Never Walk Away From A Water Change

[Auratus]

Stuuupid fish

(said in Spongebob narrator voice)
**Twenty minutes later**

"I'm alive!!!"

What I saw looking down the tube

Back home and all beat up

STUPID FISH! She's got stuck in the roots of a fake plant and found at 2am, behind the filter, under a marble and now this! One time I'm not going to find her in time. All her sisters have grown but she's purposly staying small so she can get caught in things and cause me unneeded stress

 

[RandomWiktor]

Glad you found her, and she's still alive. Many fish have been wounded or killed during water changes by getting caught in the siphon, even with their owner right there dilligently watching them. That's why I put some wide-ish mesh needlepoint plastic over my siphon; the holes are big enough for most messes to be pulled up into the siphon, but much to small for any adult betta.

 

[fishykisses]

Poor little bugger ... she doesn't look TOO worse for ware though - that's a good thing!

 

[jollysue]

Silly girl

 

[ral]

I use a modifide gravel vac to make my water changes. I replaced the original tube with a thin ariline hose. Changes take a bit longer, but there is no way for the fish to go in there.

 

[lljdma06]

Your fish reminds of my three bridget rasboras. Vacuming is a chore with them, they love taking little trips, but the syphon is larger, so they just pass straight through and into the bucket of crap. Now, finding them in that mess is the challenge. They're still with me now, but they are a pain.

 

[Tangerinefizz]

Yowzers!! did she think she was going on a roller coaster ride of sorts or what exactly? And I must say, I'm totally surprised she looks as good as she does afterwards. I really was expecting worse!

 

[Ethos]

That happened to me the other day...
It was abit of a shock to me.

 

[Synirr]

Oh geez, silly thing!! I'm glad she's ok!
My obese honey gourami did that during their last water change. Luckily he was too fat to actually go down the tube, he just went in the gravel vac part and plugged up the hole . As soon as I pulled it out and suction stopped he plopped safely back into the tank

 

[Auratus]

It took me nearly a half hour to get her out!

She was wedged so perfectly that I couldn't fit anything inbetween her and the hose to cut her free. I cut it as close as I could with scissors and was pulling but I wasn't strong enough. I eventually ended up with one end in my mouth and pulling down on the other end, trying not to bend her in half lol. She probably thought I was going to eat her . I kept flushing the tubing with water and checking to make sure she was gasping. She wouldn't help me out at all either! Not even one wiggle! I eventually took a piece of soft plastic and pushed her out while running water down the tubing after I got it split open enough. But I do have to get a new syphon now

 

[Ethos]

Well, glad you got her out.
I can't imagen being stuck like that.
I'm not diognosed, but I think I'm clostraphobic.

 

[soritan]

I really should bookmark this thread in case this ever happens to me. I didn't want to click the topic at first for fear of seeing a mauled mass if sushi and some airline tubing.

Glad she made it out (more or less) ok.

 

[Silvani]

Oh my god!! Wow… poor little girl. If I remember that was the free DT girl that you got with your others. (Though I may be wrong)

She’s just a little trouble maker it seems. Heck if she doesn’t have a name I’d call her “Trouble”. Hehe

I’m so very very glad she’s ok though.

 

[OrkyBetta]

I sucked up one of my guppy fry the other day, found him swimming just fine and dandy in the bucket, but it scared me to death.

 

[Vegan Peaches]

I love how you documented it with photos, lol. I've sucked up smaller fish before, but they've always plopped right into the bucket. Glad everything went alright, would've sucked if it didn't. Heh, it's a pun... nevermind.