New to the hobby, need assistance

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
After sorting all about the recovering, all those fish cant go in the small ~ 125g 4 foot tank. Too many and all will grow large.
Was told the aro doesnt grow, this is from the previous owne hence the reason why i bought it. He was raising it in a 6ft tank and after 2 years it didn't grow a bit.. For whatever reason if it starts growing, i will have to sell it or put it up for adoption.. Upgrading tank size is currently not an option for me and for years to come..

Welcome to the forum!
How much meds were put in the tank? Turning water green doesn’t sound normal to me.
A torn fin is typically due to aggression and heals up on its own pretty fast.
For the Triple Gold, i put dosage as told by my fren. As for the SKN S1, i put 1/10 of what was recommended. If i were to put the recommended dosage the water is going to be like really really green like goo.. A single drop of the triple gold is sufficient to turn the whole tank (200L) green.. the color shown in the picture above is 24hrs later where the color has faded..
 
Was told the aro doesnt grow, this is from the previous owne hence the reason why i bought it. He was raising it in a 6ft tank and after 2 years it didn't grow a bit.. For whatever reason if it starts growing, i will have to sell it or put it up for adoption.. Upgrading tank size is currently not an option for me and for years to come..


For the Triple Gold, i put dosage as told by my fren. As for the SKN S1, i put 1/10 of what was recommended. If i were to put the recommended dosage the water is going to be like really really green like goo.. A single drop of the triple gold is sufficient to turn the whole tank (200L) green.. the color shown in the picture above is 24hrs later where the color has faded..
That’s weird about the meds - I haven’t heard of any like that.

Your friend either lied or gave you a very unhealthy, stunted arowana.
This species can easily hit 2 feet, but being held in improper conditions for too long will have major consequences, including smaller adult size (which directly leads to premature death).
 
That’s weird about the meds - I haven’t heard of any like that.

Your friend either lied or gave you a very unhealthy, stunted arowana.
This species can easily hit 2 feet, but being held in improper conditions for too long will have major consequences, including smaller adult size (which directly leads to premature death).

He's not actually my friend, he is a friend of my friend. He runs a fish store and has many aros so i believe he knew how to take care aros? He didnt seemed like spouting nonsense and i do believe he has sufficient knowledge in raising an aro.. but regarding how honest was he when telling me about the fish.. i have 0 clues.. i really couldnt tell if there were any hidden agenda.. all the told me that this fish is sick, and i asked him what's wrong with the fish? The fish won't grow then proceed with his 6ft 2 years story =P

As for the meds, i have no clue as well since im new to this hobby. But i have seen green water in our local fish stores as well, and i asked why is the water green and the tank covered on all sides? The worker told me that the fish is on medication..

Also, because of the anal fin getting ripped off i googled a lot and came by this rotting fin disease. I wonder if it's suffering rotting fin?
 
Just looks like lots of bites to me, but fin rot is possible. A lot can cause ragged looking fins.
 
This is a short video of my aro

I see the problem, the fin just got torn off. Happened to mine b4. Would eventually grow back, I don’t know why you added so much medication, probably made water quality worse. The arowana doesn’t look stunted, your friend’s friend who owns the fish store probably sold it to you saying it will forever stay 9” to earn a quick buck.
let’s be logical; which aquarium owner is not able to sell that arowana over a span of 2 years??

you say that arowana is a blue based crossback, looks like the cheaper variant to me, The redtail golden arowana instead. Did he even give you a certificate to confirm it’s identity? Could be the reason why he sold you cheaper…
 
That’s not rotting, that’s an anal fin someone has cut off with scissors to remove a section that may have been damaged previously.

Green meds like that usually indicate malachite green ( don’t know for sure that’s what it is yet) which quickly and easily dies the water. You should also see it fade in a day or so.

A shop keeper should give more information on diet, health, water, etc. etc. sounds like this friend of a friend shouldn’t be used again and would not be high on my list.

It’s good of you to take on the fish but you need to learn more about keeping fish, the ones you have and the ones you want, before you get them going forewords and use this as your opportunity.

And of course, welcome aboard, you will find lots of good info here and people willing to help.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Deadeye
Just looks like lots of bites to me, but fin rot is possible. A lot can cause ragged looking fins.

What are the symptoms of a definite fin rot? I will monitor closely

I see the problem, the fin just got torn off. Happened to mine b4. Would eventually grow back, I don’t know why you added so much medication, probably made water quality worse. The arowana doesn’t look stunted, your friend’s friend who owns the fish store probably sold it to you saying it will forever stay 9” to earn a quick buck.
let’s be logical; which aquarium owner is not able to sell that arowana over a span of 2 years??

you say that arowana is a blue based crossback, looks like the cheaper variant to me, The redtail golden arowana instead. Did he even give you a certificate to confirm it’s identity? Could be the reason why he sold you cheaper…

The medication dosage I applied was 1/10th of the recommend dosage. The water just came out that green. Is there any particular reason why would the anal suddenly gets cut off and dangling like that? My tank has 0 decorations.

Our speculation was that he failed to sell the fish so he brought home instead later found out it won't grow so he put the fish back to his store. Covid regulations and lockdown, mco(movement control order) was pretty strict here in Malaysia for the past few years.

I said I was told the aro is a blue based not cross back blue based. Actually he didn't even tell me about it. I saw what he wrote on the receipt instead. ? No certificate or whatsoever was given to me.

That’s not rotting, that’s an anal fin someone has cut off with scissors to remove a section that may have been damaged previously.

Green meds like that usually indicate malachite green ( don’t know for sure that’s what it is yet) which quickly and easily dies the water. You should also see it fade in a day or so.

A shop keeper should give more information on diet, health, water, etc. etc. sounds like this friend of a friend shouldn’t be used again and would not be high on my list.

It’s good of you to take on the fish but you need to learn more about keeping fish, the ones you have and the ones you want, before you get them going forewords and use this as your opportunity.

And of course, welcome aboard, you will find lots of good info here and people willing to help.

Not sure if it was purposely cut off, but if it was aren't they suppose to remove the part where they cut instead leaving it there dangling?

Yes the water faded the next day, the water shown in the video is after the color faded. Water was a lot more green the day before.

Definitely will not use that guy anymore. Plus he has an attitude which I don't really like..

I am actually learning from my friend (the guy who introduced me to the seller) and getting advice from him. But the problem is, ppl here raise aro the "Kampung" style aka "village" style which literally means they don't do proper nitrogen cycle, nor do they test the water parameters etc and etc.. For example, just like how my grandma would trust her own remedy than modern medication but somehow you're cured and still alive.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Fishman Dave
So should i continue with the medication? Or should I just stop?

Should I raise the water level back? Or should just keep it at where it is right now? Or do I need to lower it further?

Any kind of assistance and guidance is much appreciated.

Many thanks to those who have showed concern as well as the welcomes.. I know my decision to pick up the aro was hasty nor was I expected that it be on recovery mode since day 1, but since the aro has already been brought home I wish i can provide the best care I could for it while learning.. Thanks

P/s: I read starving the aro helps with the recovery. Is this true?
 
MonsterFishKeepers.com