MisfitToys
New Member
Hello everyone! My name is Jessica. As the title of the thread says, I'm from Northern IL. About 90 miles west of Chicago. I've loved fish since I was 7 years old and I got my first 10 gallon fish tank. I've had fish in my life since then. My parents used to breed fish for the local mom n' pop fish shops that used to exist around here, so I guess you can say it's in the blood. Although, I also love almost all other animals. I've had everything from fish and frogs to exotics like chinchillas and rats, and the more common cats and dogs. There've even been some hamsters and gerbils thrown in there for good measure. Currently I have a dog - Mycah - and two aquariums. Mycah is a rescue dog from a shelter not far from here. She's a black lab/dachshund mix. I know that sounds like a really odd mix, but apparently there's actually a breeder of them down in Oklahoma. That's actually where Mycah was born. She was flown up here, though, when the shelter she was in flooded. They were going to put all the dogs down, and the shelter up here had the dogs flown up so they wouldn't be euthanized. Mycah was 2 years old when I got her. She's now 8 years old and one of the best things in my life. She keeps me going sometimes when nothing else can.
Now, to the part you're really interested in. I have a 10 gallon split-tank aquarium in my apartment. It houses a male betta on each side with a glass partition between them. My older betta is Bodhi. He's of the Butterfly variety. I got him from Petco about two years ago. The other one is Knox. I got him from a breeder in Florida. He's a blue and black Crowntail. He's about a year and a half now. I've actually had him for a year. The tank also houses a couple julii cory catfish and a small breed pleco on each side, although, at the moment I can't remember what type of plecos they are. They only get a couple inches, though, full grown.
I mentioned that I had two tanks. The other one is actually a 46 gallon bowfront aquarium that resides at my mom's house. (My apartment complex won't allow anything more than one 10 gallon tank per apartment). The tank at my mom's is about 12 years old now. It's had a variety of fish in it from fancy goldfish to cichlids of different types. I've had the most luck with my cichlids. Until recently I had two Severum and a Blood Parrot in the tank. The three of them lived more than seven years and passed away just recently. I got them when they were just babies and enjoyed watching them grow into adult fish. For the past five years I've also had three Common Cuckoo Catfish in the tank. The catfish have always been my favorites, though. They just look so awesome. I knew I had a mated pair of them shortly after I got them, and just recently they've proven me right. They've gone from a mated pair to a breeding pair. I've got five baby Cuckoos in my tank right now. They're so cute! Today I just went out and added two cichlids to my tank. It was pretty empty with just the catfish in it, and I'm looking to breed and sell the Cuckoos (although not online, as I won't ship fish). The two cichlids are a male and female Auratus. Although, from what I'm reading, they may be taken back to the store tomorrow. I was told by the Petsmart employee that they were a very docile cichlid, but I'm reading that they are one of the most aggressive. They're small now and in a new tank, so I can't see their true colors, but I don't want fish that are going to attack and/or kill my Cuckoos and their babies.
It's been a long time since I've been on a forum. But I hope to learn a lot from everyone here, and to improve my knowledge on both keeping fish and raising them. This is the first time I've ever raised more than guppies, so advice is welcome! I'm looking forward to meeting everyone and interacting. Hope to talk to you guys soon!
Now, to the part you're really interested in. I have a 10 gallon split-tank aquarium in my apartment. It houses a male betta on each side with a glass partition between them. My older betta is Bodhi. He's of the Butterfly variety. I got him from Petco about two years ago. The other one is Knox. I got him from a breeder in Florida. He's a blue and black Crowntail. He's about a year and a half now. I've actually had him for a year. The tank also houses a couple julii cory catfish and a small breed pleco on each side, although, at the moment I can't remember what type of plecos they are. They only get a couple inches, though, full grown.
I mentioned that I had two tanks. The other one is actually a 46 gallon bowfront aquarium that resides at my mom's house. (My apartment complex won't allow anything more than one 10 gallon tank per apartment). The tank at my mom's is about 12 years old now. It's had a variety of fish in it from fancy goldfish to cichlids of different types. I've had the most luck with my cichlids. Until recently I had two Severum and a Blood Parrot in the tank. The three of them lived more than seven years and passed away just recently. I got them when they were just babies and enjoyed watching them grow into adult fish. For the past five years I've also had three Common Cuckoo Catfish in the tank. The catfish have always been my favorites, though. They just look so awesome. I knew I had a mated pair of them shortly after I got them, and just recently they've proven me right. They've gone from a mated pair to a breeding pair. I've got five baby Cuckoos in my tank right now. They're so cute! Today I just went out and added two cichlids to my tank. It was pretty empty with just the catfish in it, and I'm looking to breed and sell the Cuckoos (although not online, as I won't ship fish). The two cichlids are a male and female Auratus. Although, from what I'm reading, they may be taken back to the store tomorrow. I was told by the Petsmart employee that they were a very docile cichlid, but I'm reading that they are one of the most aggressive. They're small now and in a new tank, so I can't see their true colors, but I don't want fish that are going to attack and/or kill my Cuckoos and their babies.
It's been a long time since I've been on a forum. But I hope to learn a lot from everyone here, and to improve my knowledge on both keeping fish and raising them. This is the first time I've ever raised more than guppies, so advice is welcome! I'm looking forward to meeting everyone and interacting. Hope to talk to you guys soon!
