Pet fish?

[Catholic90]

Actually, if you want an EASY, LOW MAINTENANCE pet, get a cat!

Feed them once a day, scoop their box once a day, and that is it. Easy, easy. The house will become THEIR home, and they will allow you to live there with them. We currently have 3, and love them!

Seriously, the cats are way less maintenance than my fish tanks ever were.

 

[wifenmommy]

I second (or third! ) the idea of a beta. We bought a fish bowl (very good sized one at the dollar tree) and he is quite the happy camper in it!! We added a couple of pretty rocks and voila! It is super super easy to keep up. Once a week, I pour out the water and rise it out (Morry the fish really does not make a mess in his bowl at all…) and refill with distilled…DONE! He seems really happy and will respond when dd walks in the room (it is in her room on her nightstand). He looks happy, dd loves him and it really is super easy to keep the bowl up!!

 

[juno24]

**My parents have a small tank that they never did set up so we want to make use of it. It may be 5 or 10 gallons…I’d have to check.

But I really want the inside info on cleaning and maintenance!**

I haven’t read the whole thread, so I may be repeating some things here. I have several aquaria in my home and office (a 55 gallon, a 45 gallon, a 20 gallon, and 3 10 gallon tanks). I have had them for years, and let me just say that as far as maintenance and cleaning go, the bigger the tank, the easier it is to maintain. If you have room (and the money) for a 30 gallon tank or bigger, I would definitely suggest getting one that size and stay away from the 10 and 5 gallon tanks. The smaller they are, the more work they require: more frequent water changes, more cleaning of the glass and ornamants, more vacuuming the rocks or sand. All this just to keep the water clear and free of toxins.
I am constantly working to keep my 20 and 10 gallon tanks operational, and in one I have to do near-complete water changes very frequently because the toxins build up quickly, even with just a couple of fish.
My 45 and 55 gallon tanks have NEVER required anything other than changing the filter cartridges and regular water adjustments: adding water when it evaporates (every few weeks) and adding the necessary chemicals to keep the proper balances (a couple of times a year). My bottom feeders and plecostomi keep the sand, rocks, ornaments and glass clean (and let me tell you, they SPARKLE!!).
Make sure you have a high quality filter, a hood and light (the hood keeps fish from jumping out, and paws and little hands from dipping in!), and when the water is ready for fish (usually about 10 days after setting up the tank and running the filter), buy one or 2 very cheap tropical “test” fish (guppies, or something similar) and see how they do for a few weeks (something you won’t have spent a lot of money on, just in case they die) before adding more. After 2 weeks or so, add a bottom feeder (I say wait because they need something to feed on, and a guppy in the tank will produce food for the bottom feeder). Then have the water tested (free at your local pet shop), and if it is good, start adding the fish you like. I would never have goldfish because they are sooooo dirty and their tanks are harder to maintain than tropicals. Just be sure never to mix tropicals with goldfish as they require much different environments. If you do choose goldfish, then make your starter “test” fish is a feeder goldfish .The only thing with tropicals is if you live in a cooler climate, you will need a tank heater. (I live in south Florida, so no heater is necessary here. Any place farther north may require one).

I hope this helps. Feel free to PM or post with specific questions, if you like.

 

[Feanaro_s_Wife]

Actually, if you want an EASY, LOW MAINTENANCE pet, get a cat!

Have one, lol… and NO, she is not low maintenance, but she is loved.

We also have a dog:thumbsup:

Feed them once a day, scoop their box once a day, and that is it. Easy, easy. The house will become THEIR home, and they will allow you to live there with them. We currently have 3, and love them!

Seriously, the cats are way less maintenance than my fish tanks ever were.

 

[Feanaro_s_Wife]

Smart lady. Right now, you need to SIMPLIFY your life. Adding a new pet is not the way to simplify.

Had you decided to actually do this, I was going to have to drive to Canada and talk some sense into you

LOL… the ONLY way I would have added fish to our household is if there was little maintenance. I can handle remembering to feed them or add chemicals to keep the water balanced or make sure the filter is running… but having to change water and clean tanks? NO way.**

Once hubby is home for good maybe we will reconsider. We have the perfect spot for a large tank over our (unused) fireplace that was intended for a tv. A colorful aquarium would be beautiful there…just not now, lol**

 

[b_justb]

Did someone say fish?

Love fish!

Lots of good fish sites on line. Lot’s of advice for all levels of aquarists. Yes you’re now considering becoming an aquarist and specializing in aquascapping. Now doesn’t THAT sound all snootified?

I like these guys for supplies. Very reasonable prices and good info. (Dr. Foster and Smith)

I like this site for general info.

Do some research before diving in. It’s a lot of fun. Nothing like watching the fish tank instead of TV.

I need to take more pics of my tank. But I do like to plug it when I can.

Click here to see the Mar. 2008 pictures

 

[juno24]

LOL… the ONLY way I would have added fish to our household is if there was little maintenance. I can handle remembering to feed them or add chemicals to keep the water balanced or make sure the filter is running… but having to change water and clean tanks? NO way.

**
With my 2 big tanks, that is really all I do-- make sure the filter is running, check the water balance (actually, I usually just take a sample to pet store when I go to buy food), and add the chemicals as needed (which is to say, very rarely). I add water every several weeks when it evaporates, but I do NO other maintenance on those big tanks.

Once hubby is home for good maybe we will reconsider. We have the perfect spot for a large tank over our (unused) fireplace that was intended for a tv. A colorful aquarium would be beautiful there…just not now, lol

**My tanks are all in my living room. My 55 gallon tank is on the top of an Entertainment center. One of my 10 gallon tanks is in the area where the TV is supposed to go. To relax, I sit in my rocking chair or my massage chair and watch the fish!

 

[SMHW]

Malia, I personally agree with Kage_ar that now is not the best time to be adding another member to the family. But if you are determined…

I’m no fish expert but I will put a small plug in for Beta fish. While I think some of the bowls people put them in are ridiculously small, they don’t need a WHOLE fish tank. They do need the water changed every week or so. I don’t know how you would do having to lift a bowl full of water to empty it but maybe you can get someone if you can’t.

Betas (like many fish) usually need some kind of water additives to remove chlorine or chloramines (I think the later is worse for fish). But betas don’t have the problem some other fish do with needing oxygenated water because they usually go to the surface to breathe because they actually have a lung. In fact they will probably die if they need to rely on the oxygen in the water so those vases that have a plant with the fish are bad for them.

My daughter had a beta for a while and he was one of the more entertaining pets we had. They tend to have fairly short lifespans. Usually no longer than a couple years. Ours lived about a year and a half. At that point my daughter had gotten over fish so we turned the fishbowl into a plant bowl.

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

I know they are just fish, but those bowls look REALLY small.

I’d feel cruel trapping a fish in one of those just so that I could glance at it every now and again, and see it swim around looking bored out of its skull, with no companionship.

They are not as small as they look. And yes, in my mind, they are just fish.

 

[JustAnotherThou]

I haven’t read all the replies, my suggestion is get a Beta Fish. DH has one that has lived in a gold fish bowl for the past 3 years!!!

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

I haven’t read all the replies, my suggestion is get a Beta Fish. DH has one that has lived in a gold fish bowl for the past 3 years!!!

There’s a taker on the goldfish bowl with a beta! They said my idea of a goldfish bowl was cruel to the fish. Does your husband’s fish act mistreated?

 

[wifenmommy]

…ummmm…Our fish is quite happy in his $1 bowl! Like I mentioned before I change the water once a week~I use distilled, not tap! I swear that fish smiles and does a happy dance, uh, swim!!!

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

…ummmm…Our fish is quite happy in his $1 bowl! Like I mentioned before I change the water once a week~I use distilled, not tap! I swear that fish smiles and does a happy dance, uh, swim!!!

Our beta fish is happy in his cheapy bowl, too- Although our bowl cost $3.49.

(He lives in the office, away from the cats.)

 

[Catholic90]

There’s a taker on the goldfish bowl with a beta! They said my idea of a goldfish bowl was cruel to the fish. Does your husband’s fish act mistreated?

Betas are different. PUtting Goldfish in a goldfish bowl is cruel.

They ARE small. They are usually 1-2 gallons. If someone wants a tropical tank with multiple fish, a small bowl is NOT the way to go.

Beta in a bowl = fine.
Tetras, gourami, goldfish, barbs, etc. in a bowl = not fine and lots of dead fish.

 

[OutinChgoburbs]

The bowl I have is three gallons. I know because I measured the # of distilled water bottles that got dumped. I think in betas, that’s a luxury mansion.

 

[b_justb]

Betas are from the Philippines. Their natural environment are shallow mud puddles, some times tire ruts in the streets. They thrive in small enclosed spaces. So they make very good single small fish bowl pets. If you put in a chunk of bamboo they will nibble on the roots and you don’t have to feed themvery much at all.

 

[ChristinaM]

If you put in a chunk of bamboo they will nibble on the roots and you don’t have to feed themvery much at all.

NOPE! Not true at all! Bettas are carnivores. They eat mosquitoes in the wild. If you left them just a root of bamboo they would quickly starve. They might manage to hang on for a while, but that would be the equivalent of me feeding you three carrot sticks a day - not a balanced healthy diet. (Also, they’re from Thailand, hence the name “Siamese fighting fish.”)

www.bettatalk.com is a very good, informative site maintained by a longtime betta breeder. She has more detailed information on why those evil “plant and fish in a vase” combos are so unhealthy for bettas.

I had a betta from the pet store which I kept in a one-gallon bowl. I kept him quite happily, with weekly water changes, until his untimely demise due to a sudden temperature change. I plan to get another one once I am settled into my new place. They are really great little pets! They are low-maintenance, but they do require PROPER care.

 

[Feanaro_s_Wife]

Thanks for all of the Betta info! This looks like it might be a good starter fish for us. IF I can find a place where neither the cat OR Lily can get to the bowl/tank…
**
Maybe a corner shelf in our living room placed up high enough so only I can reach? But I’ll have to make sure Lily can’t knock it off with a long toy, lol…she is very creative**** Heck, maybe I’ll just stick with the dog and cat…at least they have a prayer of defending themselves, lol.**

 

[pumpkinbeast]

I suggest getting a 5 gallon tank, a Betta, and one of the cleaning fishes, plecto-whatevers. Bettas are very pretty, and with only 2 fish, you won’t need to clean it very often at all, especially with the cleaning fish helping out. My mom adopted my fish when I went to university, and she’s only cleaned it maybe 3 times in the past 2 years, and the tank stays actually rather clean, and the water doesn’t get very dirty. The fish are all still alive, and seem to be healthy. I think, clean it if it seems to be getting too dirty. If you have a filter running, I doubt you’ll have to clean it more than once a month, if that. Just replace the water that evaporates off, while adding the appropriate water pH balancer stuff. (Sorry I’m being so vague… but fish are not that hard to take care of, in my experience…) And Lily might have fun putting a mirror next to the tank, and watching the Betta fight with itself. I’m mean, I know.

 

[Jerrysgirl]

She has more detailed information on why those evil “plant and fish in a vase” combos are so unhealthy for bettas.
.

Are you kidding me! I had one of those on my desk for years! Now I feel terrible!