I was going to say, "well it could have been worse", but on reflection, I don't think it could! Unless they were all in the same day!!!! That would go down as a bad day at the office, lol.
1000 Ways to Kill a Fish volume 1
- Thread starter Potato Patatto
- Start date
I was going to say, "well it could have been worse", but on reflection, I don't think it could! Unless they were all in the same day!!!! That would go down as a bad day at the office, lol.
I personally believe the #1 cause is uncovered tanks, think I've had more jumpers than any one other thing...
Forgot to close the lid on my fahaka’s tank and left a cube of bloodworms on the edge. Found him on the ground the next morning. Went and bought a new one the next day and when I was taking him out of the truck, his bag was quite light and had poked a hole in it and he had maybe 3 times his body size of water left in the bag. Rushed him inside to the tank. If I had killed a second puffer in 2 days there wasn’t going to be a third.
Not having completely sealed tops on my bichir tank almost cost me a fish twice. Now they’re duct taped in place and holes near tubes and lines covered right up. No more chances.
Not having completely sealed tops on my bichir tank almost cost me a fish twice. Now they’re duct taped in place and holes near tubes and lines covered right up. No more chances.
Man, this could be its own thread, even a sticky. My experience?:
Insufficient aeration/agitation/flow, I.E.: O2;
Adding a fantastic stone that turned out to be insufficiently cured concrete;
$#@!! SOB(s?) pouring beer in the tank;
Toxic plant cuttings resting in fish-storage tank (see above);
Hellgrammite tail came through & wrecked gills;
Ich;
Chlorine (spike) in public water;
Laziness in water-change schedule;
Freek-out with light or net resulting in stress and/or head-bonk into glass/decor;
etc...
So most are water-quality, some are stupidity & some are simply bad luck.
Some fatal, some not, some an indicator of something amiss & motivator to get off backside & set-right.
I’ve had two bichirs wiggle their way out of a window mesh screen that had a small slice on the frame for feeding etc, incredibly frustrating...
Re. jump-through gaps: Hot-Glue is brilliant stuff. Not terribly good at sticking to glass or un-roughened surfaces, but otherwise versatile, cheap & not toxic to fish (that I've experienced). Fantastic for gaps around hoses, loosens with a bit of kettle water. Can even make a mesh in situ like a hand-held 3D printer. Electric glue-gun, so be careful using above water - rubber-gloves and/or boots may be advisable.
UV-cure poly or epoxy resins are also good. Use a UV-torch to cure & it only takes a second, which means you can control timing to pull mosquito netting tight into exactly where you want it. It heats-up in curing, so watch where your fingers and/or spills are. Also not great sticking to glass, but give it a try - doesn't need that much roughness.
I keep american eel & silver arowana: One is super-sneaky, the other carries a punch. Touch-wood, we've not had a crusty-floor mortality in a few years... touch/knock wood.
UV-cure poly or epoxy resins are also good. Use a UV-torch to cure & it only takes a second, which means you can control timing to pull mosquito netting tight into exactly where you want it. It heats-up in curing, so watch where your fingers and/or spills are. Also not great sticking to glass, but give it a try - doesn't need that much roughness.
I keep american eel & silver arowana: One is super-sneaky, the other carries a punch. Touch-wood, we've not had a crusty-floor mortality in a few years... touch/knock wood.
Had a red belly piranha that was king of the tank one day and dead without a scratch on him the next. I didn’t do anything differently, nothing got in. He was right by the wall of the glass. My theory is the leporinus (who I thought was a goner) bit him in the back and he bolted headfirst into the wall, killing him instantly.
My biggest fail was adding fish to a non cycled tank. My convicts turned white and just looked like death. Ended up getting them back into a bigger tank and within days they've got their color back and are active again.
Learning how important it is to have a tank cycled is THE one most important part of fish keeping, imo.
Learning how important it is to have a tank cycled is THE one most important part of fish keeping, imo.
