Midas come home.
- Thread starter izzy_here
- Start date
Thanks, I really like it alot but I'd rather have a more traditional set-up for him, he's just too big for the current gallonage. He seems ok but I feel bad....soon as my floors get fixed (should be very soon) it's getting filled to the brim!
Theoretically the gallons/surface area should be adequate for a fish his size...but when I had him before I kept him in a 90gal. No matter what the surface area is, 30gals is just a joke imo... I talked extensively with the person that will be fixing my floors, after checking them pretty thoroughly he suggested an idea I'd already been tossing around. Make a stand with a larger footprint than the tank. That would distribute the weight over a larger area and would thus (hopefully) be much safer. Its a 60gal tank, the footprint is 12 x 48, same as a standard 55gal only taller. Mr. fixit seems to think the issue is that the tank might tip because 1. the floors have too much give 2. My stand is an old rickity, rusty p.o.s. He didn't think the floor would give way just because the tank was completely filled. And also said if the stand was square, and solid enough, that there shouldn't be any problem.
I had forgotten how funny some larger fish can be when moved around... Since I brought him home he's been spending a lot of time watching us from behind the terra cotta pieces. Only coming out occasionally to make sure no one was in his territory. The last 2-3 days now he's been acting much closer to normal, he seems much more settled in now. Especially after yesterday's w/c, he (finally!) attacked the siphon hose when it was placed near his cave & after I was done he became more like the fish I remember. He's all over the tank now, rarely sitting in his cave during daylight hours, he seems to always have something that needs doing. I'm so glad to see this, over the next week or so I'll be doing everything I can to improve his new home. New tank stand, gravel, filling the tank all the way, maybe some more plants/rock work, also getting him an skkp mate! Gravel is the first order to be filled, he's so darn smart, any type of enrichment can only be a good thing. Not knocking those who keep bare bottom tanks, hell I've kept several myself. But he needs something to do besides trying to tear the golden lloydiella out of the pot, lol! Pretty sure some gravel to pick at would keep him at least a little more occupied & hopefully help prevent boredom. I'll be sure to update with pics as I improve.
he/ she is very small for a 2 year old male, i'd guess it were female if im honest mate. i have a female midas thats a year old and 9inch my male is 2 and pushing eleven inch, unless he is a he and a lot younger than you think, maybe he's a relative of your old fish offspring maybe thus having similar trates... either way its a very nice fish. p.s i have a 300g tank on a joist floor in a 100 yr old house!
Not female, you can clearly see his (backward pointing, non-trigger shaped...I've been sexing fish a few years now
) tube. As for being my old males offspring I highly doubt it, if you read the thread from the beginning I had some pretty hard evidence. Very particular traits that are unlikely to express identically in fry. When you re-read the first post take a look at the pics very closely, his eyes are overly large for a fish his size...a sure sign of stunting
) tube. As for being my old males offspring I highly doubt it, if you read the thread from the beginning I had some pretty hard evidence. Very particular traits that are unlikely to express identically in fry. When you re-read the first post take a look at the pics very closely, his eyes are overly large for a fish his size...a sure sign of stuntingThe age I gave was just a guesstimate, I don't know exactly how old he is. And to reiterate, he is stunted.
And this, if I had been wrong about him being the same fish, I'm not so sure he would have offspring 9in long, he sat at the lfs for a further 2 months after I traded him in. Offspring that big in less than a year? I suppose it's possible, just not likely.
And this, if I had been wrong about him being the same fish, I'm not so sure he would have offspring 9in long, he sat at the lfs for a further 2 months after I traded him in. Offspring that big in less than a year? I suppose it's possible, just not likely.
I really wish I'd been the one to raise this fish from a fry. Today I got a more accurate measurement of him, he's more like 7 1/2 to 8in. Thats exactly the same size he was a year ago when I first purchased him, pics don't lie..I'm still fairly certain it's the same fish. A slightly curling ventral fin on the same side? A slightly off center jaw line also to the same side? The one thing I do question is his genetic purity, I know for fact the same lfs sold midas/RD X parrot as Midas. Again, in a small town where the nearest petshop besides the lfs is 45 mins away, the odds are likely this fish came from the lfs in the first place. Several batches of midas X parrot of varying size were traded in from a local aquarist. over a period of several months. I'll never know for sure, his body shape, & size of his eyes in relation to his body, suggests not only stunting, but perhaps some degree of SB gene in the mix. The good news is I found what appears to be a pure red terror female at the lfs today. He tattered her a little before I could put in a divider, but it seems she didn't take much offense. She's already interacting with him through the glass & exhibiting color much brighter than the drab non-breeding colors she showed when first introduced. Can't wait 'til she comes into full breeding dress. First things first, melafix, salt, bump the heat up, etc. New stand and full to the brim tank are coming next week, for now the setup as is makes a wonderful intro tank for them. Pics as soon as she looks a little better.
Aaaaand then the landlord saw the tank, I was informed in no uncertain terms "that tank must be drained, you may only set up a small tank even after the floors are fixed!"
I lobbied for the same set-up with less water and permission was granted, unfortunately that means no more large fish. I'm only allowed 20 gallons, either in an actual 20gal tank, or in the existing set-up....I took the Midas & Red terror back to the lfs yesterday. And of course yesterday morning the RT had just started displaying to the Midas through the glass divider. Nothing else I could do...pretty sure if I had kept either one (or both) in 20 gallons, I'd be going to hell...or at least I'd feel like I should.
I lobbied for the same set-up with less water and permission was granted, unfortunately that means no more large fish. I'm only allowed 20 gallons, either in an actual 20gal tank, or in the existing set-up....I took the Midas & Red terror back to the lfs yesterday. And of course yesterday morning the RT had just started displaying to the Midas through the glass divider. Nothing else I could do...pretty sure if I had kept either one (or both) in 20 gallons, I'd be going to hell...or at least I'd feel like I should.
