[swiftnfurious]

Originally Posted by Born 2 Be Wild

Now the thing is over the past 2 weeks he has gotten aggressive and scared a couple of customers

Did he scare the same customers multiple times? Or just anyone random? I guess when he goes aggressive, you need to be strict & firm [as mentioned by some one on the above posts]. Talk to him & raise the voice if he doesn't calm down. You also will need to show a superior body language when dealing in such cases. If you could grab & watch "The dog whisperer" from NatGeo, there is a lot to learn.

FYI, I am newbie when it comes to training dogs, just my two cents.

[pat]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

It can be done. My late mother's dog was found a new home when she died.

In fact, she got it through an organisation specialising in finding homes for just such animals, and finding them new homes when that became sadly necessary. Good people, and they knew what they were doing.

All options should be explored before an animal is killed. Hats off to anyone who is prepared to adopt an animal that is certainly going to bring them problems and vets' bills; they must be an angel. If angel, then the dog will probably settle with them.

Originally Posted by vamsi.kona

I second that opinion. The emotional suffering that the poor fellow undergoes can be more painful than the physical ailment.

Originally Posted by shankar.balan

Giving away an old and frail pet is a criminal thing to do. Better to put the poor thing down because if the dog is given away at this late stage it will only cause terrible suffering and feelings of abandonment. This is most definitely NOT on!

Thanks for all your replies.

I heard from the lady that dog has been given away for the foster care. Sorry I do not have details around it.

The lady loved her pet and had to take this hard decision owing to harsh realities of the life.

[abdriver2000]

Ariesonu, Archat68, Avimal: Thank you all for your responses and the links. Those were very helpful suggestions. Will kickstart the project over the weekend.

[RajeswaranK7]

@abdriver

archat68 has pointed you in the right direction. You go to the site, it has a huge amount of information for beginners like you. You can learn a lot from other's experiences over there. I have added a few points from my experience for you below. You can also refer to my post in the same thread here http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2404606

Originally Posted by abdriver2000

I have a tiny aquarium about 12 x 6 inches wide and 18 inches in height. What are best fishes suited for this tank and how many. I have experimented with anywhere from 2 to 8 fishes and had mixed results. I have had goldfish, angels, kois, goramis, neon tetras, guppies, redcaps, baby sharks and others (not all together) and the survival rate has been anywhere from 2 weeks to 10 months. - With the small tank your choice of fishes is very limitted like guppies, but again a lot can be done on mini aquariums. don't scucumb to impulse buying, choose your fish properly, read about it beforehand, get to know its requirements and how big it can grow before bringing it home. It will avoid lot of bad feelings later.

Currently my tank is not in use from last 3 months, but I want to restart it since my kids are very keen on it. What is the most maintenance-free fish to keep in this small setup? The tank is clear glass with a layer of pebbles at the bottom. It holds about 30 litres of water and has oxygen running 24 x 7. No ornaments, heaters, lighting etc. - This is right, you should run the airpump 24X7 never switch off the airpump or filter at any point of time. I see that there is no mention about filter anywhere, do you have a filter, if not you can get a small hangon filter to save the tank space, but If you really want to restart, I would suggest a bigger tank as it will give you more options in terms of fishes, scapes and help you have a better margin of survival for the fishes when you error out.

I change the whole water about once a month and add chlorine about 10 drops at that time. - Never change the whole water, change half of it and add the water to the existing water column. About chlorine, we guys aerate the water for a few days to get rid of its chlorine/any chemical content as it will mostly kill or damage the fishes and the beneficial bacteria in the tank. This process is called ageing. Never add any chemicals to your tank, if your fish is sick, seperate it and then hose it in a tank or a tub with proper aeration and medicate it there. after Feed is usually dried worms. Looks like I am not able to build a sustainable eco-system for the long run, and hence the fish die out quickly. - Everybody learns like that, it good that you haven't lost the interest, most people would have left the hobby by then, you just need to know the right thing to do.

Any suggestions on how to keep them healthy for atleast 4-6 months? My daughter gets very upset whenever we lose a fish. Besides the superstition that the fish took some bad omen on itself instead of the family!

Warning:
Stay clear of some bad advice that is floating around by people who really don't know what they are talking about.
Whatever you do, cross check with the material available from trusted forums like IAH, wetwebmedia and then go about trying them out.

My best wishes for a happy fishkeeping.

[archat68]

@RajeswaranK7 that's some good advice.
@abdriver go to IAH and read - it is a great forum and don't buy anything (specially fishes) till you get an idea about what to do.

[zimbly]

thats my little mutt - dino, he's a cairn terrier and a real handful. but i love him to no end and there is nothing more inviting than seeing him all eager to greet you when u get back home.

[abdriver2000]

Thanks guys, read a lot on IAH whole of today. Of the small fishes, which one has the most longevity? I read about neon tetras living for upto 5 years if kept in a shoal of 6 to 10 fishes.

[archat68]

Originally Posted by abdriver2000

Thanks guys, read a lot on IAH whole of today. Of the small fishes, which one has the most longevity? I read about neon tetras living for upto 5 years if kept in a shoal of 6 to 10 fishes.

The hardiest small fish would be any live-bearers such as guppies, mollies etc. Not very choosy to water condition. Add some non-iodised salt (1Tsp per gallon) and they will be happy. Buy about 6 male guppies to start with. Also see if you can add some actual water plants. Amazons are very easy to grow. The fishes and the plants will help to culture the tank quickly. But according to tank size if go for goldfish , 2 is enough. They produce a lot of waste :( . Goldfish is not advisable as starter fish.

Best will be small fishes, Start with guppies, mollies etc and when you are confident and see no fish deaths move on to tetras. Do not introduce lots of fishes at once.

Do not add any medicine to the tank (blue/ green or yellow). These will harm your tank ecosystem by killing the friendly bacteria that you cultured. If your water contains too much chlorine either aerate it or add some crystals of sodium thiosulphate or hypo to the water. Do not change water more than 50% at a time for first few months (do it weekly).

Try to feed either good quality dry foods or live earthworm - not the red worm that is available with LFS. They are procured from drains and may carry a lot disease. Dried worms have little or no nutritive value. Feed in small quantity. Uneaten food in tank will spoil the water quality quickly. When in doubt feed less - no harm. Or you can make some homemade foods if you are really into the hobby. Recipes are there on IAH.

With Guppies or Tetras and some live plants you don't need any filter right away.

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by abdriver2000

Thanks guys, read a lot on IAH whole of today. Of the small fishes, which one has the most longevity? I read about neon tetras living for upto 5 years if kept in a shoal of 6 to 10 fishes.

I would suggest Zebra Danios also. They are one of the hardiest shoaling small fish I have ever seen, plus they are harmless and do not trouble other fish. Neon tetras are also hardy and do well in small shoals of upto 8-10. Take care not to add natural predators of the Neon tetras i.e the Angel fish. Many people make this common mistake and then suddenly wake up to find missing fish every morning. If buying Neons, make sure you have dim neon lighting to best show their colors. Also ensure you have a proper Amazon river - type thick vegetation setup in the aquarium. Best companions for neons would be other tetra shoals like black widow tetras, hockey-stick tetras (also called penguin tetras) and serpae tetras. Most tetras have a lifespan of around 3-5 years in captivity. If you want long living hardy fish, I would recommend gouramis for you - some noted examples are honey gouramis, blue gouramis, neon dwarf gouramis and pearl gouramis. Only downside is they might get a little big after a few years. Pearl gouramis are one of the most non-interfering, docile fish I have ever seen. I have had 1 particular pearl living with me for almost 7-8 years. A point to remember - since gouramis are from thailand and tetras are from amazon river, do not attempt to combine the 2 varieties ever. They have slightly different requirements.

I partially agree with archat18, but for some points which I would like to bring -

- livebearers will breed like rats and multiply within a short span of time, so you have to be ready for that increase in population.

- dried worms aren't necessarily less in nutrition. Freeze dried worms (especially bloodworms) are as nutritious as live ones. Also note that live worms carry the risk of spreading parasites and this is not a small matter to deal with, once it enters the aquarium. I would not recommend live worms at all, unless you are dead sure of where the worms are being cultured and sold, as in a known place.

- I would recommend any beginner to start out with a filter right from day 1. Plants do not provide the necessary amount of filtration for a well populated aquarium. Ammonia and nitrite levels would soon surge beyond control and cause a black friday, leaving the owner wondering what went wrong. Best option would be to get a small filter - go for the Dolphin filter series with activated carbon and sponge layers. Once in 3-4 days, you can just remove the filter's sponge box and clean it under tap water to remove the garbage collected in it. Hardly takes 5 minutes

P.S - what is the aquarium size you have right now?

[RajeswaranK7]

@Karthik
You are tempting me back into planted aquariums :-).
abdriver has a small tank as mentioned in his post, 12 x 6 X 18 inches L X W X H. Unless he plans for a larger tank, his choice of fishes are very limitted.

Just one correction in the filter cleaning method. The sponge or the media that is in the filter accumulates muck which also serves as the base for the benificial bacterial colony to thrive on. So when we clean the filter it is important not to wash this muck completely, we need to just squeze it lightly in the dirty or old water that is taken out from the tank, such that only some of the much is washed away. If we wash it directly using the tap water, it might wipe out the entire bacterial colony that is built during the cycling process and would result in your tank cycling again. There is also some amount of benificial bacteria present in the water, ornaments, gravel present in the tank. So when you clean the filter it is essential to leave atleast 1/4th of the old water to remain in the tank, so that the beneficial bacteria can thrive again.

[_raVan_]

Originally Posted by ariesonu

Pls feel free for any queries & I'll try to reply to my best.

I have a basic aquarium with around 12 (Gorami, Koi, Tiger(?) Shark, Angel and Sucker) fishes in it. The tank is around 3' * 1.5' * 1'. I have a good filter and oxygen supply is constant in it. The ecosystem has been *touchwood* working fine till now.

I wish to add plants in it. I dont have a good fertile sandbed, its just basic stony gravel. I heard that we can keep the live plant attached to a submerged wood or something and it will remain alive. Can you shed some light on it? Also, will Black Ghost be good in this tank? Will it cause trouble for the existing ones in it?

[KarthikK]

Originally Posted by RajeswaranK7

@Karthik
You are tempting me back into planted aquariums :-).
abdriver has a small tank as mentioned in his post, 12 x 6 X 18 inches L X W X H. Unless he plans for a larger tank, his choice of fishes are very limitted.

Just one correction in the filter cleaning method. The sponge or the media that is in the filter accumulates muck which also serves as the base for the benificial bacterial colony to thrive on. So when we clean the filter it is important not to wash this muck completely, we need to just squeze it lightly in the dirty or old water that is taken out from the tank, such that only some of the much is washed away. If we wash it directly using the tap water, it might wipe out the entire bacterial colony that is built during the cycling process and would result in your tank cycling again. There is also some amount of benificial bacteria present in the water, ornaments, gravel present in the tank. So when you clean the filter it is essential to leave atleast 1/4th of the old water to remain in the tank, so that the beneficial bacteria can thrive again.

Yes. I forgot to mention this in my previous post. Thanks for bringing this up Once a week, only 25-30% of water should be replaced with fresh water. The sides of the walls usually accumulate algae there, and these can be scrubbed with an old toothbrush. A common mistake many people make is doing a complete overhaul of dismantling and cleaning everything under the pretext of cleaning. The beneficial colonies are completely lost and th aquarium is vulnerable to another 'black friday'.

Originally Posted by _raVan_

I have a basic aquarium with around 12 (Gorami, Koi, Tiger(?) Shark, Angel and Sucker) fishes in it. The tank is around 3' * 1.5' * 1'. I have a good filter and oxygen supply is constant in it. The ecosystem has been *touchwood* working fine till now.

Your aquarium is hereby declared to be overcrowded .
Another issue here is combination of amazon river species and thailand species (gouramis and sharks)
By "tiger shark" do you mean Iridescent shark or Bala shark? Both of them grow to quite huge sizes. In fact, all of the fish you have right now will grow to enormous proportions in a while. Which gouramis do you have by the way?

I wish to add plants in it. I dont have a good fertile sandbed, its just basic stony gravel. I heard that we can keep the live plant attached to a submerged wood or something and it will remain alive. Can you shed some light on it?

Some plants feed on decaying bogwood but without a substrate, the roots will not spread out enough to allow the plant to grow freely. Nowadays you get plants which are pre-planted in pots of soil. You can just place the pots wherever you want and conceal the pots with your existing stones. This way, you don't need to arrange for gravel/substrate. Best option in my opinion

Also, will Black Ghost be good in this tank? Will it cause trouble for the existing ones in it?

I have had Black Ghosts for years with no problems with other fish whatsoever. A bunch of things to note about the black ghost -

- its a bit sensitive to temperature and water condition changes. Take a little extra care there
- always combine it with only bigger sized fish. Anything smaller than the black ghost will become a midnight snack, 'Midnight' because the ghost is mainly a nocturnal fish.
- provide lots of bogwood and pebbles, and if possible a tunnel where it can hide during the day.
- black ghosts love tons of plants

[jp1]

Originally Posted by _raVan_

.....

I wish to add plants in it. I dont have a good fertile sandbed, its just basic stony gravel. I heard that we can keep the live plant attached to a submerged wood or something and it will remain alive. Can you shed some light on it? Also, will Black Ghost be good in this tank? Will it cause trouble for the existing ones in it?

Best option for plants is to keep it in a pot. You can get small mud pots (or even plastic) which you can fill with some mud/soil and top it with sand/gravel so that the mud wont escape into the water when you immerse the pot into the water. Pot the plant before you immerse the pot into the water. Potted plants are easy to maintain and live for ever. I have potted plants which are there in my aquarium for ages. Pots can be hidden by decorating it with stones

[ariesonu]

Originally Posted by _raVan_

I have a basic aquarium with around 12 (Gorami, Koi, Tiger(?) Shark, Angel and Sucker) fishes in it. The tank is around 3' * 1.5' * 1'. I have a good filter and oxygen supply is constant in it. The ecosystem has been *touchwood* working fine till now.

I wish to add plants in it. I dont have a good fertile sandbed, its just basic stony gravel. I heard that we can keep the live plant attached to a submerged wood or something and it will remain alive. Can you shed some light on it? Also, will Black Ghost be good in this tank? Will it cause trouble for the existing ones in it?

RajeshwaranK & KarthikK have given some very neat advice on fishkeeping & anyway IAH will give you everything you want to know about fishkeeping. I can vouch for it becaise I was moderator of that forum for some time.

Raab Rakha.

[nitin_80]

Originally Posted by _raVan_

Woah! I have seen the Alligator Gar in a local shop in Mumbai, thought that they would adjust along with Oscars, who are supposed to be the most aggressive of the lot. Which fishes do you have now? And with whom can Oscar co-exist with?

Post the pics of your turtle tank

Even we had the impression that the gar would co-exist peacefully with the oscars and sharks but things turned out differently. He outgrew the oscars in no time and is more than double their size now. They stand no chance against him.

Now we have 4 tin foils, 3 parrots, 2 kissing gouramis, 2 sharks, 2 cichlids, 3 suckers, 2 dolphin fishes, 2 angels (cant recollect the type but they are aggressive), 1 oscar, 2 pakku pirranhas. All of them are semi aggressive breeds and seem to be gelling along well.

Few things that we have learnt in the last 3 years of maintaining this 700 litre tank -

• Replace water (50%) at least once in 2 weeks.
• Clean filter once a week - external filters for big tanks are good, fishes get stressed if they are disturbed frequently for cleaning filter/ gravel/ stones etc.
• Keep a watch out for white/ black spots, fading skin, peeling skin on the fishes and remove them immediately from the tank and keep them separately in another one for recovery, else the other fishes might also get infected. There are many medical additives available for fungal infections in fishes.
• Keep the lights in the tank off during the night - even fishes need a stress free and calm environment to rest.
• Keep lots of hiding places for the fishes - especially new ones. They enjoy playing and also feel secure if they have to hide.
• Fish waste tends to accumulate underneath the stones and gravel. Even if it is not noticeable remove it from the tank as they release nitrates and phosphates which can be harmful.
• Always useful to keep 1 or 2 suckers in the tank, they keep cleaning the surface of plankton, algae etc.

The suckers and parrots are living with us for almost 2 years now.

Will surely click pics of the turtle tank this week.