Hi! About my new fish.

[mrmuff]

Hi! My name is Mark. 8)

I went to my local Maidenhead aquatics yesterday. And I went in to purchase my first fish. I was looking at some nice goldfish because I had read books about how to look after them.

We asked at the counter for the ones we liked.

BUT big surprise, our tank as we described it would keep goldfish in it but not comfortably.

He showed us some tropical fish that we might like.

In the end we didn't come out with goldfish, we came out with 3 tropical fish. I think one of them was a swordtail. And I can't remember the rest.

I also came out with a book on them and some food.

 

[William]

Hi Mark welcome to the forum, how big is your fishtank ?

 

[mrmuff]

Um 4 gallons.

 

[caz27]

Have you got a heater in there? and was the tank cycled?

 

[Eelzor]

my tank is 4 gallons too (and it has 2 clown loaches+2 convicts ) ill upgrade once they get too big. but good luck with the swordtails and welcome to the forum!

 

[Pufferpack]

Hi mrmuff, Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your new fish . I hope you enjoy yourself here and learn as much as I have from the great folks here
Just a wild guess, but were the other fish maybe Guppies, or Platties, or Mollies?

Eelzor

my tank is 4 gallons too (and it has 2 clown loaches+2 convicts  ) ill upgrade once they get too big.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the clowns will be too big for a 4 gal tank in a couple of months, they get to be about a foot long when fully grown. When looking for fish the usual recomendation is 1 inch (expected full grown size) of fish for every 1 gal of water. With just the 2 convicts (6 inches each) and the 2 clowns you have 36 inches of fish in 4 gals of water. you might want to consider bringing the clowns back to the fish store and buying the bigger tank as soon as possible for the convicts.

 

[Inchworm]

Hi mrmuff and welcome to the forum!

You've just started out on what will be a hobby you can keep for the rest of your life! Keeping fish is a wonderful thing to do.

You have the key to the whole thing right in your hand, too. It is the book you brought home. If I can make one suggestion to you, at this point, it would be to read, read, and then get on the computer and read some more.

You will enjoy the fish you have, but go slow with adding to them. Learning all about them is a lot of fun, too.

 

[mrmuff]

Hi everybody again!

I havn't had much time lately (due to fishkeeping and stuff)

So I could not get the time for silly chit chat.

Before I start a MASSIVE debate, let me state that I am 13 years old!!!

---===Now lets start talking!===---

Before I got my first fish, I made sure my tank was fully cycled. We went to the fish place. (Read above for a LONG story)

Now I have a bit of concern.

Today, I cleaned out my tank and now my fish are whizzing about like nobody's buisness. The tank water quality is almost the same as before. We bought a test kit (Interpet easytest) and the ammonia level was 1.2 ( & ) We also bought a ornament, which they were pleased to see.

All we did was change the water and add a ornament and now the fish are as happy as hell!

So what made them have a change of heart, do you think?

 

[guppymonkey]

Water changes have a really amazing effect on fish. With high ammonia levels like you described the water change you did maybe have saved your fish by taking some of the ammonia out of the water. Depending on how many fish are in your little tank (you didn't mention) very frequent partial water changes would do them a lot of good and make them very happy fish.

 

[Inchworm]

let me state that I am 13 years old!!!

Hi mrmuff!

I'm glad to hear that you bought a test kit and that your fish are doing well.

You may be surprised to find that there are other 13 year olds posting on this forum. Anyone, young or old, who treats fishkeeping seriously and enjoys talking about it with others is welcome here.

You are new to the hobby now and can learn much from the experience of others but before long you will have mastered the basics and will be able to share your own experiences and teach others. I know you must be busy with school etc. but I hope you can find the time to do that too.

 

[Alien Anna]

Don't worry about your youth - no one is going to look down on you for it. However, people will expect you to take it as seriously as the adults. Pet owning is a big responsibility.

When I was 13 I bred zebra finches and hamsters (not together, obviously! ). I also had a rescued baby sparrow that I hand-reared, so I know that young people can do a good job of raising pets.

You'll do fine as long as you take it step-by-step. If you haven't already done so, have a go at reading my article (follow the link in my sig). You sound like an intelligent young person so you should be able to follow the main ideas in it. If you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them.

 

[cheirodon]

Goldfish are happier on a 5 gallon per inch of fish basis, so when you mentioned the 4 gallon tank at your Pet Shop, they ruled out the goldfish, because at best you could have one lonely fish in it.

Now, for starters I would grab that book you have, and establish the identity of all your fish, before going any further. With that issue cleared, we can go straight to the point regarding your fish behavior, etc.

You're off to a good start though, having cycled your tank and all, so you should be up 'n runnin in no time!

Welcome!

 

[mrmuff]

Hello again.

I just did some research, and my tank is 12 gallons! )

By the way, I have a swordtail a wagtail and the other one I don't know whats its called but its small and orange and even smaller than the wagtail.

 

[Alien Anna]

Hello again.

I just did some research, and my tank is 12 gallons! )

By the way, I have a swordtail a wagtail and the other one I don't know whats its called but its small and orange and even smaller than the wagtail.

It's probably more than that because we talk about US gallons, not British gallons. 12 UK gallons is about 20 US gallons.