Sigh - Angel Aggression issues already
- Thread starter ExtraHannah
- Start date
Well, I must admit that I do love all the angels in there now! It makes for a gorgeous display (I think), though I'm not quite as happy with my new "aquascape" as how I had things previously. It's just tough to do with half the water and fish still in there. I'm going to try to get some pictures tonight.:grinyes:
Update
Just thought I would update everyone and provide a few pictures. (And questions of course!)
So far, so good. When I initially rearranged and added the three more angels, I feared at first that all had been for naught. Initially, the Gold angel "A" continued to pester Gold "B". However, within 36 hours or so, this had completely stopped.
I'm not seeing anything but the mildest of aggression now. Yay!
As I feared, I have had some ammonia readings, but not too bad and I'm doing big WC's as soon as I see them. I also added some gravel in a panty hose leg (trying to figure out the singular of panty hose - LOL) from my 27 gallon, which is completely cycled and further along.
I took some pictures of "everyone" to share. They seem very healthy, energetic and outgoing. All rush the top and the glass when they see me, hoping for food.
My original three. Gold Angel A. He has had that red showing on both gills since I got him. Is that just a conformational thing?
Gold angel B - the one that was getting picked on. He did a bit of damage to his fins, hiding under the stump he's showing you in the picture. However, it wasn't bad. I haven't seen him back under there since the new introductions.
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a89/ExtraHannah/Aquarium/_MG_7509GoldBW.jpg
My Koi angel:
Now the three new "guys".
Marble "A" (who I find much more attractive IRL):
Marble "B":
And my Black:
If anyone sees any obvious problems with these guys, please let me know. As I said, all seem healthy and happy to me, but I'm new to this!
Just thought I would update everyone and provide a few pictures. (And questions of course!)
So far, so good. When I initially rearranged and added the three more angels, I feared at first that all had been for naught. Initially, the Gold angel "A" continued to pester Gold "B". However, within 36 hours or so, this had completely stopped.
I'm not seeing anything but the mildest of aggression now. Yay!As I feared, I have had some ammonia readings, but not too bad and I'm doing big WC's as soon as I see them. I also added some gravel in a panty hose leg (trying to figure out the singular of panty hose - LOL) from my 27 gallon, which is completely cycled and further along.
I took some pictures of "everyone" to share. They seem very healthy, energetic and outgoing. All rush the top and the glass when they see me, hoping for food.
My original three. Gold Angel A. He has had that red showing on both gills since I got him. Is that just a conformational thing?
Gold angel B - the one that was getting picked on. He did a bit of damage to his fins, hiding under the stump he's showing you in the picture. However, it wasn't bad. I haven't seen him back under there since the new introductions.
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a89/ExtraHannah/Aquarium/_MG_7509GoldBW.jpg
My Koi angel:
Now the three new "guys".
Marble "A" (who I find much more attractive IRL):
Marble "B":
And my Black:
If anyone sees any obvious problems with these guys, please let me know. As I said, all seem healthy and happy to me, but I'm new to this!
OOPS- I missed the update....
They look great. Your black may be a little washed out, and has a little bit of damage, but the blacks tend to show net marks/fin damage the easiest, nothing to worry about,
They look great. Your black may be a little washed out, and has a little bit of damage, but the blacks tend to show net marks/fin damage the easiest, nothing to worry about,
Thanks guys! David - it sure would be easier if we could easily tell the difference and just get all females, wouldn't it? I guess I will just see how it works. I had to do something and this seemed to be the consensus. I will certainly keep everyone updated on how things pan out. It's a learning experience for sure.
Thank you Turbo! Yes, the black does have a little scrape there. He's not quite as washed out as the pictures appear. My lighting is too dim for me to to take shots without a flash, so I think the flash washes them all out a bit. Unless, that is, I manage to get the angle and distance down perfectly and I'm not quite there yet.
Is the head shape on the koi less desirable? He seems to have a more obvious "stop" - at least that's what you would call it in the dog world - than any of the others. Almost a pug nose....
Thank you Turbo! Yes, the black does have a little scrape there. He's not quite as washed out as the pictures appear. My lighting is too dim for me to to take shots without a flash, so I think the flash washes them all out a bit. Unless, that is, I manage to get the angle and distance down perfectly and I'm not quite there yet.
Is the head shape on the koi less desirable? He seems to have a more obvious "stop" - at least that's what you would call it in the dog world - than any of the others. Almost a pug nose....
They look great!
David- Unless I misunderstood or what I said was misunderstood the plan it to let a pair form and then remove the rest and keep them. Hannah, this is what you are planning on doing, right?
As for the koi, he is not of breeding qualaty but unless you intend on breeding that one, there is no reason why you can't keep him.
Good luck and keep us posted!
David- Unless I misunderstood or what I said was misunderstood the plan it to let a pair form and then remove the rest and keep them. Hannah, this is what you are planning on doing, right?
As for the koi, he is not of breeding qualaty but unless you intend on breeding that one, there is no reason why you can't keep him.
Good luck and keep us posted!
now you need to be diligent.
adding more angels increases the chance of a pair forming. when that ahppens you may not notice aggression until a lot of damage is done.
Once pairs form all bets are off for a peaceful ending.
but like I said be diligent and keep a watchful eye.
one of the quickest signs of aggression is frayed fins.. \yuou may not notice aggression when you watch so keep an eye out for signs of stress. angels mature quickly so you may see changes in behaior in the next few weeks.
good luck.
btw, nice fish
adding more angels increases the chance of a pair forming. when that ahppens you may not notice aggression until a lot of damage is done.
Once pairs form all bets are off for a peaceful ending.
but like I said be diligent and keep a watchful eye.
one of the quickest signs of aggression is frayed fins.. \yuou may not notice aggression when you watch so keep an eye out for signs of stress. angels mature quickly so you may see changes in behaior in the next few weeks.
good luck.
btw, nice fish
Thanks for all of the input everyone! Actually, my initial thought was once a pair formed to rehome one or both of them so I could keep more than two angels in the tank. I never did get an answer on if that was an acceptable idea or not. However, it's so darn stressful worrying about a pair forming and aggression and such, that at this point I do think I will likely just keep the pair and rehome the rest. I don't have any interest in breeding at this point though. I'm still interested in "conformation", but just because I like to know things like that. Even with my geldings (neutered male horses) who will never be bred, I still want to know their strong and weak points, if that makes sense.
I will keep a very close eye out for any signs of aggression, battered fins, etc. Right now I see Marble B occasionally does a little chasing of the others and I've seen the Koi do it as well. Neither keep it up though like the gold was. It actually reminds me a lot of my horses herd behavior when settling and then keeping their spot in the hierarchy. Interesting stuff. Oh and my big, tough, Gold A isn't so tough any more. He's a bit smaller than the marbles and black and I haven't seen any chasing on his part since the new additions have settled in.
Will it be fairly obvious who the pair are if they form? I assume that they will be swimming together and such and maybe claim one area of the tank as their territory? Are both the male and female likely to be aggressive towards everyone else, or just the male of the pair?
I will keep a very close eye out for any signs of aggression, battered fins, etc. Right now I see Marble B occasionally does a little chasing of the others and I've seen the Koi do it as well. Neither keep it up though like the gold was. It actually reminds me a lot of my horses herd behavior when settling and then keeping their spot in the hierarchy. Interesting stuff. Oh and my big, tough, Gold A isn't so tough any more. He's a bit smaller than the marbles and black and I haven't seen any chasing on his part since the new additions have settled in.
Will it be fairly obvious who the pair are if they form? I assume that they will be swimming together and such and maybe claim one area of the tank as their territory? Are both the male and female likely to be aggressive towards everyone else, or just the male of the pair?
