What I learned from my own experience about B. tigrinum are (I lost 3 tigrinum last year by the way, 18 cm, 25cm, and last fish was 35 cm) :
- Don't let your tig get excessive stress, whatever the cause (especially at size around 15cm to 30cm), for example if you want to move them, don't take the risk to lift them with net directly, causing the fish struggle badly in the net (better use plastic container box, plastic bag or etc.). One of the signs that indicate your fish gets much stress, is the color becomes pale, stay cornering, and gasping for breath.
- Most of small tig, below 15cm, are really badass, but it's totally different story when the size reach at least 15cm IME, it can be said that B. tigrinum from that size is prone to heart attack (I tend to think like that). Get hump on their back (too fat, over fed), or get stressed due to our previous handling (I wasn't aware of it at first, but became clear at the second death), got pale color and stay cornering, and suddenly swim disorderly near to surface and die with open gill and mouth. But I've got report from one of my friend here, that his tig got no problem with any handling at size 35cm up.
Just want to share my own experience, I could be wrong in concluding what actually had happened to my tigs.
Now I start to keep tigs again, another 3 tigs, all from size 8cm, I guess same batch as yours.
And all of them have entered to the "critical size" now, the smallest tigs is 15cm, and the biggest is 18cm already, hope they will be okay until become a trully monster
I was feeding them with live gambusia and poecilia as staple food from the beginning size.
I use 120cm x 50cm x 30cm (height of water) as nursing tank, 2x 1900 L/H canister, marinepure and mr aqua as bio-media, also some zeolit and carbon active media in tray, water pH at 6.0 - 6.5, water temp at 30-31 celsius.
And now I start to train them to take carnivore pellet.
wednesday13 posts about it, I would find it for you but I got the flu right now and am not up for digging, but if you search some of his posts he gives extremely convincing arguments against the use of it, personal experience type of arguments. Like I said not bashing you cuz I have foam under my acrylic right now, but after hearing some of the horror stories I can't wait to be able to get it out of there.
. Thats physical evidence of seam seperation. Everyone doing something doesnt make it right if they were all misinformed or dont know any better. Not tryin to scare ya or be rude but foam under acrylics is not beneficial in any way and can/will lead to issues over time. Foam is not a building material.
