Is It Bad To Want A Change?

[Jam_lane]

Hi i'm new to fish keeping and about 4 months ago, i bought my daughter a 14l heated tank. We followed the rules of the lfs owner; prepared the water over 7 days then added 3 hardy fish (zebra danios), then after a couple of weeks my daughter chose fish she wanted, a baloon molly/mickey mouse platy and a betta.

We lost a danio to swim bladder and one had to be taken back because he was bullying the other danio.

3 months down the line and we have now transitioned to a 100ltr tank and i have a really taken to fish keeping, my daughter on the other hand has given up

I bought 8 neon tetra and have lost 4, i have 4 left. I also had 3 gourami (neon, cobal and a honey) but the cobalt was found dead last week. I also have a bristlenose pleck.

So my question is..

my tank now looks very strange, with 1 danio, 1 neon gourami, 1 honey gourami,1 betta, 4 neon tetra, 1 bristlenose pleck.

Would it be bad to start again? i'd like to keep the plec and betta but get some of my own choice of fish, especially no i have a far greater understanding. Is it normal to take fish back to the store?

Sorry for the long post but i can't stand posts that don't have any background info!!!

Thanks in advance,
a guilty fish owner

 

[thereverendturtle]

As a former fish store employee, it's not unusual for parents to start a tank for their kids, then get addicted themselves when the kids lose interest. There is absolutely nothing wrong with returning the fish, better than killing them or losing interest in aquariums all together . Just expect about 0-1/3 store credit for the fish you return.
Do lots of research about suitable tankmates for your Betta, as not a lot of fish are suitable companions.
Good luck and no need to feel guilty.

 

[Baccus]

I am sure somebody else will let you know, but its really a bad idea to keep gouramis with fighters, they are very similar species and sadly they will fight. Mostly however I have found Siamese fighters to be quite placid and easy going with other tank mates, provided the tank mates dont harass the fighter and the fighter has a quite spot to chill out in and still gets a share of the food.

Also I think the reason that you lost quite a few fish is that 7 days is not enough time to cycle a filter and get the good bacteria established. Dont worry I think every new fish keeper has made the same mistake at least once

.

Bristle noses are great fish and will pretty much not be a bother to any body else in the tank.

So the question is what fish interest you? schools of active colourful fish, solitary semi aggressive fish, a biotype tank set up around say a fighter where Khuli loaches and other endemic species are all kept together?
I don't know how common returning fish to a store is in Australia, but if the fish are not the types you want and will make you lose heart in the hobby then by all means rehome/ return them. Far better to have a tank of fish that you like and feel commited to than a selection of fish that makes you feel like the hobby is a boring chore.

 

[Jam_lane]

Wow, i feel better already! Thanks.

It's quite strange as i don't dislike the fish i have but from a cosmetic view, the tank looks odd!

I'm not to fussed about getting my money back or credit, i would prefer that the fish are ok being shipped to and fro. If you guys are confident that they'll be ok then i'm going to go into my lfs and see what if they'll help out.

My gourami have been ok with the betta so far, the betta has established himself as king of the tank and the Neon gourami (who is quite large) has become second in command. He tend to stay at the top of the tank, while the betta hovers around the middle.

My ideas so far (pleas feel free to recommend fish to me) 12 phantom tetra, 4-5 rosy/cherry barb possible 3 honey gourami

 

[Chad]

As a former fish store employee, it's not unusual for parents to start a tank for their kids, then get addicted themselves when the kids lose interest. There is absolutely nothing wrong with returning the fish, better than killing them or losing interest in aquariums all together . Just expect about 0-1/3 store credit for the fish you return.
Do lots of research about suitable tankmates for your Betta, as not a lot of fish are suitable companions.
Good luck and no need to feel guilty.

+1 Even when things go well with a tank sometimes people start over. I purchased a bunch of stuff from a guy here locally who broke down his lagoonal tank, sold it all off (award winning tank) to start a freshwater planted tank to enter in contests...so...people do it. It is a hobby after all. As long as you are kind to the fish you get rid of and make sure they have a good place and don't flush them, nothing to feel bad about.

 

[lee420]

most fish stores (in the US anyways) have an adoption tank for people to bring in unwanted fish and people come adopt them

 

[*pete*]

Adoption tank, what a great thing to do, never seen or heard of aywhere in the UK having one.

Edit... There's nothing wrong wanting to change your stock, I've got Angelfish on my mind right now.

 

[Yanks15]

I didn't notice if you listed having any testing materials- strips or liquid. If not you really need to. Water quality is half the battle with keeping fish. Changing is no big deal. I went from Fantail goldfish and tropicals to African cichlids. Good luck

Thanks,
Steve

 

[Shelster]

I have always been told gourami species cannot be mixed. Especially if you end up with two males.
I have five honey Gouramis, one male and four females. As op has mentioned, water quality is very important, although some say honeys are particularly susceptible to water conditions, don't let this put you off. We do a 30 % water change every week and all parameters are good, and they do lve a planted aquarium good luck

 

[Jam_lane]

Yes I have a testing kit, API master test. It was the first thing I bought when I upgraded my tank. I don't have problem with looking after them, I just have an issue with the look of the tank - because of some losses it looks too random.

 

[#1 Fish Fan]

It is not unusual as I have done it myself! I would say you can but I would ring up the lfs and ask if you can bring them first! They wont be tempted to pay for them though!