RIP "kittyfish", my 29" achara cat

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
Thanks everyone. I know I owe many thanks for the great advice along the way to Wet Whiskers, Odd Ball, Necrocranis, and Pharaoh and Lupin to all of my many lessons learned. I am very grateful to everything I have gained here on this forum and have learned so much from him alone. If it wasn't for this one fish, I wouldn't have upgraded from a 125g and have plans to upgrade from a 265g!! Although the plans were (sadly) to house the future fishies, we would've never have gotten this far it wasn't have been for a special 2 foot catfish who would beg for his dinner plate while we were eating at the ktchen table (265 in dining room table and he'd "wag" his tail, while his head would stay stationary). I learned how to take care of a sump with this fish and how to combat mosquistos, along with many other "tradegies". Thanks again everyone
 
How old was he and what was his growth through the years?
 
Sorry to hear it songbird. It is much harder when you are hand feeding and have kept them for years for sure. I was sick after losing my wels, and vulture cats after just a few months. Stupid rookie mistake of not keeping the tank cool during a heat wave. I was traumatized for sure when my exwife killed all my fish a few years back. It has taken me a few years to get my head back in it. My most recent tragedy made me rethink my current strategies and hope I can be rid of a roomate before trying to go bigger and better. Learn the lesson that you really need to have your tanks in order before going with larger species instead of just upgrading slowly. I wish I had a place to set up multi thousand gallon tanks right now.
 
@biggerthebetter-my threads/posts on him are on here to gauge that as I have no idea. He was healthy...I bought the 265g just for him to live in until we could build something builder, which we were in the process of doing...When we first brought him home, he wouldn't eat and I went petstore to lfs. They all told me that catfish would eat anything as they were scanvengers until finally we got him to eat hotdog literally from our hands. Then earthworms. Tonight I"m missing him as the RTC is sitting in kitty's spot and I'm hating it in the worst way. But, once we got him eating, he grew fast in the first 2 years of us having him and he was probably already 2 years old at that time. I hate this....
 
necrocanis said:
Sorry to hear it songbird. It is much harder when you are hand feeding and have kept them for years for sure. I was sick after losing my wels, and vulture cats after just a few months. Stupid rookie mistake of not keeping the tank cool during a heat wave. I was traumatized for sure when my exwife killed all my fish a few years back. It has taken me a few years to get my head back in it. My most recent tragedy made me rethink my current strategies and hope I can be rid of a roomate before trying to go bigger and better. Learn the lesson that you really need to have your tanks in order before going with larger species instead of just upgrading slowly. I wish I had a place to set up multi thousand gallon tanks right now.
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I"m a little confused as the "expert" advice on this forum is the minimum for life for an achara is a 265g, which I had, but I had small filtration...30g sump and FX5 with bio load, UV light...but, it did house a rtc as well (grow out). If anyone looks on my previous threads, we are in the process of insulating our attached garage which is almost done. After it's done, the indoor pond is set up and the 265g would be tore down for touch ups. I had no problem with buying a stock pond as a quick set up pond for the catfish, however, this was rather unexpected and obviously I am devastasted over as I don't want the 265 anymore. But, Necrocanis, your fish were the ones who actually inspired me. I *made* my hubby bury kittyfish in the backyard too..but I wanted to bred kitty (achara) and jaba (rtc) someday in our huge pond....maybe someday we can bred if the sexes and conditions are right we can bred jaba and devil (achara x tsn) in the future since kitty is no longer with me....I am truly bummed...am I rent so I have to leave my lil "pet cemetary" like when I was a kid at my parents house...
 
I have to also say that according to my one fish book "An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aquarium Fish" from 1995 (yes, I know it's outdated but is still awesome) says that an achara's length is 25 1/2". Mine was quite a bit longer than this. But, based on the average achara, of which we got the 265g for, he would've been fine in. We already decided to build an indoor tank, thus we got a rtc. However I thought there were issues with the 265g and thought we needed to break it down fast to fix it and we couldn't decide what to do/where to put a much bigger tank of that size as we weren't ready since it was more of an emergency issue. The 265g is still up and running and will be touched up in the near future once we move the rtc out. I agree about having the bigger tank already at hand when buying that baby monster cat as they do grow fast. However, I have to now disagree that a 265g is NOT a minimum for life for an achara, it needs to be a wider tank, perhaps a 300g. Just my 2 cents. But, kitty gave me many lessons learned of which I did talk about here and at my lfs. I also know that it would have been nearly impossible to have bred him and my rtc in captivity just as it will be impossible to breed to the rtc and tsn x achara, but it's always wishful thinking.
 
2songbirds said:
... I have to now disagree that a 265g is NOT a minimum for life for an achara, it needs to be a wider tank, perhaps a 300g...
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I am no expert and many of us disagree, which is fine and expected. Anyhow, IMO, with this fish that should reach at least 2.5' in captivity with its maxillary barbels spanning ~4.5', any "for life" tank should be more than 5' wide at an utterly bare minimum, and 10' long at the same sad minimum. It also should be at least 4' deep. That comes to 1500 US gal. And I personally would not do it - it's too small by what standards I chose for myself (not out of the thin air but from reading what high level experts and professionals have to say, who of course, often disagree too...).

Some try and rip me a new one for my beliefs but IDK why. I do not criticize their views if they differ. Live and let live. All I do is offer my $0.02 when it is directly or indirectly (as it is here) asked for, take it or ignore it.
 
@biggerthebetter, that is exactly what I'm stressing. EVerywhere I read and the people I talked to in person all said this fish at full grown would reach 2 feet. Well, he was WELL over the 2 feet mark. The indoor pond build was not ready... Maybe things from his past finally caught up and did wear down his body sooner than later, but an achara cat should not be kept in a 265g. I still can't touch this tank-can't clean it, feed the rtc, or even look at it. My husband has been feeding the rtc and I know it's in dire need of a cleaning as I'm the primary caretaker. I'm trying not to let this take me out of the hobby, only one fish to turn things around, but I've lost interest in it, even being 2 1/2 months later. I've contemplated giving the rtc to my lfs and selling the tank, however, I know my hubby would never forgive me (rtc)
 
Time will heal your pain.

Life's a continuous chain of gains and losses of all kinds and in all respects. Cheer up, friend, we are all in this together, all in one boat. I once lost about a hundred of my beloved 2'-3'-ers. All at once. Indeed, you cry, you learn, and you decide whether to go on or to change direction (in one way, mulling over that if I cannot handle losing pets and/or treating them right, I should not get them any more)... but please, try not let any other living being be negatively affected (and I mean not only your RTC and other fish, which obviously are suffering from insufficient attention and for which you still have the responsibility, but also your family).

In times like this, it is usually better to set your feelings aside and go by rational thinking - something that is not easy for a lady to do, I realize :)

IDK. Just trying to help somehow.
 
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