Peacock Eels

[aimeec]

My goldfish recently died so I updated my tank to be tropical (pretty much just added a heater). I am pretty new to fish keeping.
Tank = Tall 2ft 70L

I bought 6 Neon tetras and 2 peacock eels.

But both of my peacock eels died. and I am not sure why.

The aquarium store guy said that they would eat goldfish flakes - but after 1 day and a half I had not seen either of them even look twice at the flakes so I did some research and went and bought some frozen bloodworms and brineshrimps. So at the end of the second day they had food. One of them ate - but not much and the other started looking ill. The next day, the ill looking one was dead (I was very sad) , but the other one was looking great.

I had my water tested at the fish store the next day and they said it was perfect.

He was swimming around with the tetras and would go and poke at my last remaining gold fish for fun. (my goldfish is in its own tank, but not because of the eel).

Then about a week after that this eel suddenly (morning was ok, afternoon was bad) started not swimming right. He looked like his tail wasnt moving properly and all his thrust was coming from the front half of his body. He just got worse from there, he was resting on his back or side and wasnt burying himself anymore. then about 4 days after he stopped swimming properly he died . I had a close look at his skin when I got him out of the tank, and it looked ok, and he was still slimy.

I did some more research about the peacock eels and have found that you probably should have sand for them. I dont have sand, but I do have very fine gravel.

I think that the first one died from stress - from going to a pet store, then into a new tank and not having food for a couple of days, and probably not being able to burrow easily.

But I am not sure about the second one. Any ideas? I think he might have injured himself.
Because I would really like to get another one.

Also, do you think it will be ok in my 2ft tank?
One more question, which may sound terrible, but I am curious: If he did scratch himself and got an infection, how long would it normally take to die if left untreated?

PS. all the tetras are fine.

---------------
Lessons learned 1) Fish shop guy a.)cares slightly more about money than the welfare of the fish he is selling. b.)did not know diddley about peacock eels
2)Never take advice from a fish shop guy you dont know.
3)Do heaps of research about the fish you are going to buy first. A little bit of research isnt enough.

 

[DarkSide]

Well first of all, your tank is only 18 gallons, which means your choice in fish, was bad in the first place.

I'm not sure about peacock eels, but I know other eel species (fire eels, tire track eels) They need ATLEAST a 50 gallons tank. so putting 2 eels in such a small space is such a gross undeservance.
The next problem is that the tank is tall vs. a wide tank, which since the eels are bottom dwelling fish limits their allowed space even more.

The fact of the wrong food, is also an important factor.

So the lessons you said, follow them like a bible. As people without proper research should not be allowed to keep certain fish.

Also I noticed a little confusion in your post. At first you said both your eels have died, then later on you stated that you think one has a scratch, and how long it has to die.

And i'm not trying to be rude, but if you are gonig to just let it suffer, I don't think you really deserve to keep animals. If you are not willing to care for it properly, give it to someone who can, or euthanize it.

 

[aimeec]

DarkSide: Yes I did say both of them died, because I was a stupid noobie fish owner who thought that the fish shop guy would give me enough advice to keep the fish alive.

The question about the scratch at the end was a hypothetical one (in the reference to the words "if he did..."). Neither of the eels had any noticable scratches. I was trying to learn how to identify injuries in my potential pets, because I read that was a common injury. I also said that I examined him after he died and his skin looked fine. (or didnt you read that part either?)

FYI. Peacock eels grow to a maximum of 25cm in the wild and generally no more than 15cm in captivity. Unlike fire eels and tyre track eels which grow significantly larger than that(fire eels: 50cm in captivity and upto 1m in the wild). Not only that, I asked the LFS guy how big they grow, to which he replied 15cm - and I thought that a 2ft tank would be ok.

Also, the choice of fish was not completely my idea. I recieved that advice from the LFS guy(which I wont do again).
If you think it was a bad idea, why dont you go and abuse my LFS guy, not me.

About my tank being tall instead of wide is a silly comment because it is still a 2ft tank. It stil has the same floor area as a not so tall 2 ft tank.

I joined this forum to get some good advice from people who werent trying to make money off me and would be giving advice for the welfare of the fish not for the welfare of their wallet.

Not trying to be rude, but if youre not going to answer a post by being kind and understanding and giving the sort of advice a new fish owner(who has recieved bad advice) needs, then you should turn your computer off and keep your keyboard to youself.

 

[groovitudedude]

People, don't hate! Okay, seeing as you were misinformed, it's not completely your fault. If you want small fish that look like eels, you could try kuhli loaches. However, my fire eel would outgrow my 55G any time. Keep in mind that you do not want to get fish that will eventually outgrow your tank. Also, ALWAYS research a fish before buying it. It's okay, just don't make the same mistake in the future.

 

[DarkSide]

Hey, i'm not trying to flame you. I admit I was a little hasty in replying, and it can be forgiven for what happened, as I myself have made some very bad discissions in fishkeeping, as have many of the members on this site. It's just the fact that now I know what I should be doing, and the fact that I have seen so many mis-constructed aquariums, and abused fish it just gets on my nerves.
Sorry.

If you do want advice, here is some.

If any of your current fish do get scratches a good medication to use is Melafix as it heals cuts fairly well. People also say it heals things like burns, ich, and other skin-based infection, but i'm not sure of that since i've never had any problems like those.

Your tank being 18 gallons, and tall, limits your choice of fish, remember to abide to inch/gallon rule, while some people use the cm/L rule. Since your tank is taller you can have some more mid-dwelling fish. Maybe try smaller tetras like rummy-nose or neon tetras. Another good option would be to use a small scool of tiger bards or scissor-tail rasboras, the latter allowing you more fish to put in the aquarium.

A third option you could use for your tank, is a mating pair of German Blue Rams or another similar species of Rams, which fall under the category of New-world Ciclids, so a mating pair and a small (5, should be good) school of rummy-nose, or neon tetra would be nice, adding a snail or 2 Oto's would be nice for clean-up.

With the amounts of fish I have stated, they may be a tiny bit over-stocked, but nothing serious, just make sure that you have good filtration and perform water changes oftenly to counter the bio-load.

So once again, sorry, and I hope you have better luck with your future aquarium.

 

[aimeec]

Yes. Only hate LFS guys that give bad advice.

And start again with 6 tetras and lesson 3 -- Researching!! So I never make any stupid mistakes again.

I have learned that lesson.

Now, the fun task of finding and deciding which fish to buy now.
I have finally found a store which I think is not completely bad. I bought a goldfish from there yesterday and asked a bunch of questions to a couple of different staff. I would say Im reasonably impressed so far.

 

[Twistersmom]

It probably was not at all your fault the eels died. They can be very picky eater. Alot of times you will see them terrible under weight in the stores. If your lfs was trying to feed them flakes, they may have been without food for weeks! I will not recommend buying another, because they will outgrow your tank. If you liked the look of the eel, do check out the loaches mentioned above. They have a snake like appearance, and will not outgrow your tank.