Hey all! There have been a few changes – good and bad – over recent months. Sorry for the delay!
Bad News
On the down side, I have lost quite a few fish, mainly after unwisely purchasing a Siamese Fighting Fish / Betta male from Pets at Home. The second day after his introduction to the tank the female was dead, a couple of days later the new male was dead. Then White Spot was evident on many of the fish. I medicined the tank (details in a future post); some died, some recovered. Mr C the male Dwarf Cichlid was very spotty and has lived to tell the tale. So too was Stephen the male Bristlenose, but he is healthy and bristling nicely.
Good News
Current (happy and healthy) inmates are as follows:
Scissor-tail Rasbora x 5 Rasbora trilineata
Platy x 1 female Xiphophorus variatus
Pam
Bristlenose Catfish x 2 male and female Ancistrus temminckii
Nancy and Stephen
Dwarf Gourami x 1 female Colisa lalia
Betty Too
Sterbas Corydora x 3 Corydorus sterbai
Dwarf Cichlid x 1 male Apistogramma borelli
Mr C or Grump
Upside Down Catfish x 2 Synodontis nigriventris
Clown Loach x 5 Botia macracantha
Shrimp x 3
Apple snail x 2
Zebra snail x 1
Future Fish
I’m planning on buying some more fish friends in the new year and I’m considering a group of Pearl Gourami Trichogaster leeri and a group of Dwarf Flag Cichlids Laetacara curviceps.. I’m still enjoying the decision making process!
aquariumsetup 
Looking good despite the hardships. It’s looking better than mine right now. I’ve been keeping two fairly large goldfish in mine which aren’t good for planted tanks. But as soon as I move them to the pond I can populate the tank with small fish and let the plants grow out.
Yes, it is still fun despite recent fish loss and they have been doing really well lately. I presume the goldfish munch on the plants so I like your idea of replacing them with tiddlers when they move to the pond. Happy Christmas and new year!
May I make a few suggestions. This is based on years of experience not what I have just read in books.
Set up what is called a hospital tank. Put your new fish in this tank for at least 2 weeks before adding to your tank. It reduces the risk of ich.
Do not get the Pearls. They will grow too large for your tank. The clown loachs alone will grown up to 8 inches each. The lovely surprise snails come from plants and or the fish waste. If you can see them you have a lot more then you know off. Clown loaches will eat snails but there are a few kinds were the shell is too hard. You may want to move your apple snails out as there is a risk they will become food.
Your tank looks great. Much cleaner then mine ATM. 🙂
Hi, thanks for your advice, it’s always good to hear about other’s experiences as I read so much conflicting information. I am considering the hospital tank. I had a very small one of about 11gallons but whatever I put in it always died so I would start again with a new larger tank! The infestation of mini snails is gone now and the apple snails are holding their own and are much larger than the clowns for now so all is ok. Thanks!
If you set up the hospital tank make sure you fill it with the “old” water from your regular tank. This will reduce your cycling time to less then 4 weeks. Do not add any more fish to your tank until it is stable. You may be adding more fish then your filter can handle.
I suggest you no longer buy your fish at the same place. I have only had ich once. It’s due to the fish you are getting not by your care of them. At one point in time I had 22 tanks. (I breed fish for stores). If your fish do not last more then a few weeks there is a large issue with your supplier.
Hi, thanks so much for your advice I really appreciate it. What is the minimum size you’d advise for a hospital/quarantine tank? I would like to buy a new one. I definitely won’t buy from Pets at Home again and have recently found a new supplier (Amazon Aquatics) who are reputable and the clown loaches bought from them are doing really well. Do you still breed fish?
Yes I still breed fish although its only 2 kinds now. A guppy endler-live bearer hi-breed and gold stripped maroon clown fish.
As for the size of the hospital tank, you can get away with something as small as a 2.5 gallon tank. Just something big enough that the fish can turn around in. Its only for a few weeks. You don’t need to put any decorations or gravel in. A bare tank is fine.
You really should wait more then a month for your tank to settle down before adding anything else. The last time I lost a fish was about 6 years ago and that turned out to be something going through all salt water tanks at the time. A lot of people that I knew lost their whole tanks.
Thanks, I will buy a quarantine tank, set it up and find the patience to wait to buy new fish. It is tempting but I want the tank to be healthy so thanks for the pep talk! It is interesting that you have freshwater and marine fish for breeding; you must have found your niche. That is something I aspire to and I appreciate your advice. Thanks for taking the time, I get so much conflicting and impersonal info from the internet in general.