[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Thinking about getting a fish (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 11/17/2010 11:45:12 AM EDT
| I am thinking about getting a fish for a pet. I am wondering if it is not a good idea because every 2 weeks I go home for like 4 days. Then Christmas, and holidays I go home too. I don't want to get a fish and have it die. Could I get an auto feeder or just transport it home? |
| 4 days is nothing once the take is properly cycled. Dont by a autofeed just let them fast for 4 days The autofeed will break down dump all the food in your tank and kill all your fish. Unless they make better ones then they did in 2007 when I was big into aquarium forums. I actually feed most of my fish every other week but they are big 12" plus size. |
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I have a cheap autofeeder from Wal-Mart that I use when I'm away for a few days. It seems to have been working well. You have to adjust it to get the feed rate correct before you stick it on the tank.
If I let my chichlids go four days without eating, they'd eat each other. |
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They make blocks of food for time away. Just place the block in an aquarium, they'll eat off of it as they please. Remove when you get back.
A few other tips: DO NOT GET ONE OF THOSE BS 2 GALLON TANKS. It's not a question of IF, but WHEN your fish will float to the top. They just aren't big enough, and the temperature fluctuates wildly. Which brings me to my next point: MAKE SURE YOU GET A HEATER OR YOUR FISH WILL FUCKING DIE. Temperature fluctuation and fish don't mix. A good setup is a 10 gallon tank with lighted lid, charcoal filter, and a heater. With this, you will have success. You can get a setup from your local petsmart/petco/aquarium shop, but look around on craigslist. There are some AWESOME deals on aquarium equipment there. |
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The all in one aquarium kits at Wal-Mart aren't too bad to get started for the cheap. I just wouldn't get the fish there, unless they happen to take care of them well. If you see dead ones in the tank, buy elsewhere.
Set it up, then let it run with no fish for a few days. Then add a fish or two and do nearly daily water changes of 10 to 15% until the tank "cycles" and establishes the beneficial bateria that eats up the fish poop and old food. Usually takes a few weeks to cycle the tank. Then you can go to cleanings and water changes every week or two and the good bacteria will help keep the water clean. Plenty of info on the net about this. |
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I went nine months without feeding three goldfish to see if they would live or not. Walmart fish that I didn't want. They did, and were perfectly healthy in a tank with no heat, no light, no filtration. I keep having a weird dream that I have an extra aquarium that I keep forgetting about and never feed but they're still living. |
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Quoted: Quoted: What do you look like? Do you look like a fish guy? I fish and hunt IDK what a fish guy looks like lol? Top hat and monocle.  http://www.ar15.com/archive/topic.html?b=1&f=5&t=1014208 |
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MAKE SURE YOU GET A HEATER OR YOUR FISH WILL FUCKING DIE. Temperature fluctuation and fish don't mix. Water temp fluctuations are pretty overrated. If the fish is otherwise healthy, and the water chemistry isn't jacked up, they can undergo significant temp swings just fine. Keep in mind that in nature, fish can undergo a 10-degree change (or more) by just swimming between shallows and depths. In saltwater, when you get into shallow-water stuff, the temp swings between night and day can be pretty extreme. Even cichlids can be awfully resiliant. A coworker of mine kept cichlids in an unheated 10-gallon tank on his desk for about six years, finally he took another job and left. The temp during the day is about 74, but at night when the HVAC shuts off, it can get down to 65 or less during the winter, or 90 in the summer. He never had a problem with them. He had a freaking boatload of them, but had quite the inventive filtration system... he had taken some sort of vine plant, got it to root in water, and then put it in the tank. It put roots all the way through his substrate, and had grown so large that it was draped all the way around his cubicle and back... so he had that entire plant sucking waste out of the tank. The fish were almost there just to fertilize the plant. 
I've let saltwater tanks go from 76 during the night to a little over 90 during the day. None of the fish, inverts, or corals cared. And with goldfish, you don't generally want the water to be any warmer than room temp, and they can take colder temps than people generally like. My son's goldfish are in a 10-gallon tank in his window, where the temps fluctuate quite a bit. They're fit, fat, and happy - quite literally. Overall, if water temp fluctuations ARE a problem, it's generally because something else is already making the fish unhealthy to begin with. |
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Betta fish is a great starter fish. Goldfish not so much... I have a soft spot for goldfish because we had a few for about 15 years when I was a kid, but they're cold water fish and will dirty a tank up quickly. The freshwater tropicals are the way to go for an intro. |
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Betta fish is a great starter fish. Goldfish not so much... I have a soft spot for goldfish because we had a few for about 15 years when I was a kid, but they're cold water fish and will dirty a tank up quickly. The freshwater tropicals are the way to go for an intro. So you think a beta would be the best? |
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Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Betta fish is a great starter fish. Goldfish not so much... I have a soft spot for goldfish because we had a few for about 15 years when I was a kid, but they're cold water fish and will dirty a tank up quickly. The freshwater tropicals are the way to go for an intro. So you think a beta would be the best? The look cool and like to kill shit. You can forget to feed them for a few weeks and they'll be fine. So, yes. |
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Betta fish is a great starter fish. Goldfish not so much... I have a soft spot for goldfish because we had a few for about 15 years when I was a kid, but they're cold water fish and will dirty a tank up quickly. The freshwater tropicals are the way to go for an intro. So you think a beta would be the best? A beta should be super easy to care for, but they're not for me personally. I'm more of a cichlid kind of person. Cichlids seem to each have their own personality and really pay attention to you, almost like dogs. However, if you get cichlids you can only keep other cichlids from the same region that speak the same cichlid language, because they're aggressive and don't get along with other fish. |
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Quoted: I have never, and never will feel guilty for telling a mom joke.Quoted: Oh, and if you forget to clean the tank, your room will smell like pie. That way, your mom... errrrr... roomates will think that you actually like girls. My mothers deceased. Nice mom joke btw  I for one, can seperate my personal life from humor. |
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Get a Betta. (And learn how to spell and pronounce Betta splendens)
But don't torture it in a goldfish bowl, get at least a 5 gallon tank with a heater and maintain it like any other freshwater aquarium. They are hardy air-breathers and will tolerate poor water conditions but he'll be a lot happier in a well maintained tank. |
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Get a Betta. (And learn how to spell and pronounce Betta splendens) But don't torture it in a goldfish bowl, get at least a 5 gallon tank with a heater and maintain it like any other freshwater aquarium. They are hardy air-breathers and will tolerate poor water conditions but he'll be a lot happier in a well maintained tank. Thanks for the advice! |
| If you are thinking fresh water and want to spend some money go with a live planted tank. pain in the ass till you get the hang of it due to higher light requirments, but ive left for 2 weeks without feeding and never lost a fish. i figure they nibble on the plants when they are hungry enough. |
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Get the biggest tank you can afford. The bigger the tank the easier it is to maintain. I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but it's true. Go craigslist shopping and look to spend about a dollar a gallon or less on the tank alone. A 75 gallon tank is the perfect starter size. |
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I never used an autofeeder, heck I don't think they even made them when I was into aquariums 30 years ago. We would put in a cube or two of freeze dried tubefex (sp) worms if we were leaving for a week or so. But, I did have a heater malfunction in a tank of fancy goldfish while I was away for a week. The thermostat was stuck ON!!! When we got home and opened the front door we were met with the smell of overcooked poached goldfish.  The tank was almost steaming and the fish had fallen apart. It was just plain nasty. |
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I would go find a good local fish shop (LFS for short) that carries a variety of animals spanning the various disciplines (cold freshwater, tropical freshwater, planted tanks, and marine). The knowledge base will probably be a bit better than walmart and you get to see a variety of different aquariums
in person. Also, I would suggest that you do some research into whatever strikes your fancy and don't make rash decisions until you are confident that you can meet the requirements of the animals. I also agree with getting the biggest tank that you can afford and you can definitely buy used to save some money. |
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Quoted: Quoted: How big of a tank do you need for bettas to be able to get along? Is it possible to keep other fish like guppies and tetras with bettas or is that asking for trouble? I think 5 gallons to keep them together you are best getting a community tank ie 10+ This website echoes what I've heard before. Basically, no matter how big the tank, you shouldn't put more than one male betta in it. http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/bettacompat.htm and this yahoo answers thread is even better: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071130142852AASziAR |
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Before you buy anything, do a lot more research. Here is a great free source of info. http://www.wetwebmedia.com/ |
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Betta will do fine with other fish as long as there is enough room. They only fight each other, for the most part. Females are a ugly brown color and are much smaller. Gold fish are dirty, they are eating and pooping machines- don't bother. If I were you, i would go find a 10 gallon tank, a heater, and what ever decorations you like. Don't buy this stuff used, as you don't know what happened to their tank. Most people take down their tank after everything dies, and the problems can remain on their stuff. If you want to keep other tropicals with your Betta, make sure they are very peaceful, Betas do not like having their fins nipped, and they are not fast enough to get away. Guppies are ok, but plan on having a lot of them. They breed and breed and breed, kinda like welfare recipients. If you have a bit of cash, I would do this:
10 gallon tank decent heater- I like Ebo- Jager, and have had good luck with them. I have one that is 10+ years old and still going. Under gravel filter, and skip the air pump. Use power heads, less hassle and they will run forever. Dechlorinator- this is a must, I don't like to breathe chlorine fumes and neither do fish- follow the directions. gravel on top of the under gravel filter. Lights are optional for the most part. Whatever decorations you like. If you can find it, get some water from some ones healthy, disease free aquarium to start your tank off. If you can get a couple of gallons from their water change, it will go along way to getting the bacteria levels established in your tank. Just make sure they don't have diseases or parasites. Patience- you are gonna need it. You can only ad a fish, or 2 at a time in a 10 gallon. Too much too soon will kill the fish and leave you frustrated. I think I did one fish a month in a 10 gallon. Water Changes- in a 10 gallon all you need to do is 2 gallons a month. Nothing fancy here, use your fingers to stir some of the gravel and fish waste up, and then remove 2 gallons of water. Replace with 2 fresh gallons and the recommended amount of dechlorinator. Use the dechlor before putting the water into the tank. ETA- PM me any questions. And don't listen to the local pet store they are just like gun stores. Most folks in there don't have a clue. Feeding- minimal amounts maybe once a day. It is fine to skip days. Before I go on trip I feed every day for 2 weeks, and then leave. When I get back, I feed them their normal amounts for 2 days and then get back to skipping days. The key to it is stability, keep your hands out of the tank except for feeding and routine maintenance. Do not change the decorations around all the time, the fish don't like it and it stresses them. For reference, I have been keeping fish for 30 years and at this time have a 230 gallon reef with another additional 70 gallons in sump and refugium in the basement. |
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Ok, who is this? Look at the name of the fish in the description http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLTku76bXBU&feature=related |