Chick-In-Of-TheSea

I recently watched a video by a snail breeder/lover and learned some tips. If a snail is sick it can be taken out of water for no longer than 15 minutes, then put back. (The snails have an organ that they use to breathe air.) This is called an air bath and the breeder said it is the only medicine for a sick snail. During the 15 minutes, the snail must be kept on a hand towel that is wet with tank water. Do not let the towel dry; ladle some more tank water on it if necessary. After the snail is put back in the tank, it should resume activity. The breeder mentioned nerites have trouble righting themselves if they are upside down, so when placing the nerite gently back in the tank, make sure to put their opening downwards. Good luck! 🙂

I've always been curious, especially since I live in the mosquito capital of the US (FL), how does one control mosquitos around ponds? I saw there are neem rings that can be dropped into water sources, but I don't know whether or not they are safe for fish. Anyone have any experience with this?

Lately I've been tempted to create a luxurious paradise 🌴 tank, then go into neglectful "chain store" and adopt the sorriest/saddest looking betta in the tupperware cup and give it an EPIC life 🎉. Heck, I have a quarantine tank now so why not do some good deeds?

I want to build a nanoscape vase too. What type of substrate do you use?

I agree with everyone about the overcleaning. Biofilm (beneficial bacteria) forms on objects in the tank, and it's beneficial to leave it there*. Be careful when following any filter media change suggestions. You'll want to make sure you always have cycled media in there so you don't have to go through New Tank Syndrome again which is likely to cause more fatalities and illness. So if you decide to change media, maybe just change half, wait a month, then change the other half. *Source: Walstad, Diana. Ecology of the Planted Aquarium.

I hate to give medicating advice. But I do like to use this attached chart at least for identification of disease. I don't use the brands they refer to. Instead I use the ones that are called the quarantine trio on Aquarium Co-Op's shop. I also made myself notes about this chart and what the medications it recommends actually do. Then I find the equivalent Aquarium Co-Op medications and just use those because I trust Co-op's products. I like this co-op article about medication: https://www.aquariumcoop.com/blogs/faqs/how-to-use-quaratine-med-trio

When you say you had a fish just "wither away", that sounds like wasting disease to me (parasite). The fish will have no other symptoms other than getting skinnier over time.

Nerites go above the water line all the time. It's part of their normal behavior. I don't think the issue is air since you said you added a second airstone. Do you have a heater? When you do your water changes (with water conditioner to dechlorinate), are you making sure the water you add to the tank is the same temperature as your tank water? (I use an instant read meat thermometer to check the tank temp, then I also use it at the faucet when filling my bucket). Fish do not tolerate temperature fluctuations very well. When you first bought your fish, did you float the bag in the tank to help them adjust to temp? (Another way to do it is through drip acclimation)

What kind of fry are you raising? I was trying to look at the statue decor you got going on too, but I couldn't see it all.

Those photos look ultra slimy! 😝 Sometimes I can see far into my mystery snail shell when s/he descends from driftwood or plants that s/he has been cleaning. It is so bizarre. I'll have to try to sex the snail next time I see them do that. Thank you!

Thanks! I saw a video of Dean building a similar one using a small, clear refrigerator drawer. Now I understand how it works.

Looks like the smaller black tubing might be supplying air to the breeder box? What is the purpose of the larger tubing?

Did my water tests! We are in good shape!

Mindy from FL here. I have a 29 gallon planted tank with black neons, pristella tetras, a mystery snail and a Nerite snail. I have a Bolivian Ram in a 10 gallon quarantine tank who will join the community soon. This is my first time having success with plants. I watched the co-op videos and used the plant requirements filter on their store site when shopping. I love Easy Green! This is also my first time adding driftwood; I had to learn how to prepare it, and it sure looks great.

Yeah, the more I learn about fish stress and fish illness, the more I see in the stores that I never noticed before. A lot of times I leave the stores feeling all bummed out. And it gets my blood boiling when the stores don't remove the dead fish. I do want to give props to the Pet Supermarket nearby though. They have their bettas in glass open-top containers and each container has a healthy sprig of hornwort in it. They look much better than the ones in Tupperware...

I have a 10 gallon quarantine tank. I planned to quarantine a fish for 4 weeks. However, I did end up adding a few more fish. Should I reset the "timer" for everybody or should I transfer the first fish to main tank when her 4 week timer is up? Fish 1 added 5/4 Fish 2 added 5/13 Fish 3-6 added 5/17 I choose not to pretreat fish with meds. I prefer to observe. However, fish 1 & 2 underwent a paracleanse treatment because fish 1 had white poops and fish 2 (moved from main tank) had wasting disease. Paracleanse treatment per box instructions. 5 course treatment 5/13-5/18 (so the 5/17 fish ending up soaking in Paracleanse for a day as well). I didn't plan to add fish on a staggered schedule, actually. It just kind of happened. Noticing the one with wasting disease in the main tank and then finally finding the fish I had been looking for for several weeks at the store.

Thank you so much for sharing your project! Fascinating!

You may want to check if the medicines are safe for plants. Some meds are not and you may want to move the fish or plants out to quarantine.

I'm not big on bubble eye goldfish. The bubble eyes look like water blisters to me. Also I don't like Glofish at all because they look unnatural and I don't know how they were "created" (?) I felt the same about another fish that looked like it had fluorescent paint on its top fin. I think it used to be called an Indian glass fish, although I don't know if they are still around or have the same name. Anyway - that can't be natural either. Right? I recently learned that pufferfish teeth have to be trimmed, but I can't bear to watch any video on it, nor could I ever picture myself doing that. Trimming a tooth would be like nails on a chalkboard to me. No way Jose!

I bought live brine shrimp. They sell it in bags at the register. How convenient is that for those of us without a hatchery? My tetras were so excited to have a live treat. Also bought spiderwood. What type of fish is it? Looks betta-ish?

Neat 🙂

They need some calcium for their shells. Look for "Snello" recipes online for DIY ideas. Some people powder eggshells (bake them first) to put in the tank, but I have found that to be too messy, and it's hard to get the shells into a powder. You want a powder so that the snails don't cut themselves on sharp edges. It is easier to drop a piece of unflavored cuttlebone (sold in the bird section) into the tank for them, but you may have to weigh it down with a rock if it wants to float. I also give my snails algae wafers or vegetables. The mystery snail likes zucchini, squash, carrot, red cabbage, green beans (canned, no salt, organic if you can find it). Any fresh vegetables will need to be boiled 15-20 minutes because they need to be very soft for the snail to eat. This is the only time I ever saw the nerite eat anything besides algae or glass slime (he is eating zucchini).