moire_eel, how is your little betta fish?

Hi, moire! I was just wondering how
your little office betta was doing?

cj

 

EW! I didn't know she had a betta! I do too (Iused to have a lot!)

 

He died, I am sad to say. I had brought him home permanently and for a while he did quite well in his decor-less bowl. But then he started having problems with his fins again. I don't think he chewed them. I kept his tank super clean, too -- 100 percent water changes every five to seven days. He seemed to respond to the medication, but then a week or two later I found him dead. I don't know if he had a bad reaction to the medicine, a more serious problem, or his constitution was just weakened somehow. Poor guy -- he was probably the most beautiful betta I have ever had.

My "at home" betta is still doing well. I've had him quite a while. I have lost a lot of pets in the past few months -- many hermit crabs, all but one of the fiddler crabs I bought in October or November, and even my iguana, who I'd had for ten years. I work so hard at caring for my pets, too -- it has been very discouraging.

 

So sorry. Yes, my pets have been dying, too. One of my bettas, and all my hermit crabs.
Also, if you ever need help in betta care, ask me, or go to my message board (I have a couple betta experts there), God's Animal Lovers (It's in my siggy), OR go to "Animal Care", then "Betta Care", on God's Animal Lovers, I have betta stymptoms and stuff to cure it. Anyway, again, so sorry! Do you have dogs? I do, two!!

 

I'm so sorry, moire.

I'm having probs with my little dwarf hamster who may have bladder stones, and have just lately lost some of my long-time fish(and they all seemed to be doing fine). It is so discouraging. I know what you mean about trying so hard to give them good care, and we still lose them.
They are all so sweet. I keep trying to see
what else I could have done for them and sometimes feel at a complete loss.
Thanks for replying. I'm learning through others with how they handle each pet circumstance.

 

I know what you mean! I went to the pet store this weekend for medicine for my betta, who seems to have some fin rot. (Why?? I clean his bowl every week!) But anyhow, I was admiring the all the pretty bettas they have and realized that the medicine I was buying cost two dollars more than a new betta would! But of course what's the point of keeping pets if you don't care for them the best you can.

I wasn't going to buy any more hermit crabs for a while, but for some reason I looked at the crabs, too. This was at PetSmart, and I normally don't even look in their tank because it is too depressing. But they had such a lively bunch this time! I went home, but then came right back with my travel carrier and loaded it up with ELEVEN crabs because I just couldn't decide, and I know that after another week at PetSmart they will be considerably less lively. A couple have buried, but most are still partying it up in the iso tank. I don't think I have ever had such active newbies! I keep my iso in the kitchen, and the first night I made myself an egg sandwich for dinner. While I was cooking it I had five crabs peering out that side of the iso tank at me, as if to say, "Whatcha doing? Can I have some?" LOL! But now I need eleven more tool names. Better get to work on that.

 

LOL!

I have been putting off going to the pet store
for the same reason! I know I'll not be able to come home empty-handed!

I do need some supplies now, though, and my local pet store just sent me some coupons...buy this, get that...hmmm...

I, too, pay more for the meds than the pet, but I just have to try. One pet store in my area, that sells medicine for the hamster, said it would be better for me to give him the meds and keep him comfortable until he passes as a new pet is only $12. Or no meds at all and let him die. A vet visit would cost $200 she told me. (I'm sure she'd like to sell me a new dwarf hamster) but, I can't just let my little Brett Favre die of dehydration. So, there I am everyday, checking on him, paying for the meds...which now have cost more than the hamster. There is nothing I can do now, but make him comfortable and give him lots of water. But, he's irreplaceable to me. If he must be sick, I'd like to give him whatever dignity I can until the end. As for the fish, I must replace them, they have jobs to do in my tank, and their presence is missing.

Then, of course I MUST go by the hermies...

How fun with your new little babies! How wonderful they have you as their new mom!

 

Sorry about your fish friend. We love our Betta, although about the only time you get to see him active is when he thinks no one is looking!

Are all of the new guys PP's? That's all my Petsmart seemed to have when I took a peek.

I cannot wait until I get a cam so I can get your opin on my Crabitat and my lil cuties. I love your albums!

 

Yep, my new guys are all PPs, and that's all Petsmarts get here, too. It seems like I have done better with PPs and Indos, and my one Cav is hanging in there so far as well. I have lost so many Straws and Ruggies, that I am thinking I just cannot keep those. I have two Ruggies and three Straws left, and I hope they prove to be exceptions. Jury's still out on the Es, because most of the ones I've had were shipped with a heat pack that got them too hot.

Thanks for the compliment on the pet pages. I hope to get it all moved finally to my new domain this weekend.

I'm surprised your betta hides. Every betta I've ever had has always come to see me whenever I come into the room. And most would start doing that crazy "feed me!" dance! My current betta does go lie on the gravel to sleep, and often doesn't wake up when you turn on the light late at night. That really freaked me out the first few times I saw him do it, but after two years, I guess it's just part of who he is!

Incidentally, I have a pet named Bubbles, too. Here's my Bubbles:

 

That is what my bettas have always done as well.
I had one that also slept at the bottom of the tank under a plant leaf. Then for fun I put a castle in the tank and that became the new sleeping spot.

Bubbles is beautiful.
moire, I must tell you, I had a golden apple snail in my fish tank, and I loved it. During the summer months, I fed it romaine lettuce from my garden and it grew and grew. It got very big, and as it was going along the side of the tank one day, my husband saw it's little mouth and teeth. He was so distressed by this, and the fact that the snail would continue to grow and he'd see bigger teeth, he asked me for the first time ever to take the snail back to the petstore. I couldn't believe it! Well, although I had a moment of hesitation...hubby or snail... I did take it back, and moved on to plecos and clown loaches for algae and brown snail control in my tank, due to live plants.

The pet store was thrilled to take it back, and asked if I'd take a few more babies home and grow them to resell.

 

That's too bad that you had to take your snail back. With the exception of one Cana subspecies, those little teeth can't break the skin. Their little mouths feel like a cat's tongue. Maybe your husband would accept a Spixi? They are smaller. And striped. But you'd have to get them from a breeder: pet stores don't sell them.

I got Bubbles and several other apple snails after falling in love with my husband's golden apple snail, Proteus. (Bubbles is actually a different species, Pomacea canaliculata which can get baseball-sized! Canas, as they are called, are exceptionally friendly, which makes them fun pets. } But anyhow, what I never realized was that there are tons of cool colors of apple snails you never see in pet stores. I bought a dark purple, magenta, light striped purple and jade apple snail from a breeder, along with Bubbles and another Cana. Check out Mushy, my dark purple:



And here's Proteus with Gooey, my light striped purple. Proteus is about to put the moves on her.


Can you tell I love my snails?

 

moire, your snails and pics are gorgeous!!

My local pet store has had a few colors of the apple snails, but only a very few, mostly the yellow color. I have always thought them to be very pretty and a nice addition to a tank. Fun to watch, too.

I see a few brown snails periodically that manage to survive in my tank, almost as if the loaches are enjoying watching them grow. I don't mind them, except when I find the eggs and teeny babies pulled in my intake tube and then into the filter. (I have a h.o.t.magnum filter.)
I never had that problem with my appple snail, which is why I got one to begin with.

 

Yeah, the rare colors of apple snails aren't usually seen in pet stores. But as for your filter problem, you can keep the snail babies from getting sucked in by covering the intake with Aquaclear foam filter media. It comes in blocks, and you can make a hole for the intake tube and slide it on. It doesn't impede water flow at all, and it keeps the little ones out. And it also keeps delicate snail feet from getting hurt on the intake, which is why I do this in my snail tank. I don't know exactly what the H.O.T. Magnum looks like, but this should work for any filter that has an intake tube. It also keeps your fiter cleaner longer, since some of the gunk will accumulate on the Aquaclear media, which is a lot easier to take off and clean than breaking down the whole filter.

 

This is the h.o.t. magnum filter. I'm not aware of Aquaclear foam filter media. But as I think about it, the magnum has a carbon/media container inside it, covered by a Rite-Size foam sleeve, made for the container. I never thought of putting this foam on the intake tube.
Right now, I am having to break down the whole filter at cleaning time. This would definitely help, especially with the plant debris from the gardening and grazing fishes.

Oh,I learn so much from you!!! Thank you!
Thank you!

 

The image didn't show, but I was able to find a picture at That Pet Place's site. Here's a link to the Aquaclear media:

http://www.thatpetplace.com/Products/KW/F24AB/Class/Fis...P/8291/Itemdy00.aspx

It's just the foam for a particular brand of filter -- it isn't intended to be use in this particular way, but it just works. I learned about doing this at http://applesnail.net.

I use the Aquaclear filters for my snail tank, but I have an Eheim canister for my 75 gallon, and it's such a hassle to clean! I have to make my husband pinch the intake tubing while I change out the media. Because it's so annoying, I probably don't do it as often as I should. But otherwise, it's a great filter. Very powerful, but very quiet.

 

I'm so sorry about that photo I posted!

I'll try again and see what I can do. Thanks for the links!

My tank is only a 30 gallon, so I didn't need a canister filter (although, I was hoping they'd be easier to clean than pulling everything off the back of the tank for a good cleaning with water dripping on the floor ). The Magnum does work really well on the 30 gallon.

As my clown loaches are getting bigger and bigger, they will need a new tank. I was going to look at canisters then.