Starter fish

Hi Amy,
Look at my signature. Sounds like we have similar tastes. I wanted a peaceful community tank with a lot of color and variation. My largest fish is around 3 inches. I love all the fish I went with and only wish I had a pair of German Blue Ram cichlids and a few more rainbows.
Let me know if you have questions regarding any of them.
 
jm1212 said:
i would start with some platies. they are virtually the perfect community fish.

then go for some hardier tetras such as lemons, red eyes, diamonds, or even black skirt tetras.

corydoras sound good for the bottom. peppered and bronze are easy to find and will look great

for a centerpiece fish, get an angelfish
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I agree with this post. I've kept fish for a while, but I'm a beginner when it comes to proper fish care. I always followed the advice from the petstore when it came to fish and when all of my fish slowly died off, I was scratching my head.

Platies, mollies, and other livebearers are generally pretty easy to keep, IMO anyway. Zebra danios are sometimes known to be a little on the 'hyper' side when it comes to community fish, they like to swim around the tank quite fast and can be a stresser to some of the calmer fish. Its also important to note that danios are schooling fish and should be kept in a group of 6 or more.

Tetras are also a schooling fish that need to be kept in groups of 6 or more. Gold tetras are my personal favorites and are apparently pretty hardy little fish.

You could always get a nice gourami as a centre piece fish (which is what I intend to do once my tank is fully cycled). And as for bottom feeders, why not start with some snails. Corydoras are very expensive here, usually about $10 each, I'm not sure what they run for where you are, but these are also another fish that are happier in groups...

Good luck! :)
 
Since it sounds like it has been awhile since you have kept fish I would start with fish that won't hurt your pocket book too much. I have had good luck with Zebra Danios and White Clouds. Both are cheap and hard to kill. I kind of like the way they look and behave so I keep these little guys anyway.

I have also used platies and mollies to help start a tank.

Your comet/pond Goldfish are very forgiving and can live in conditions you would never think of. If you had a friend that had a koi/goldfish pond you could borrow some babies from them and then return them once you are cycled. Save you some money that way.

Another thing you might check into ........ Some of the LFS's around here sell their seasoned filter media. That can help jump start your tank as well. Again if you have any friends/family with tanks maybe they can help you out that way as well.

Here is a website that can help give you some more guidelines. As with everything else about this hobby just be sure to research first. http://fins.actwin.com/mirror/fish-popular.html

Good luck and be sure to ask if you have anymore questions. We have all been in your shoes at one time or another.
 
Thankyou for all the replies!!!

I went to the petco website and looked through their fish they have availabe and made a list of all the smaller fish that are easy to care for and hardy. Some of the fish you all listed they dont have. I prefer not to get my fish from the local pet store here in town because they seem to have quite a few dead fish, although that might have changed by now since its been a few years since I went in there. I got tired of seeing the dead fish and dirty looking tanks I just quit going. The fish tanks at walmart have quite a few dead fish in them also. The ones at petco very seldom have dead fish, I dont know if its because more knowledgable people take care of them or if we just have perfect timing and we come right after the get the dead fish out. *shrugs* Because of the nice tanks and healthy looking fish at petco I'd rather get them there but they are quite pricey on their stuff.


I dont mind having a few fish that will get bigger then 2-4inches. I just dont want a whole bunch that'll be like that. I want to have quite a few colorful fish but not too much that it'll be too much for my aquarium.

Im going to go back through my list and put stars next to the types you all have listed in this thread.

Now on the petco website they said that Barbs are semi aggressive. Would I have any problems putting them in with goldfish, guppies, tetras, ect?

Oh and I really would love to have an angel fish but they said on the petco website they can get up to 12" is that true? Or are there other types that stay smaller?

Oh and also, some of the fish on the petco website they listed as needing 1 or 2 teaspoos of salt (for aquariums) per 2gal. of water. Could someone please explain that too me? I have never heard of that.

We always had luck with our fish. The time my fish died was because of a stupid stupid stupid mistake I made. I was leaving for a 2 day goat show. I cut the power to my room by accident (My switch and the hallway switch were side byside -weird set up I know- )Anyways. I switched the hallway light off and hit my switch to so when I got back I had dead fish. We were running late so I just swiped my hand down the switch and ran out the door. That cant happen again since we fixed that problem. I haven't had fish since I did that.
 
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OH and another question, when they say they do better with a group of their species, does that mean a group of any type of guppies for example, if I were to get two of each of these, Sunrise, Yellow, and Blue Neon, or does that mean, a group of just Sunrise guppies?
 
Black Moor Goldfish get quite big, at my LFS the owner keeps a tank of three and they're HUGE. I'm not sure how they do in tropical temperatures either, but I'm guessing like real goldfish they are sturdy fish. I remember having one as a child, and I named it Gaston le Poisson lol... means Gaston the fish in french, I thought I was creative. Whichever species you chose... if you research it first, the odds for its survival will definately increase.
 
fcnubian said:
Now on the petco website they said that Barbs are semi aggressive. Would I have any problems putting them in with goldfish, guppies, tetras, ect?
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The term 'barbs' is very broad. What species specifically is in question? Barbs are very sociable fish. Keeping them singly or in pairs is a very bad idea considering they will peck other fish insted of members of their own species. This is especially applicable to arulius barbs, filament barbs, tiger barbs and many others. Tiger barbs, of course, are best avoided if you have long-finned specimens. Most barbs will nt be compatible with placid specimens due to undue stress they cause by constat movements.

Oh and I really would love to have an angel fish but they said on the petco website they can get up to 12" is that true? Or are there other types that stay smaller?
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Most angels have been known to reach that size. What were they referring to? Body diameter or height of fins? There are three species that currently exist. Pterophyllum scalare is what we commonly see regardless of the strains available. They prefer 18 inches height minimum hence tall tanks are better than long tanks in this case.

If anyone tells you there is a dwarf angelfish, that is rubbish as that angelfish may simply have been stunted.There is no such thing as dwarf angelfish.

Oh and also, some of the fish on the petco website they listed as needing 1 or 2 teaspoos of salt (for aquariums) per 2gal. of water. Could someone please explain that too me? I have never heard of that.
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You can use table salt. No need to buy aquarium salt which is more expensive. Keep the salt away at the moment unless your fish has ich. Using salt on long-term basis without valid reason will prove detrimental to the fish's health in the long.

fcnubian said:
OH and another question, when they say they do better with a group of their species, does that mean a group of any type of guppies for example, if I were to get two of each of these, Sunrise, Yellow, and Blue Neon, or does that mean, a group of just Sunrise guppies?
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All strains of guppies are still the same species. These are not schooling fish but they do like the company of their own species.
 
Renay89 said:
Black Moor Goldfish get quite big, at my LFS the owner keeps a tank of three and they're HUGE. I'm not sure how they do in tropical temperatures either, but I'm guessing like real goldfish they are sturdy fish. I remember having one as a child, and I named it Gaston le Poisson lol... means Gaston the fish in french, I thought I was creative. Whichever species you chose... if you research it first, the odds for its survival will definately increase.
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Black moors are still goldfish hence they are coldwater fish. They will be unable to thrive in warmer temperatures hence these are best kept in a tank by themselves with temperature not exceeding 76 degrees Fahrenheit.
 
Thanks for the replies. I know I went back and checked the black moor goldfish. :( oh well. I'll leave that go because I dont want something too big.
That is the type of angelfish that is listed on the petco site.
 
Do these prices seem normal or overpriced?

Cherry Barb, Black Neon Tetra, Neon Tretra, Silver Tip Tetra-1.99
Assorted Mickey Mouse Platies, Assorted Platies-1.49
Zebra Danio-0.99
Sunrise, Yello, Blue Neon Guppies-3.99
Black Phantom Tetra-2.99
Female Betta-2.49
 
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