New Enthusiast

[michaelb_123]

biggrin.gif Hey, new member to the great hobby and forums

Persuaded dad to get fish because i'm broke @ the mo and mum is a vegetarian - if u no what i mean - no keeping fish - unfair, etc. . . And i just turned 16! Any suggestions on excuses/reasons to possibly persuade her view on the subject? much needed as i love fish and since parents are divorced i only get to see them every other weekend - not fair

Havn't seen fish for a week now and feeling quite nervous of what to expect on saturday. Dad has bought some more fish for the tank (unsure of the size, not too small) this weekend, without me being there also.

Last Saturday Me + dad bought 2 green tiger barbs and 2 chinese sucking loaches. The reviews i've read on this very helpful forum have been positive for the tiger barbs and quite negative for the loaches. People tend to say that the barbs are good beginner fish yet are less agro towards other fish if in group of 4-5+. During the 2-3 days i was with them, i didn't notice them biting fins or anything, they chased each other around occasionally but never touched the loaches and generally stayed away from the loaches and each other.
The reviews on the loaches tend to say that they are ok till they get older at which point they are quite agro towards each other and other fish as well as being territorial. This obviousely has worried me quite a bit of what to expect confused.gif
The fish are being fed on small bits of cucumber (loaches) and normal fish flake food ground up into small bits (Barbs) as the nice woman in the shop suggested - she looked and sounded like she new what she was on about.

This weekend i think my dad got 2-3 more barbs, a few neon tetras and a red tailed black shark

The tank has a few rocks(medium) a fake plant and a real one. the barbs like to swim in the open yet hide in the plants quite regularly. Not sure about their sexes plus we don't have a breeding net and the barbs and loaches would probz eat them anyway so we're not trying, plus that would probz end up overcrowding the tank, unsure, not knowledgeable on the whole crouded thing.

Would seriousely appreciate comments and suggestions on all topics above.

 

[dwarfgourami]

Hi and welcome!

First question, what is the size of the tank?

 

[dthoffsett]

Welcome to the Forum

Second question, did you cycle the tank?

 

[RandomWiktor]

I'm not going to ask questions since I'm sure everyone else will However, in regards to convincing your mom that it is "ok" to have fish, I would go for a "domesticated" species such as a goldfish or (non wild-type) betta. You could even "rescue" one, such as a feeder goldfish or betta in a little cup somewhere, then give it a nice big habitat. Maybe mom would see that you are being responsible by choosing species that aren't wild caught, and want to provide better welfare for the animal.

Though, do your research very thoroughly before buying either. Goldfish need a LOT of space and are social fish, and bettas like space but too much stresses them out. They are also agressive and must be kept singly.

Good luck with the CAE's. I have one. Had to put him all alone after a while; he kept attacking my other fish. Grumpy little buggers.

 

[michaelb_123]

it's great getting advice from people like you! it's so useful!!!
Thanks a lot for the advice on persuading mom to let me have fish but i have to do it without having fish in the first place. if she finds me with fish then she will almost definately make me go back and return it/them.

I can't know how big the tank is because the store doesn't have a website, is in great barr, i'm in smethwick, birmingham and i don't know of the telephone number. i also have no knowledge of cycling? i only saw them for the first few days and so the water didn't need replacing, etc. . .
i need a kinda, verbal excuse, e.g. they may die in the wild but i will care for them, only get a few for starters and if they die stop having them, that sorta thing. but thanx a lot for the suggestions. we've had cats for ages but i don't enjoy tham as much as fish because fish r smaller and easier to care after. they also tend not to follow you around everywhere like cats do. mum just found out that she is allergic to cats and so we might end up giving those away eventually meaning no pets. not sure weather having no cats might mean i can have fish but as i said her problem is that she doesn't like the idea of fish in closed spaces, e.g. tanks
please ask as many questions as you want but i may not be able to answer them due to the fact the tank is at my dads and i don't know that much about it. this weekend i will post all the info i can on the tank, hopefully helping your queries.

Thanks a lot for your posts, much welcomed and loved the welcomes, very grateful,

so please give as much info as you can and as much crticism as it is educating