(posted this in my blog tonight, thought I would share)
My fish are idiots.
I spent the evening doing water changes on my 120, 55, 10 and desktop aquariums. All my fish are friendly and hand-fed...even my bubble-eyed goldfish is hand-fed, which is neat. I enjoy interacting with them and seeing them react to me with such...enthusiasm. In other words, they think I'm food.
However, when it comes to tank-cleaning, this works against me a bit. They are uber-curious, about everything. I have a very-very-long python I use for water changes and I couldn't recall where I put the fish saver plastic guard that snaps on the end to well, save the fish from being sucked up the tube.
I decided if I just watched them, it would be fine. This was working out quite well, except for the fact that Dwarf Puffers are practically microscopic and insanely curious about everything. After flicking them away from the tube numerous times with near-suck-up-misses (with zero hopes of recovery if they DID get sucked up, seeing they are the size of peas), I finally gave up, stopped the flow and went in search for the fish saver.
Little creeps.
Finally found the fish saver stuck in some random junk drawer. Next was the 120. The parrots are too big to fit up the tube, so despite their curiosity, the worst that can happen is them getting suctioned TO the tube, which, granted, would suck. The fish saver adapter is kind of crappy and pops off easily, which is why I rarely use it. I put the tube in the tank and immediately a gazillion fish are gathered around it with dopey OH LOOK SHINY OBJECT looks on their faces (well, actually, I think they always look like that, but anyhow...). Shamu the Black Ghost Knifefish in particular is curious and while the others quickly lost interest seeing how OH LOOK SHINY OBJECT was indeed, not food...Shamu kept swimming around it and ramming into it. He seemed to sense there lay unbelievable adventure beyound that pokey grate thing.
Sure enough, off pops the fish saver and Shamu promptly dives headfirst into the tube and starts his merry journey to the land otherwise known as The Kitchen Sink Drain.
ARGH!!!!!!
Luckily, I have two pythons attached to each other by means of a plastic connector thingy, which means at one point the tube narrows quite a bit. Also luckily, BGK's are like, the only fish in existence that can swim backwards as well as forward. Shamu, unfazed by this fast-becoming-not-so-awesome adventure, gets to the point where the two pythons meet, realizes his escape route kinda sucks, and swims backwards alllllll the way back into the tank, only giving me a mild heart attack in the process. He, on the other hand, is just fine.
I love my fish....I love my fish...
Little bastards.
Lesson of the day? There is a reason why they recommend some sort of screening on the end of pythons.
My fish are idiots.
I spent the evening doing water changes on my 120, 55, 10 and desktop aquariums. All my fish are friendly and hand-fed...even my bubble-eyed goldfish is hand-fed, which is neat. I enjoy interacting with them and seeing them react to me with such...enthusiasm. In other words, they think I'm food.
However, when it comes to tank-cleaning, this works against me a bit. They are uber-curious, about everything. I have a very-very-long python I use for water changes and I couldn't recall where I put the fish saver plastic guard that snaps on the end to well, save the fish from being sucked up the tube.
I decided if I just watched them, it would be fine. This was working out quite well, except for the fact that Dwarf Puffers are practically microscopic and insanely curious about everything. After flicking them away from the tube numerous times with near-suck-up-misses (with zero hopes of recovery if they DID get sucked up, seeing they are the size of peas), I finally gave up, stopped the flow and went in search for the fish saver.
Little creeps.
Finally found the fish saver stuck in some random junk drawer. Next was the 120. The parrots are too big to fit up the tube, so despite their curiosity, the worst that can happen is them getting suctioned TO the tube, which, granted, would suck. The fish saver adapter is kind of crappy and pops off easily, which is why I rarely use it. I put the tube in the tank and immediately a gazillion fish are gathered around it with dopey OH LOOK SHINY OBJECT looks on their faces (well, actually, I think they always look like that, but anyhow...). Shamu the Black Ghost Knifefish in particular is curious and while the others quickly lost interest seeing how OH LOOK SHINY OBJECT was indeed, not food...Shamu kept swimming around it and ramming into it. He seemed to sense there lay unbelievable adventure beyound that pokey grate thing.
Sure enough, off pops the fish saver and Shamu promptly dives headfirst into the tube and starts his merry journey to the land otherwise known as The Kitchen Sink Drain.
ARGH!!!!!!
Luckily, I have two pythons attached to each other by means of a plastic connector thingy, which means at one point the tube narrows quite a bit. Also luckily, BGK's are like, the only fish in existence that can swim backwards as well as forward. Shamu, unfazed by this fast-becoming-not-so-awesome adventure, gets to the point where the two pythons meet, realizes his escape route kinda sucks, and swims backwards alllllll the way back into the tank, only giving me a mild heart attack in the process. He, on the other hand, is just fine.
I love my fish....I love my fish...
Little bastards.
Lesson of the day? There is a reason why they recommend some sort of screening on the end of pythons.
I would hate to lose him. He's a fattie