Sorry, I'm feeling like a trouble maker...

[Magnum Man]

I'm really watering this down, to avoid getting kicked out... but I've read some advice to newbies lately, where one wonders if the person offing advice has ever had the fish in question... in a couple cases, I have these fish, & found the advice, even from respected members, to be completely opposite of my experience... in some of these cases, the advice was about Electric Blue Acarra's ( we could argue, are these man made, line bred, or imported from Mars )... but these particular fish have almost none of the traits of wild type Acarra, both in my experience, and most on line information... so to offer advice that would pertain to any other Acarra, is doing a disservice to the OP... I'm sorry, but this type of thing pushes my buttons... please, if you have not actually had experience with a "specific" fish, resist the urge to offer your advice... especially if these are respected members, it makes me want to quit posting...

 

[GaryE]

If it was me, just tell me I'm wrong and explain why! That's what we're here for.

 

[Magnum Man]

wasn't anyone in management, that I know of...

 

[Uberhoust]

Good point. I think it is important to remember that our personal experiences with raising fish are just that, personal experiences. There are so many components to successfully raising fish, and each can greatly impact the quality of care and the ability for the fish to thrive. No two tanks are the same and so there will never be 100% agreement for their care. Most of us look for a preponderance of evidence to support a particular way to care for our fish but there are usually some exceptions to some care that still work. Consider the fish in vs no fish cycling, people write in because they just dropped their new fish and the tank and they are not doing well, but we also get a number of people that have done a fishless cycle but something has gone wrong and they write in for help.

Personally, I like to read the different responses, people come from different backgrounds, have different setups, and have different conclusions.

Just my opinion

 

[Fishkeeper123]

I'm really watering this down, to avoid getting kicked out... but I've read some advice to newbies lately, where one wonders if the person offing advice has ever had the fish in question... in a couple cases, I have these fish, & found the advice, even from respected members, to be completely opposite of my experience... in some of these cases, the advice was about Electric Blue Acarra's ( we could argue, are these man made, line bred, or imported from Mars )... but these particular fish have almost none of the traits of wild type Acarra, both in my experience, and most on line information... so to offer advice that would pertain to any other Acarra, is doing a disservice to the OP... I'm sorry, but this type of thing pushes my buttons... please, if you have not actually had experience with a "specific" fish, resist the urge to offer your advice... especially if these are respected members, it makes me want to quit posting...

Everyone has had different experiences on species of fish. Therefore everyone has contrasting views on fish compatibility and minimum tank size. I’ll be honest I’m on a lot of different forums and everyone has had different opinions as they are all trying to help me as a beginner on what fish i can get for my tank but everyone is trying to give there best advice based on there experiences so its not like any advice is wrong it’s just what everyone else has experienced . I also hope that everyone who has given advice has kept the fish mentioned but don’t quit posting as everyone will want to hear what you have to say as everyone has had there own experiences with fish and then the poster of the thread can make a decision weighing up what everyone has said.

 

[GaryE]

Half the problems we have with conflicting advice could be solved by English grammar. Yup. Modal auxiliary verbs - things like "might", "could" "would" and the use of conditional forms ("if"). As long as we accept we could be more nuanced and therefore diplomatic, we can disagree without the average war.
Suggesting rather than telling always goes over better.
I think everyone here means well, but we can get a little black and white sometimes, and the best ideas often come out of the grey areas, outside the boxes.


I say that and don't always do it. We're all in a hurry sometimes. As long as we explain why we say things, back things up and accept we could be wrong (I mean, it isn't likely but it could happen...) we can disagree respectfully, and let the reader decide what makes sense.

 

[CassCats]

You're talking about me.

While I don't have a particular fish that does not mean I've not researched into it, spoke with those who do have them and have learned from others, simply because it has interested me and I've considered options myself.

Narrowing your own advice strictly to your own experience leads to close minded answers and leads to biased opinions. Listening to and learning from others is also key.


I could call you out for all of the times you've ignored my advice but instead, I've simply said my piece, let you do as you please, and left it at that. But I may question someone's advice quality when they're sticking platies in a jar setup after being told not to, and have had multiple others suggest no to fish in a jar. Since you want to air out laundry, thats that.


As fish keepers we should aim to do better, not just settle for what "will survive" in water and its a constant battle to improve expected conditions for fish in this hobby.


Question my advice, but a 6 inch fish in a 3 foot length tank is not humane and I will die on that hill and you not liking that my opinion bothers you isn't going to change it. It will not change my stance on it and I will continue to advocate for better conditions for fish since they don't have voices.


I have no beef with you, I do like you posting and we aren't going to always agree on things. The forum wouldn't be the same without you here.

 

[Magnum Man]

yes, I am that guy that does question, what doesn't make sense to me, and will occasionally try something, if it seems like it would work ( it's only been a week, but I'm not seeing any issues with the platy in the jar )... & while that is only a temporary experiment... I feel it will thrive, until I decide to try a splendens male... but if that continues to go well I may actually add a female???

I would agree with you on the tank size, but going to 18 inches thick, adds a lot of square area, over a normal tank thickness, and fish like cichlids seem to thrive on square area, not only linear...

... and yes, those are you, I did not publicly call you out... but not just you, but I've seen so much misinformation on the Electric Blues, from people that don't apparently have them, because there are almost no behavioral traits similar between the electric, & wild type Acarras... I've had 3 mature Electrics, in a 36" long, tall 45 gallon for a year or more... they are in with other fish, & they are not anywhere near the tank boss... I did try to put a smaller wild type Gold Acarra in that tank, which instantly became the tank boss, & required removal... there is nothing in common between an Electric Blue Acarra, and a wild type Blue, except the name... I don't know where the electric's came from as there are no line bred type available... I think they were gene spliced ( what! we can't say that )

@CassCats ... I enjoy your tanks, & the bulk of your posts ( just not all of them )

 

[fishorama]

It could be me too. I don't think there's anything wrong with offering my experiences with similar fish. You've had a different experience with that species, so it worked for you...this time or other times too? Mixed sexes? Breeding can often change things. That's not to say everyone will have that same success every time in every tank.

I'll use cherry barbs as an example. I had kept them a few times, always peaceful in my & many other's experiences. The last time I tried them they were like a different fish, aggressive to each other & similar sized tankmates to the point of death! I was shocked! Different tanks & tankmates, but I'll think about it before I try them again. Or say they're always peaceful & might go with usually...or often.