tank ethics

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
derk dastardlee;829016; said:
so, it almost sounds like your agreeing. most chain stores are "jacked up". and that's not a remark on the less knowledgable employees that are just trying to pay some bills. it's not there fault the store has minimal animal requirements(not saying it's o.k to make up **** about fish keeping to sell fish)

I agree completely with what you're saying.
The store will work the way it will. The higher ups can care less. The lower downs are just stiffs. Some shouldn't be working with live animals period, some actually value working around animals cause they genuinely care. But there's not much either can do about the way the store runs.
These stores have their own policies on how to deal with stock, information and customers - that's not to say changes can't be made. It takes work though and not just incessant whining.
Hell, you could start a whole other topic about chain stores and their stupid policies and have another 13 page long thread. It just gets old. People hear about it, they realize, they know, but keep complaining without actually trying to do something about it.
 
That one guy on here who has a 20g tank who has an oscar, clown knife and 4 rbp i no tank. And asked if he could eat a 12" rhom.
 
My #1 pet peeve is

1. When people attack a fish keeper that mentions they have a BABY fish in a smaller tank then the fish will need full grown. Even when the person says they understand the fish gets larger and has plans to house it as such.

If the person explains they understand and plans to upgrade and house the fish well. Shut up lol Need to work on those that do not understand nor plan to upgrade. Leave those that know what they are doing and taking good care of the fish and leave them alone.

I get hell for having a pleco in a 55gl tank LOL it is only a few inches. 55gl is PLENTY of room for him at this size. I plan to move to a 75gl and 125+gl and some people still ***** it is in a 55gl at less then 5 inches. Same with my 2 inch clown loaches. I know they get large and will need a large tank. I knew that when I bought them. They are fine in a 55gl until they grow and need a larger tank. They are 2 inches!!!!!

2. The people who "I havent tested my water in years" testing is vital and using liquid testing is just as important. Your fish depend on good water and you owe it to them as your pet to know where their water is at.

3. I cant afford the basics. Someone will have water problems for example and you find out they dont have a test kit. They cant afford a test kit. Why have the fish? If they got sick and you had to buy medications etc how would you afford it? If you cant afford the basics get out of the hobby. Pets are apart of the family and fish are included. You take care of them and that means it costs $$.

4. I am the best fish keeper and it is my way or no way. I have learned there are many ways to do things with keeping fish. There are some people that just rip other fish keepers apart because they dont do it their way. The PH hunters are my personal favorite. I dont add anything to my tank but Prime and I use a PH neutralizer. I have to. I get flamed for this often. My ph goes above a 8 and I couldnt keep my pictus cats alive. My lfs told me to drop my PH and I have had pictus alive since. I know stable PH is vital in fish care and my ph continues after 9mo to sit at 7. I make sure and keep up with it to make sure its sits there. Even though I take great care and test and test my PH and make sure when I do my large 50% pwc a week and make sure my PH is stable I am still a bad fish keeper because I use a ph neautralizer. lol

5. dirty tanks. I dont think everyone needs to do a huge pwc a week. You learn what is best for your tank and your bioload etc. I cant stand algae covered glass, rotting food and just plain dirty tanks. Clean it up.

6. Overstocking to a point it causes fish to die or be sick.

7. People that are losing fish and do not know why. water can be out of whack, ick or a fungus. They go out and buy even more fish to replace the ones that died before fixing the problem. Wonder why they keep losing fish.

8. Cycle a tank with fish and allow them to suffer. I agree with fishless cycles. If you are going to do it with a fish, get a hardy type that can make it and for god sake test the water and do pwc to bring down the toxins for the fish. I cant stand those that get fish just for cycle and do not intend to keep them. They just use them and make them suffer.

Those are the big ones.
 
I agree with all but 8. If you have fish still on feeders and you are in the process of converting them to pellets or krill, I think it is ok to use feeders as cycle fish. Im not saying there fish to treat like ***** but I think if you have a new tank to cycle and you dont have an extra filter on there, it is ok to use feeders for the lone reason that they are going to get eaten anyway.

Other then that

I hate traffic, ugly women, george bush and my arowana who jumped out of my tank two nights ago.
 
damn good ones courtneem, and i'm sorry about your aro andr3w. i hate the mass amounts of incorrect information on the web, or from people in general. i know there's way to much crap out there to do anything about, just saying it's damn bogus. and tough to find a source you can rely on. mfk is a good start since i know most members have been there and done that. trial and error, and damn good research.
 
I disagree still. Feeders are okay because being eaten by another fish is natural process. Leaving them in a tank to breathe toxic water and suffer is wrong just because they are going to die anyway.

I dont believe any animal should have to suffer. I agree with feeding fish, fish because it is a natural process as long as the fish has to go get the food if it is alive. I let my clown loaches eat 100s of snails in my tank.

I support hunting. I dont do it but I disagree with people who hunt with bow and arrows and when they dont know what they are doing too. I mean after 5 sticks and the animal isnt dead that isnt fair game IMO.

Animals shouldnt suffer and feeders are not "garbage" it is different for them to be eaten then sitting in a tank for a month that is toxic. :)

Since joining this hobby I just have learned how much fish are abused and it is heart breaking.
 
courtneem;831379; said:
I disagree still. Feeders are okay because being eaten by another fish is natural process.

I'm not sure if anyone disagreed with this.

I'm certainly againts the careless feeding of live foods. I don't care what they are, worms, fish, inverts, copepods - I want to be able to feel safe feeding them. Culturing them oneself IMO is the safest way to do so. If you decide you're going to use platies as feeders they should be dewormed, fed properly and kept as well as you'd keep your other fish to lower the risk of adding any unwanted problems into your non-feeder systems. Because you have the ability to do so, unlike shops who overcrowd their feeder tanks raising the likelihood of the feeders contracting an ailment to the prized fish you plan on feeding it to.

Feeding store-bought feeders is just as bad as adding an unQT'd fish to your system. One takes a chance every time.
 
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