Fish Lovers 3.0 [new poll]

[Kat]

Thank you for both of your replies! The fish are kind of difficult for me to see (the pond water is pretty murky and they like to hide), but they're fairly young and each appear to be only a little longer than the length of my index finger. So, not too terribly large yet, but I'd love for them to grow as large as they're meant to be. So, I should basically just look into getting as big of a tank as I can? But darn, I was really hoping that I wouldn't have to go through cycling the tank. The pond does have some plants and I can ask about taking a few of them if that might help. If I stuck a large sponge into the pond for a number of days, do you guys think that some good bacteria might attach onto it (so that I could use it in their new filter)?

[Hime]

Thank you for both of your replies! The fish are kind of difficult for me to see (the pond water is pretty murky and they like to hide), but they're fairly young and each appear to be only a little longer than the length of my index finger. So, not too terribly large yet, but I'd love for them to grow as large as they're meant to be. So, I should basically just look into getting as big of a tank as I can? But darn, I was really hoping that I wouldn't have to go through cycling the tank. The pond does have some plants and I can ask about taking a few of them if that might help. If I stuck a large sponge into the pond for a number of days, do you guys think that some good bacteria might attach onto it (so that I could use it in their new filter)?

Well, generally bigger the better when it comes to tanks, especially with bigger fish. ^^ If you have running tanks, you can also put filter media into them and then transfer that that media to the new tank to have it cycled instantly. This should work especially if the goldfish are small and tank is fairly big, so the bioload won't be too heavy and the bacterias should have time to multiply to suitable amount without risking the wellbeing of the fish. I suppose having the material in the pond could have the same effect, but I'm not too sure about pond stuff. ^^; The thing with pond plants, depending on what plants they are, they might not thrive in aquarium. Goldfish also have bad habbit of eating plants, so while it's promising they are still in one piece in the pond they might end up in shreds in the tank.
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Not really sure what to do with my tank... I got the blue-green algae and general mess situation under control. I still need to do at least one semi-large water change to clean up some mess on the bottom. Problem is I'm not sure should I get fish or not, and if I'd get fish what should I get... But if I would run the tank plants only, I'd like to scape it somehow which would mean I'd like new lights to get some new types of plants. And I don't likely have the funds for new lights. : P Decisions decisions...

[misted]

just got a new betta fish!! he's a gold long-tailed dragon <3

he's honestly my dream betta AAAA

[Alpen]

@hime I have seen many people use plant LED bulbs and just one of those small movable desk lights or the clip on “heat lamps” (like they use for chickens). You’ll just need to check the wattage needed for the plants you have! http://tropica.com/en/guide/make-your-a ... ess/light/
I use the plant LED for some houseplants I have and they have grown so so much, I believe the 50 watt bulb was only about $5 and the clip lamp I got was around $8-10.

It’s a waaaay cheaper option but I haven’t used it myself, I’m just running on some cheap LEDs from amazon and lids that came with most of my tanks OTL. I believe it will be fine tho, let me know if you do and have any success with it!


(The plastic underneath it is a cheap table cover that I have to staple down still. Had surprisingly worked out well since when setting up my canister filter it leaked a tooon and the stand didn’t get wet yay cheap fixes.)

Decided to just go with the 55 gal for right now. I haven’t laid out the plants like I want to, they’re just planted for right now so they don’t die lmao. I found a ~42” piece of beautiful driftwood (even has little pockets on it UGH) when I went to the mountains last weekend. I’m trying to figure out the best method to clean it but I’m thinking buying a plastic storage box and just pouring multiple pots of boiling water on it, which I currently don’t have time to do D:


ON THE OTHER HAND...petco is having their $1/gallon sale and I’m heavily considering getting a 29 gal so I can transfer that canister filter (meant for 55 gallon max) to the 29 and then buy another canister filter for 100 gal. I have a hang-on-back filter that came with the tank that I could also use too...but >_> more feesh opportunity

[fiirstcrush]

Username: gentle dragon
How many fish tanks do you have: 1!
Types of fish that you have: twintail halfmoon betta
Your fishs' names: Ares!
How long have you had fish: I got ares on March 23rd 2018, but since i was 5? i've had fish qwq


Hi! I have a question!
Ever since i got my Ares I realized how much I love bettas! I decided to get another betta, I've been looking at some breeds that I think are prettiest, I plan on getting another male (seperate tank of course)
I've seen elephant ear/dumbo bettas and I would like to know-- Do their fins cause swimming problems? Do they fall off or get torn? I plan on getting one of those but I'm worried for the fins, We cannot afford*** vet bills so I was curious if Dumbo are more susceptible to that or any other pain etc. Thank you qwq!

[Hime]

Username: gentle dragon
How many fish tanks do you have: 1!
Types of fish that you have: twintail halfmoon betta
Your fishs' names: Ares!
How long have you had fish: I got ares on March 23rd 2018, but since i was 5? i've had fish qwq


Hi! I have a question!
Ever since i got my Ares I realized how much I love bettas! I decided to get another betta, I've been looking at some breeds that I think are prettiest, I plan on getting another male (seperate tank of course)
I've seen elephant ear/dumbo bettas and I would like to know-- Do their fins cause swimming problems? Do they fall off or get torn? I plan on getting one of those but I'm worried for the fins, We cannot afford*** vet bills so I was curious if Dumbo are more susceptible to that or any other pain etc. Thank you qwq!

Generally the more elaborate fins the harder time the fish has swimming. Though in some cases the difficulty of swimming is simply due the fish not being used to swimming (like if it's been kept in a cup for most of its life), thus it not having the proper muscles to do so. So while fish might fish have hard time swimming, it should improve in time when it gets more practice (or so I've heard couple betta owners say). I can't really say about dumbos, but I think it's usually the heavy/large tails that cause bettas to have swimming issues and not so much the pectoral fins. And no, they don't fall off. They can get torn if you have sharp decoration, and sometimes bettas can develop bad habbit of nipping their own tail due various reasons, which can then lead to infection (fin rot) if the water is too dirty.
There really aren't fish vets around (at most I've ever seen is a fish store offering microscope diagnosis), so you really don't need to think vet bills with fish. Though if they do get sick, you'll have to do your own research on treatments and buy meds if needed. But honestly fish meds are pretty cheap compared to 4 legged furry animal meds.

[delet---]

Username: gentle dragon
How many fish tanks do you have: 1!
Types of fish that you have: twintail halfmoon betta
Your fishs' names: Ares!
How long have you had fish: I got ares on March 23rd 2018, but since i was 5? i've had fish qwq


Hi! I have a question!
Ever since i got my Ares I realized how much I love bettas! I decided to get another betta, I've been looking at some breeds that I think are prettiest, I plan on getting another male (seperate tank of course)
I've seen elephant ear/dumbo bettas and I would like to know-- Do their fins cause swimming problems? Do they fall off or get torn? I plan on getting one of those but I'm worried for the fins, We cannot afford*** vet bills so I was curious if Dumbo are more susceptible to that or any other pain etc. Thank you qwq!

Generally the more elaborate fins the harder time the fish has swimming. Though in some cases the difficulty of swimming is simply due the fish not being used to swimming (like if it's been kept in a cup for most of its life), thus it not having the proper muscles to do so. So while fish might fish have hard time swimming, it should improve in time when it gets more practice (or so I've heard couple betta owners say). I can't really say about dumbos, but I think it's usually the heavy/large tails that cause bettas to have swimming issues and not so much the pectoral fins. And no, they don't fall off. They can get torn if you have sharp decoration, and sometimes bettas can develop bad habbit of nipping their own tail due various reasons, which can then lead to infection (fin rot) if the water is too dirty.
There really aren't fish vets around (at most I've ever seen is a fish store offering microscope diagnosis), so you really don't need to think vet bills with fish. Though if they do get sick, you'll have to do your own research on treatments and buy meds if needed. But honestly fish meds are pretty cheap compared to 4 legged furry animal meds.

pretty much everything here. from my experience and based on feedback from other experienced keepers, the healthiest domestic betta types in order are plakat, koi, veiltail, crowntail, dumbo, delta tail, super delta tail, halfmoon, double tail, rosetail. try to avoid bettas with bigger tails, as they're more prone to spinal issues, fin nipping, and swim bladder problems. avoid dragon scales as they will eventually become blind from the thick scales growing over their eyes. i would try to stay within the range of the first four or five types listed here.

and of course not to beat a dead horse, as i'm sure you already know this, but bettas need a healthy minimum of 5 gallons of heated (78-82F) and filtered water. or a comfortable minimum of 10 gallons. they need LOTS of cover, so it's best to absolutely drown the tank in live or silk plants. always feed high quality foods like fluval bug bites, omega one pellets, or frozen/thawed brine shrimp, daphnia, and bloodworms.

good luck picking out a new betta! they're so much fun, especially when you have more than one. i have three at the moment. a celophane delta tail male named saltine, a blue/purple/red/white dumbo named elliott, and a pink crowntail female name nabisco. it's awesome to get so see how different all their personalities are and to find out what's their favorite snacks and games and things :)

[fluffycat6]

I added my saltwater tank’s first resident! A little cleaner shrimp. He’s so great, when I stick my hand in the tank he cleans it haha.

[TortillaT]

Heyyy so I was hoping for some advice? I have not owned any fish before so I am a little unsure but I've been trying to study and I am determined to give this fish a great life

I am getting a Betta fish from my friend who has just warned me that their fins are very torn, to the point they have difficulty swimming! I know that my friend does not use a filter or heat lamp with their fish, so I have already considered fin-rot due to the unhealthy water conditions. I am moving them into a filtered, conditioned basically just hopefully healthier environment lol so maybe their fins can get better (:

However, seeing the condition of their fins, I doubt there will be a full recovery, and I'm not sure their swimming will get much better. That's why I wanted advice on things i could do to make things easier, for example, should i keep very low plants and decorations so they wont have difficulty swimming through anything? I was planning a real plant tank but now i am reconsidering because i am not sure if that will be okay with the betta's swimming.

Advice on this and anything else i should consider would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

[delet---]

Heyyy so I was hoping for some advice? I have not owned any fish before so I am a little unsure but I've been trying to study and I am determined to give this fish a great life :twisted:

I am getting a Betta fish from my friend who has just warned me that their fins are very torn, to the point they have difficulty swimming! I know that my friend does not use a filter or heat lamp with their fish, so I have already considered fin-rot due to the unhealthy water conditions. I am moving them into a filtered, conditioned basically just hopefully healthier environment lol so maybe their fins can get better (:

However, seeing the condition of their fins, I doubt there will be a full recovery, and I'm not sure their swimming will get much better. That's why I wanted advice on things i could do to make things easier, for example, should i keep very low plants and decorations so they wont have difficulty swimming through anything? I was planning a real plant tank but now i am reconsidering because i am not sure if that will be okay with the betta's swimming.

Advice on this and anything else i should consider would be greatly appreciated! :D Thank you!

generally speaking, torn fins will actually make a long-finned befta's swimming better, as they aren't weighed down by the heavy finnage. i would imagine the slow or awkward swimming habits are due to ammonia poisoning or cold water. live plants are an excellent choice for bettas, and the more the merrier! as for treatment, the best method for fin rot is warm water (approx 82°F, an adjustable heater is an absolute must) and pristine water conditions, so water changes every 1-3 days. you can likely fix the fin rot with just this method, but if you continue to have trouble after about 6 weeks, i would recommend a salt or paraguard dip. if you have any more questions feel free to pm me, or if you have discord, add me @ cadet kippy#2734

source: i have been keeping bettas for a good while, i currently have 3, and i'm very active in groups with extremely experienced betta keepers who have been in the game for 5+ years :)