A Shopping Guide To Filling Your Fish Tank With Healthy Tropical Fish
A well-maintained aquarium that is thoughtfully stocked with a selection of beautiful fish can be mesmerizing. That is the goal we all have, and work hard to achieve. How devastating , then, if a fish keeper who has spent considerable money and time in setting up their new fish tank purchases sick fish that die shortly after being introduced to their new home.
How can you avoid the heartbreak? Listen to the following advice and you’ll lower the chances of any major problem dramatically.
Start by only buying aquarium fish from a reputable source: a quality pet store or online dealer, or a person you know and trust. A mild musty smell in a pet shop is not unusual, and is to be expected given the various animals, foods and bedding they stock. But an objectionably strong odor can indicate a store that is not as concerned as they should be about the care of their animals.
If you walk into a store and you immediately smell the odor of rotting seafood, or you see fish tanks that are encrusted with algae and filled with murky water, leave. It doesn’t matter what rare fish they may have in stock, you are asking for trouble. Tanks should be clean. Water should be clear. Don’t be too alarmed if they have a tank that has a sign announcing that the fish in the tank aren’t for sale at the moment. Many fish stores don’t have enough room for a quarantine tank. In fact, a notice like this can be an indication that the store staff are acting responsibly, quarantining their new stock, and are watching out for any issues they need to treat.
Of course, you should find the staff themselves to be friendly and helpful. It’s always encouraging to find staff who can answer your questions, because if they know something about their fish, they probably also know how to manage their tanks and care for them. If the store is not busy, you should find the staff occupied with maintaining their animals and their living conditions.
Another thing to look for is when one of the staff handle a fish, they should do so in a manner that shows concern not to cause it any undue stress. They might use two nets and corner the fish, and then will be sure to quickly transfer it and allow it to resettle.
The rule of thumb I suggest is that if you find more than a couple of dead fish in a tank think about shopping somewhere else. Fish deaths are going to happen, and when stores are busy they don’t always have the time to immediately get to removing the deceased fish from the tank. So one or two is not necessarily reason to conclude it’s a bad store, but any more than that and you’ll have to consider looking elsewhere to buy your fish.
If the store and their tanks seem fine, take your time and patiently study the fish themselves. Take note of their physical condition; look at their eyes, fins, mouths, scales, and abdomens. Put your hand as close to the glass as you can without actually touching it. The fish should either swim towards your hand, looking for food, or they should dart for cover. If a fish is lethargic or just doesn’t look or act healthy, don’t buy it. You know the old saying, “there’s plenty more fish in the sea” (or the lake for the freshwater buffs).
Before you go shopping for fish, be sureto do your homework. You need to be sure that all of the fish you consider buying for the same tank are compatible with each other. You also need to know the kind of food each fish requires; are they herbivores (plant eating), carnivores (meat eating), or omnivores (eating various foods).
If you decide on carnivorous predatory fish, you are going to have to have live food. To do this you need a way of keeping that food alive. This might mean a second fish tank.
Finally. If at all possible, have a quarantine tank of your own. When you buy new fish to add to an established aquarium, quarantine them for 2 weeks before introducing them. This gives ample time for any health issues to become apparent without infecting all your existing stock.
Keep all these guidelines in mind, and you’ll save yourself some pain.
Article written by Philip Morgan. Reproduced by permission. Read the author’s blog for more information on aquariums and tropical fish.
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