Even Fishier News
Apr. 28th, 2003 02:09 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lydySo, I went to Aqualand yesterday. I was out of Furazone Light, which is what I'm using to treat the remaining two neons. Could I walk out with just the meds? Hah! Look, I'm just pleased that I didn't walk out having spent more than $100. Not that I have a hundred dollars, which is part of what slowed me down, you understand.
I looked at the two tanks that had neons in them. One of them had a neon who was clearly doing that gasping thing that has killed so many of my fish, so I declined to buy any fish from that tank. The other tank didn't have any fish that were distinctly ill, but too many of them were swimming with their head significantly below their tails. This is often a precursor to illness, so I decided against that tank as well. The cardinal tetras, though... Cardinal tetras are almost as gorgeous as the neons, and have a reputation for being more robust. I got a half-dozen. I looked for the green fire tetras, as welll. I have three, at the moment, and they're really quite snazzy. The only look green at some angles, but they are brightly colored all the time. Alas, no green fire tetras.
I also bought 4 "asian apple snails". Who knows what they are, really. Mystery snails, apple snails, some other ampullariidae? They all look like mystery snails to me. I had 5 mystery snails a while ago. 4 of them died due to unknown causes. I had two gold, one jade, one black, and one ivory. The survivor is Ivory. This time, I got three golden snails and one black one. At the moment, the quarantine tank is crawling with snails. Since it's been overgrown with algae, this is hardly a bad thing. Some of them are destined for the 30 gallon in the diningroom.
My poor betta, Ruby Tuesday, is quite distraught by the sudden introduction of snails and tetras. Due to lack of space and money, he lives in the quarantine tank, along with 3 white clouds. He spent a significant chunk of yesterday sulking in the little slate and stone cave I've made. He's not as unhappy, today, but you can tell he doesn't like it much. Everyone else seems quite cheerful with the arrangement, including the white clouds who seem to really like the cardinal tetras.
I looked at the two tanks that had neons in them. One of them had a neon who was clearly doing that gasping thing that has killed so many of my fish, so I declined to buy any fish from that tank. The other tank didn't have any fish that were distinctly ill, but too many of them were swimming with their head significantly below their tails. This is often a precursor to illness, so I decided against that tank as well. The cardinal tetras, though... Cardinal tetras are almost as gorgeous as the neons, and have a reputation for being more robust. I got a half-dozen. I looked for the green fire tetras, as welll. I have three, at the moment, and they're really quite snazzy. The only look green at some angles, but they are brightly colored all the time. Alas, no green fire tetras.
I also bought 4 "asian apple snails". Who knows what they are, really. Mystery snails, apple snails, some other ampullariidae? They all look like mystery snails to me. I had 5 mystery snails a while ago. 4 of them died due to unknown causes. I had two gold, one jade, one black, and one ivory. The survivor is Ivory. This time, I got three golden snails and one black one. At the moment, the quarantine tank is crawling with snails. Since it's been overgrown with algae, this is hardly a bad thing. Some of them are destined for the 30 gallon in the diningroom.
My poor betta, Ruby Tuesday, is quite distraught by the sudden introduction of snails and tetras. Due to lack of space and money, he lives in the quarantine tank, along with 3 white clouds. He spent a significant chunk of yesterday sulking in the little slate and stone cave I've made. He's not as unhappy, today, but you can tell he doesn't like it much. Everyone else seems quite cheerful with the arrangement, including the white clouds who seem to really like the cardinal tetras.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2003-04-29 09:22 am (UTC)MK: Were you not able to drag the fish people over to the tank, point and ask for enlightenment?
I've tried this before. They never have an answer. Fish stores expect a high mortality rate, and if they treated sick fish they'd probably go out of business, or so I'm told. Frankly, I don't know why even Aqualand, which is pretty good compared to other stores, is so casual about sick or dead fish. Once when I was there, some albino african clawed frogs were eating the remains of a molly. Totally grossed me out, I fled. I told the desk clerk, who said, "Oh, yes, those frogs are good little scavengers."
I don't mean to be offensive, but it seems to me as if keeping fish is an exercise all too fully endowed with frustration. Why do you do it?
Based on careful observation, I would say that I am simply not interested in any hobby that isn't intensely frustrating. I don't count reading as a hobby. If you've ever heard me Have Words with my knitting, or describe some of my more ambitious crochet projects, then you have some idea of how frustrating I prefer my projects to be. It would probably be better if I would move a little more slowly. My crochet and knit work doesn't appear to be improving much, but that is mostly because as soon as I manage an acceptable quality, I move on to a more difficult project, rather than consolidating my skills.
I don't know why hobbies have to annoy the hell out of me. It's not as if my life is devoid of frustration without them. However, I have always thought that bitching was a relaxing diversion. That has the unfortunate effect of causing people to think that I'm more unhappy than I am when working on something. I have to remind people around me that I bitch for entertainment -- well, for my entertainment.
To each his own, I guess. Fish keeping is even more frustrating than knitting and crocheting, so it's been enormously satisfying. Now if the fish would quit dying, life would be perfect.
no subject
Date: 2003-04-29 11:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2003-04-29 12:45 pm (UTC)But, if it wasn't frustrating, then that would be frustrating, ne?
Besides, I'm sure that something else would crop up. Trying to maintain an artificial environment is tricky, and water chemistry is not something I know instinctively. Indeed, it's something that I'm having a difficult time understanding at all. There are endless ways to kill fish, I'm sure I can find more.
There's room for growth, too. Should I become bored, I can always start a salt water tank. (Aieee. I feel about salt water tanks the way I feel about running a Worldcon in Minneapolis. Run away, run away.)