was a bad idea, I only said that it would be funner if he got a bigger tank because then it would be a tank build. I said taking it back to Petco was a bad idea. Which it is, and I stand by that.
Look, I am not naming names, but when it OP has to ask for people to back down, I consider that a flame. It may not have been you, but he felt bullyed and that is just not ok. There is more than one way things should be done, not all of them are wrong. And I get that under the animal cruelty laws animals need proper care and housing. I even agree with those laws. BTW, you are not the only one with college experience in biology! When I say I get it, I really do. My 2 cents was really about stopping the flaming of the OP. Just because what I would do and what you would do is different does not make one of us wrong. There are many good ways to accomplish something. Cheers!!
Thank you very much guppy, and 2 things, i love you (its always sunny), and "Petco policy is to accept large fish, but they will not reimburse you for them", not entirely true, i took back my 5 rummynoses, and female gbr, and got 5 tiger barbs,a red tailed shark, an albino bn, and 3 swordtails. And i know what ur talking about when you say u know a worker that has 10 tanks and 50 tanks, my friend is the exact same way, she has had many many diff species of tanks, and she actually cares for fish, do you think she would recomend me buy something she knew was bad for me or the fish, i dont think so, so everybody, not to be rude, but if u skipped reading guppygirl's commment, please look back at it, for it is exactly correct.
