This page is dedicated to the care & keeping of Aquatic life. Primarily freshwater fish (including pond fish), as I've never kept salt water tanks. Fish are a tremendous responsibility. Don't let this dissuade you, they are extremely rewarding as well. The rough thing is patients. Every Aquarist will tell you they impulse'd something that overstocked a tank, beat up or ate other fish, out grew the tank crazy quick, or had an illness & caused total tank death or wide spread illness. 

As you can see from the photos I've had a lot of fish, all my tanks have been fresh water, but I've had everything form 5 gallon to 125 gallon. I've kept every thing form neon tetras to Koi. I also have bought a fish "I just had to have", that wiped out an entire tank of Koi. Fish keeping can be very frustrating especially when your fish are dying off.

 

7/22/2022

After having freshwater tanks for years (& yes I made a few of the above mentioned mistakes in the beginning) the one thing I would tell a new Aquarist is DO YOUR RESEARCH!! on the fish you want, the place your getting them, how to tell fish are ill, when to use what product & when to freak out...

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My personal Aquarist journey started when a roommate abandoned their tank in the basement (with fish in it) I found it 4 months later with live fish! Nearly half the water was gone the filter was barely running & most definitely not filtering anything! Well I couldn't let these animals suffer any longer so I took action. 

Out to the store for a new filter, water conditioner, fish food. Many water changes later only 1 of the 5 fish had died. I rehomed 1 angelfish (a friend knew someone that wanted it) & kept the molly & 2 plecos. After a few discussions with my Boyfriend we decided we'd go find me a fish I wanted. Turns out I like "monster fish", these are fish that at the store are only an inch or so but will grow to be a foot or more. 

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Like I said in the beginning we all make mistakes. I had gotten two beautiful Koi (told you I liked big fish), we got a 125g tank & a Shubunkin when a friend moved & no longer had room for the tank. So with the extra room i decided to get extra fish. Impulsively, I bought 3 new 3 inch Koi with in 2 weeks all 5 Koi had died. One of the new Koi had a disease called Koi pox. Unfortunately, Koi pox is fatal but only to Koi, so the Shubunkin, 2 Plecos & 4 Mollys we had at the time survived. Live & learn. 

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After a few months my daughter & boyfriend talked me into getting more Koi. That was nearly 2 years ago 

the "new" set are healthy & thriving in the 125g. Now, that you know the story lest talk about how i keep Koi a largely known pond fish indoors. 

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1st I only have 2 fish. Now while they were small (2-3 inches) that was very underwhelming, but now that they are 12 -14 inches & growing. It's actually a very nice balance. Most ponds you'll find are 1,000g with around 25 fish. Lets do that math 1,000g / 25 fish = 40g/fish now lets look at my tank 125g /2 fish=62.5g/fish so in effect my fish have a few more gallons/fish than a standard pond Koi would, but they don't have to hide from predators, I see them daily, interact with them daily, they have tank enrichment (fake plants & decor to swim through & around.) I can keep a close eye on the water quality & they're eating habits.

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7/25/2022

Impulse control is a very important thing. While out getting feeder food for our reptiles today I was in a small fish/pet store. This store will take in fish that people can no longer care for due to tank size or moving or whatever & they resell these older fish. Like I said I love "monster" fish. The Bala (Tri Colored shark) & Arawana are 2 of my absolute favorites! On top of that they had a few of my favorite pleco's the Panaque. Now if you're new to fish the Silver Arowana is the only Arowana legal in the U.S. These fish will grow to 3 feet long in captivity! & much larger in the wild! Now I know I have no room for this Freshwater mammoth fish, but the little babies I was looking at were only about 6 inches. So you can see were it would be very tempting to bring home one of those cuties. On top of that they had a 5 inch Bala that someone had brought in a few weeks ago because it outgrew their tank & they couldn't upgrade. At a low $40 I was very

tempted to snatch that beauty up, but wait didn't we already go over

impulse mistakes. I don't have a quarantine tank set up (but i'm setting it

up), & putting a new fish into my established tanks could cause problems.

In the end i was able to refrain form bringing home the Bala & a Panaque

pleco but I will be going back in a few days to get it when I have a

quarantine tank set up for their de-worming & 4 week health quarantine.​

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Lets talk about the term Quarantine Tank. It's exactly what it sounds like a small (10-20 gallon) tank, for keeping new fish separate from established larger tanks for a period of 2-4 weeks. During this time you can de-worm, medicate, watch for signs of illness, establish what food the fish likes, how well its eating. These are just "bare bottom" tanks with maybe a few fake plants, & a hide, but no gravel or sand & a moderate hang on back (HOB) filter. This is helpful for a lot of reasons, 1st being treating a 10-20 gallon tank with medication is much cheaper then treating a 50g, 75g, or even a 125g as most medication are done in increments of 10 gallons water per  packet of treatment or 5ml liquid per 10 gallons of water.