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Yes.... Time to clean...:P

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Codyandme1

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Ewww.....yuck!
Did a delayed clean out today and a partial water change,
I cleaned the gravel while sucking up a third of the water with my pumpy thing...:)

Anyway... ImageUploadedByTapatalk1327306626.209569.jpg
Sorry about the bad picture, it was taken with my phone, so I had to take a pic OF my phone to upload it.

Dirty much!
Yuck....

My poor fish jumped out of the pot he was in TWICE!!! :O I hope he will be ok :(
 

waterfaller1

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My poor fish jumped out of the pot he was in TWICE!!! :O I hope he will be ok :(
Try not to delay your water changes. This is the biggest killer of fish, and leads to suffering diseases such as fin rot and dropsy. Also, try to use something size appropriate and maybe cover it, so your fish does not jump out. I hope he is ok.:)
 

Codyandme1

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I did cover it, he seems ok, I'll let u know in the morning if he's ok or not.

The pic is alot darker so it wasn't as bad as it looks, we are setting up a quarantine tank tomorrow to get some more fishy, as little sharky is a loner in such a big tank!
:p lol
 

Birdiemarie

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I use a bucket specifically for my two goldies when I clean the tank and only fill it half way so they have room to swim but don't jump out. I will cover it if needed. I put an air stone in it as well so I can take my time when cleaning the tank.
 

Codyandme1

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YAY HE'S OK!!! :p
The tanks a little cleaner, ImageUploadedByTapatalk1327369132.608278.jpg
We are getting a cleaner fish soon so he can reach the stuff I can't seem to get off...
Here's a pic of sharky!
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1327369233.747520.jpg
Thankfully he's all good, we've had him for a year or 2 now, and although other fish have died around him he is still going strong!
:D
 

Birdiemarie

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He's a beauty! :D
 

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If you are going to get an algae eater, I would recommend against the ever popular plecostamus. They grow to be 2-3 feet long and really deserve to be in a huge tank. They also are not the best algae eater in my experience. A bristlenose plec/catfish are much better feeders and usually grow 4 to 6 inches. Plecs of all kinds, however, do require some driftwood to be for dietary and territory needs.

Also, the Chinese Algae Eater (CAE) / Indian Algae Eater(IAE) / Sucking Loach only eats algae as a young fish, so once they reach 4 to 6 inches, they stop eating algae, so those aren't good either.

I personally have Otocinclus sp. Oto / Dwarf suckermouth catfish / Dwarf Pleco...they do best in small groups of 4 or more fish, but I love them because they are kind to my life plants while still eating the bad stuff I don't want!


If you are looking for something that eats stuff off the bottom of the tank, just know that fish won't eat waste no matter what it is. For leftover food and stuff though, I can't beat my corydoras (cory) catfish. They come in many many colors and are fiends for leftovers! They are very social though, so i would think six would be the absolute minimum I'd keep in one tank.


Overall, remember that anything that eats waste from the substrate only uses a tiny amount of whatever it consumes and returns the rest as waste. So you would be adding to your bioload, which makes your tank messier faster :)
 

Codyandme1

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I used to have a plecostamus, he grew to about 4inches. I dont really have a big choice of fish were I am, the only other loach i have seen looked like this
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1327377068.178321.jpg
(pic is off the Internet )
I'll see what I can find though,
I was told fish only grow according to the size of their tank.

Any fish that would go well with sharky?
 

Mizzely

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Fish DO get stunted by the size of their tank, which is why I find it cruel to house them in something that will inhibit their growth. It would be like saying "well a bird will only grow to the size of their cage" and so you put a hyacinth into a 18 by 18 cage so you can keep it :(

The picture you haev there is the Chinese/Indian Algae Eater or Sucking loach I was talking about. They only eat algae as babies.

If you have a hard time finding fish in your area, I would look at ordering online. Fish that you buy at the pet store already get shipped to them, so you are just eliminating a leg of the journey; instead of having the store take them out of the box, into a temp tank, then nab them and bag them for you where they ride in the car to be put back into a tank....you can get them shipped to you and put them right into their home :)

Balas are a shoaling fish, meaning they prefer 3 (preferably 6) or more of their kind to be happy and feel safe, but they have been kept successfully alone. In a correct size tank, they grow 14 to 16 inches, so to truly keep these guys requires a laaaaaaarge tank (in the 125g range)

Balas are generally peaceful, so they can be kept with other fish (anything that won't fit in its mouth). I personally love Gouramis like golden or opaline, which grow to about 6 inches. I would only keep one though as they are territorial. You could also get a small school of something such a barbs or the larger tetras (black skirts come to mind).
 

waterfaller1

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What size is your tank?
 

Codyandme1

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I have no idea what size- about 2 and a half foot long, 1 and a half tall and about 1 deep.

I'll be going offline for ahwhile, so I might not respond straight away, soz about that, Will come back ASAP though!
Anyway,.... I don't think mum will let me order fish online, I would prefer to but, well..... My mum :p
 

Codyandme1

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Also isn't the Balas a silver shark?
I'm confused....:/
 

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Also isn't the Balas a silver shark?
I'm confused....:/
It's more a minnow, than a shark

The Bala shark, Balantiocheilos melanopterus, is also known as Silver shark, Tricolor Shark and Tricolor sharkminnow. It is a freshwater species, with a maximum size of 14-16", and it is commonly kept in larger aquariums. The male Bala sharks grow larger than the females. The Bala shark is not really a shark; it is a bony fish and belongs to the class Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes), the order Cypriniformes (carps) and the family Cyprinidae. The Bala shark is called shark due to its sleek and shark-like body shape. The Cyprinidae family includes several well known fish groups such as carps, danios, barbs and minnows.
 

Codyandme1

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So sharky is a Balas...?
A silver shark...(that's what I have always known them as):)
 

Mizzely

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So sharky is a Balas...?
A silver shark...(that's what I have always known them as):)
Yes, he is most certainly a bala :) Sometimes marketed as a silver shark!

~*~ Sent from my phone, so please excuse any typos! ~*~
 

DeeZy

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When doing a water change you def do not need to remove fish from the tank. Netting them and removing is really stressful and can make the fish become afraid of you. Your bala shark has very stunted growth, you can tell when fish are not growing properly when their eyes are large and not proportional to their bodies. Also this fish is meant to be in a large group and in a very large tank. You should think about returning him to the pet store and starting over with fish that are meant to be in a tank that size. If your tank is 2 1/2 feet long and 1 deep than it's 40 gallons, or 150 liters. BTW it's not your fault that you didn't realize this fish shouldn't be in this tank, as pet stores do a horrible job with selling fish and giving info on how they should be kept.
 

waterfaller1

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Thanks Thomas. I never take my fish out either when doing a water change. Good post!
 

Codyandme1

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Thankyou, I don't normally remove them either but with how much dirt I new I would disturb I thought it would be better if I did, although I removed him by scooping him up with the water with the pot he sat in, I HATE netting fish, I'm always scared of damaging those beautiful fins.
How about a few guppies? I love them...

I have trained sharky to take the flakes out of my fingers now, he used to hate fingers... Now he thinks they're great(because he gets food :p)
 
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waterfaller1

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If you get guppies, just get boys. If you get females you will have a big problem.:o:
 
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