Getting a Bristlenose pleco from Maidenhead aquatics

[Jinx_]

That's good advice above, but unless you know the reputation of the online seller, be careful. I know of too many online sellers who buy the same guppies or poorly raised fish as the chain stores do, and resell them. I like to see the fish I'm buying, or to really trust the seller I'm buying from now.

Oh for sure, there are some shady ones disguising themselves as good. Thankfully there are ways to tell, all from my personal experience.

I messaged the seller asking my questions, like the water hardness and pH to see if it matches my water and whether the fish were healthy. Seller was very happy to answer all my questions and was very responsive. I asked him if he was able to give me fry instead of adults, and if he could mix different strains and endlers x regulars. He was very happy to, and I think we all know why lol (wink wink).

I was to recieve the fish while I was working and nobody else was home. So I had to direct the parcel to my local post office. I let the seller know and asked making sure the fish would be ok. Seller reassured me they'll be fine, and how he got them from Thailand and how they spent a week in transit. Second time I got 4 more from him, Royal Mail ignored all previous instructions and left the parcel by my door where they could've been pretty much stolen. Seller messaged me back saying he'll write up a report and that I should the same, so we did this and RM took it seriously.

So yes, that seller was a very very veryyy good choice and I'll recommend him to any England based fish keeper.

 

[Jinx_]

If you can get yourself some Bacter AE, it's meant for shrimp but it's a powder that you add to the tank which feeds a biofilm for biofilm grazers to eat. Excellent for fish such as garra and herbivore plecos.

I bought two tubs of it, even tho my tank is enough mature. Helps with my remaining oto and shrimps, plus any shrimplets.

It's pretty good to keep the biofilm strong, I'll dump in some of it just because lol

 

[Fishkeeper123]

Oh for sure, there are some shady ones disguising themselves as good. Thankfully there are ways to tell, all from my personal experience.

I messaged the seller asking my questions, like the water hardness and pH to see if it matches my water and whether the fish were healthy. Seller was very happy to answer all my questions and was very responsive. I asked him if he was able to give me fry instead of adults, and if he could mix different strains and endlers x regulars. He was very happy to, and I think we all know why lol (wink wink).

I was to recieve the fish while I was working and nobody else was home. So I had to direct the parcel to my local post office. I let the seller know and asked making sure the fish would be ok. Seller reassured me they'll be fine, and how he got them from Thailand and how they spent a week in transit. Second time I got 4 more from him, Royal Mail ignored all previous instructions and left the parcel by my door where they could've been pretty much stolen. Seller messaged me back saying he'll write up a report and that I should the same, so we did this and RM took it seriously.

So yes, that seller was a very very veryyy good choice and I'll recommend him to any England based fish keeper.

What are they called/ information?

 

[TwoTankAmin]

The only time you regret not having done a proper Q is when you really should have.

I have only had Ich twice in 24 years. Both times it came in with new fish. Ine one case it came in with retail store bought fish which I did Q. They did not show the Ich until the 2nd day in quarantine, 19 fish went in- tetras and danios. One came out. It was an unusually virulent strain of ich. These fish were inended to go into 2 or 3 different tanks. Had I skipped Q........

The other time I added fish to a tank of BN plecos and did not Q. I bought the fish on quabid and had no Q tank avail. so I took the chance. The new fish did nit show ich when they arrived. I lost a couple of adult plecos and a few offspring before I kncoked back the ich.

There are a very few sources from whom I am willing to skip Q. These are people I have known for some time and from whom I have gotten fish before which had no issues. The fish are removed from these folk's tank and in my possession and their new permanent home in a matter of 5-7 hours. Taking what I believe is minimal risk relatively speaking and I do understand there is a small chance that it could be a disaster. This is not a frequent occurance and so far has worked out OK.

Normally, I Q wild caught fish for at least 3 months (90+ days) and domestically bred/farmed for at least 1 month (30+ days). This means that they must be in Q without any symptoms or problems for that amount of consecutive day days. If I have to treat the tank for anything, I I am successful, that period starts over at 0 days again. I may increase the time for domestic fish based on the specific species and/or source.

A always, this is is just my way. It doesn't mean it is the only nor even the best way. You will have to decide what to do about Q for yourself.

 

[Fishkeeper123]

I think i will quarantine the fish when I get them my plan is to get the bristlenose pleco first unsure of what I order I want to add the fish. Any suggestions using my 75l and a new 200l hopefully only using one heater at a time( the tank with the bristlenose in) Is this possible also any ideas on what I should put in the tank and what it should look like( I know I need to put in driftwood and already have some)

 

[CassCats]

The fish you got will want low to mid 70s, 73-75F will be just fine for the BN pleco/garra/danio tank. In fact they won't live as long in hot temps, so you may not even need the heater depending on ambient temps where you are.

 

[Naughts]

Royal Mail ignored all previous instructions and left the parcel by my door where they could've been pretty much stolen. Seller messaged me back saying he'll write up a report and that I should the same, so we did this and RM took it seriously.

So yes, that seller was a very very veryyy good choice and I'll recommend him to any England based fish keeper.

In the UK there are only a few couriers in a position to move live fish, Royal Mail are not one of them.

 

[Fishkeeper123]

The fish you got will want low to mid 70s, 73-75F will be just fine for the BN pleco/garra/danio tank. In fact they won't live as long in hot temps, so you may not even need the heater depending on ambient temps where you are.

Yeah I will need a heater and will put it at 23/24 degrees which I think is like 74 Fahrenheit. Which order should I add the fish tho

 

[CassCats]

I'd add the zebra danios first as they have less bioload so won't overwhelm the cycle as much to add on to it. Wait a week, then I'd add the garra, only because they're not as easy to find as your other fish, and then the bn pleco. I'd also suggest adding 3 or 4 pleco caves around the tank, offering location choices where there's too many locations to bicker over if the garra want to claim a specific area.


That said, I'd move everything from the current tank over to the new tank to transfer over an existing biofilm source over for both the garra and the pleco, as both are biofilm and algae grazers. Let it sit without adding new fish for a couple weeks first to ensure there's no spikes in cycle from being moved over (should be alright, but can never be too careful) but also for it to gain some biofilm source before adding the biofilm eaters.

 

[Essjay]

In the UK there are only a few couriers in a position to move live fish, Royal Mail are not one of them.

As Naughts said live animals, including fish and fry, are not allowed by Royal Mail. They state this on their 'prohibited items' list. There are very few couriers licenced to carry live fish, which is why postage is usually so high.
Those eBay sellers stating they use Royal Mail are breaking RM's terms and conditions.

 

[Jinx_]

In the UK there are only a few couriers in a position to move live fish, Royal Mail are not one of them.

Yeah no, Royal Mail isn't trust worthy. Plus they throw parcels about etc. Most folks don't wanna bother with professional couriers since they're expensive

 

[Jinx_]

Those eBay sellers stating they use Royal Mail are breaking RM's terms and conditions.

Oh dang, and I told them it were live fish

 

[Naughts]

Yeah no, Royal Mail isn't trust worthy. Plus they throw parcels about etc. Most folks don't wanna bother with professional couriers since they're expensive

Royal Mail are trustworthy in what they do do, but they are not licenced for live fish.

People who ‘don’t bother’ with expensive couriers are not evaluating the expense incurred to get a licence, deliver within 24 hours, keep the vehicles at a safe temperature, only work one or two days a week due to specialising, travel many kilometres for each individual parcel, take the time to pack and unpack each load without damage to the animals…etc.

I would argue that they are not expensive because there are maybe two UK companies that have the market share, but that they are expensive because they travel the length and breadth of the country to collect and deliver a small number of fragile parcels in a single day.

If we value fish welfare we should only use licenced companies.

And then there’s the law…I doubt that a ten year ban on keeping animals and a three year conditional discharge is more attractive than saving £30.

 

[MattW]

I had my shrimp delivered by Royal Mail on 24hr tracked and luckily had no issues. If you ever have any fish, shrimp, etc always book or have the day off there due to be delivered.

 

[Essjay]

RM do allow "invertebrates and insects" so they will deliver shrimps and snails.