Minanora
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Posts posted by Minanora
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On 12/11/2021 at 11:00 PM, Goldie Blue said:
That is so cool, our besties are the same. Between us we probably have 400+ board games, we get a lot to review from the site as well, so it's always Christmas in our house lol. We have all given up playing MtG with my husband, he is that player that knows EVERY card, and sits there with a straight face until he just obliterates you in one turn. It's obvious when he lets you win, which is even worse! LOL. You will LOVE the Lord of the Rings Journey to Middle Earth, it's such a great game.
I also doubt I will ever go back to WoW. I was a raid/guild leader for most of my time there, our guild just slowly bled people with each expansion until it was just a handful of us who were hanging on for no reason other than our friendships. I agree with you about jumping ship in '13 or even earlier... we all knew the game was going downhill but we held on because of the guilds/friendships. I don't regret that part, I just am sad that WoW's content just got worse and worse and we kept believing that it would get better.
Our last iteration of raiding was with a cross server guild, and the husband/wife team who led their half of it were absolutely miserable, so we killed Nathria on N and H and I was out. Nobody believed I would do it, and then I uninstalled the entire BNET launcher and never looked back lol. I was heartbroken to see what Overwatch had become as well. Nothing but bots and nasty aggressive people, and Blizzard just abandoned it as far as content. I LOVED OW for the first couple years.
As for my fishies, I have a 55g I have had set up for about 6 months. Before the ongoing crisis that led me here, I had 14 white cloud minnows (down to 7), 12 pygmy cories (all dead), 5 endler guppies (all dead), 10 female guppies (all dead, and they are the culprit for all of this), a pleco who is still going strong, my sweet betta Goldie Blue, 2 assassin snails, and 2 ghost shrimp.
I was already cycling a 10g to move Goldie Blue into, it was only set up to cycle for about 2 days before I brought those guppies home that wiped out almost my whole tank. Still kicking myself for this, but it's a hard lesson learned. It's been non stop stress every day for the last 2 weeks. I dread walking by the tank and seeing if anyone has died, but thankfully for the last 3 days everyone has been alright.
My 90g back in the day I mostly bred mollies in. I had an awesome betta back then and a monster sized pleco and some cories.
I did not have a mate for my older mantis, she came to us already fully grown. She was on my doormat when I opened my door, and we took her in. She laid her first ootheca about 4 days afterwards. I had no idea they laid more than 1, but I did know that the females lay ooths even if they are not fertilized. It will be interesting to see if we get babies from these ooths in a few months, since she was outside there is a great chance they will have babies, and someone told me that if they lay more than 1 they are probably fertile. It only takes one interaction with a male to fertilize all the oothecas they lay! Crazy! Watching her place it on her enclosure was one of the wildest things I have ever seen, they have these weird prong type things on their bottom and it looked like she was knitting the egg row by row.
I am hoping that I can get my 55g sorted out and keep everyone in there alive, and learn and grow from this horrible experience. My goal is that my betta can get moved into his smaller tank, hopefully in a week or two if it cycles, so that he can be happier. The flow in the 55g is just way too strong and he is miserable in there. This has been heartbreaking beyond belief, and I feel so bad for failing my little fishy friends.
OMG It's the same thing with my Husband.... Dude... He can grind my gears sometimes. He builds the most killer decks, knows all the things... He's legit one of the best "natural" gamers I've ever met and it makes me so mad. I beat him at chess twice in the last 11 years. Haven't played with him since my last win! He wanted to learn how I won, I decided that I wanted to end on a high note. 😛 I'm sure we'll play chess again but I like to wave my "I beat you at chess, TWICE" flag around still. He wins at almost every game we ever play, no matter who we play with. When we are all drunk and sleepy we usually all just agree that he won and call it quits. XD
I totally agree with what you're saying about WoW. I still have my blizzard launcher installed... I should uninstall, but I enjoy talking to some of my friends when I make the time. I look back on raiding ICC and it makes me want to go back to that time. I feel like a lot of my time spent in the most recent expansions was me just wishing that it would feel like that again. I even started playing BC Classic there for a while.
That story about how long the mantis can be fertile reminds me of my guppies. Forever pregnant. I'm so glad that doesn't happen to humans. >.>
I forgot about your thread regarding your 55. I feel your pain. Keep fighting the good fight. I got back into the hobby in May, so 6 months here too! The 20G was a gift for my Son to help him sleep in his own bed. I think we've all got our horror stories of some kind. I learned the hard way to quarantine fish and plants. I also learned the hard way about when it's okay to buy fish online and who to NOT buy fish from, no matter what the weather is like. Then I learned the hard way what Nitrates can do to fish if they suddenly spike to extreme levels... Always learning! Hard lessons suck though. I'm an emotional person, which doesn't help! Being stubborn and persistent have proven to help at least. I feel like I've saved a good number of fish at this point. Never feel like you're failing them! The fact that you keep trying is proof that you're a great fish mom. You've got this! And we're all here to help you on your journey!
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Don't forget the corydoras! 💚😊
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I finally got through all the pages of this today. What an adventure so far! Congrats on the babies.
Thank you for sharing! Rooting for you and having your recent changes settle in. Changing careers with a family and hobbies, and changing schedules can be chaotic to say the least. I feel for you. 🙂
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I have to say, I can appreciate what I assume is a glass of whiskey in your initial post. My go to, 100%.
The progress of the 40s is awesome! Algae struggles can be frustrating. I love all of your helpers! Congratulations on the new addition to the family as well!
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Cool! I hope they hatch. Fingers crossed for some baby pictures! Hillstream photo bomb for the win.
Also, beautiful piece of wood in there! Plants look amazing, too!
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Welcome back to the hobby and welcome to the forum! Love your animals! I'm excited to see what you decide to do with your tank setup. It's hard to have just one tank! 🙂
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Welcome! Beautiful fish! I love the plants, too! And best for last, the shrimps! ❤️ They're adorable!
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Welcome! Corydoras are great! You've come to a great community to ask questions! Looking forward to reading about the progress of your Betta tank. Super awesome that your family supports your hobby as well!
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On 12/11/2021 at 11:49 AM, Goldie Blue said:
That's so great! What board games have you guys been playing lately? We are starting a second campaign in Lord of the Rings Journeys in Middle Earth, and I am anxiously awaiting the expansion for it that we preordered! We also checked out Vampire the Masquerade: Rivals a few weeks ago, it wasn't as good as we had hoped for.
I quit WoW earlier this year after playing since the start. ESO is my MMO of choice, been playing that since beta. I just can't get into FFXIV anymore after all the freedom that ESO gives. Hubby and I play Smite every night together, he gave up MMO's 8 years ago.
We never thought of keeping a mantis as a pet either, it was meant to be a learning experience for my son but I am the one who ended up becoming fascinated. I'm pretty sure my old girl might pass soon, she has laid 5 oothecas and has slowed down a lot in the last week. I think she is blind in one eye, so I am glad we could keep her warm, safe and with a full belly in her last few months.
We play a lot of Risk, MTG, Settlers of Catan, other variations of Risk, Metal Gear Solid Risk being my favorite so far, Coup, Ticket to Ride, 7 Wonders, and Splendor are a few. We have a whole cabinet of games, and our friends bring over some. Besties not a fan of games like Risk so we wind up playing things like Spendor, and her favorite is Love Letter. but that's a card game. We want to get into the LotR:JME but haven't made the time!
I quit WoW this year as well. I'm a Vanilla WoW player also! So much time invested... Such a shame. I won't go back until they get their act together and even then I may not go back. I do miss HotS though; I play a mean Abathur and Zagara. My friend Tyler and his wife have tried to get me to play ESO but I fell in love with FFXIV thanks to my husband. He tried to get me to play back in '13. I should have jumped ship from WoW then, but I was a raider and top tier heals for a long, long time and had a deep connection with my guild. Then they merged servers, and did the cross realm stuff and it all fell apart anyway. I also enjoy watching my husband play just about any game on the TV. I played Counterstrike with him a few times when we were dating and I had to stop because no matter how good I thought I was, he always kicked my butt. Any first person shooter... And Starcraft... He's a monster and it's not fun if we aren't on the same team. Haha.
Did you get your oldest mantis a mate? Baby mantis are the cutest. It is really cool that you guys were able to give her a good home. It's a shame that they don't have the longest lifespan.
I'm obsessed with Cicadas. I love them. I'm from a place where we had a lot of them when I was a kid. I used to collect their shells and stick them on everything. We have a few where I live, but not enough to even know what you're hearing when they emerge if you don't know what you're listening for.
What kinds of fish do you keep now? What did you keep in the 90 you had long ago?
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On 12/8/2021 at 1:48 PM, Mmiller2001 said:
I QT everything livestock and hydrogen peroxide dip all plants.
Detour: I learned the hard way to quarantine/dip plants. I recently bought a plant that had Hydra. That same darn plant went into what was/(may still be) the home of my neocaridina shrimp. I was also an idiot and put planted substrate (controsoil) in that same tank but that's another story all together.
Back on track: I'm on the quarantine train. Just watch them, no need to medicate. Learn about shrimp specific issues though so you can keep an eye out for those while they're in quarantine.
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Welcome! I love your introduction! Your family is quite similar to ours! Board games, 2 dogs, video games with my husband, hiking/fitness, and we have a young son. My previous tank was a 55, came back into the hobby after 13ish years with my sons 20G. Now I have that, a 75, another 20 and a 5.5. plus a 2.6 that's cycling.
You mantis' are really cool! Never thought to keep them as pets. I let them protect my vegetable gardens and get very excited to see babies every year.
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What substrate do you use? & What media is in your canister? I've recently started using a tds pen in my tanks. I don't have a lot of advice regarding the readings. But I know you can work on getting the readings down by doing water changes with RO water and it really helps get tds, pH, and KH/GH down. Been slowly getting things down on all of my tanks this way.
Once a tank gets where I want it, I then mix ro and tap water to get the same parameters for water changes, let it sit for a few hours before testing then put it in the tank. On my biggest tank it can be a pain but I hardly ever need to change water in there so it's not so bad.
Also, to address the low KH, crushed coral could be a good solution. You can put a small baggie in your canister.
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On 12/10/2021 at 11:19 AM, Zenzo said:
Hey Everyone. I am happy to announce the recipients of Forum packages for October and November, 2021. Please help me congratulate the winners. I will be putting orders together to send out shortly.
October, '21: @Guppysnail @Odd Duck@Jungle Fan
November, '21: @lefty o @Atitagain @xXInkedPhoenixX
Congratulations you guys! Well deserved! I didn't even know this thread existed until today. So many helpful, caring people listed through the many months past.
In this particular group I've interacted with all of 'em to an extent. Great folks indeed!
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This is so cool! I hope they make it! I look forward to photos, too!
Also, what plants did you move into that tank?
I would guess that they're harlequin rasbora fry.
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I LOVE IT! Moss is amazing! I look forward to watching it fill in. The lighting is great. What light did you get?
Shrimp is a fine choice. I have fallen in love with the Orange Neocaridina I got. Shrimp only tank is extremely peaceful.
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On 12/10/2021 at 8:22 PM, lefty o said:
you will be up to your eyeballs in guppy's before ya know it. guppy's have a way of making rabbits look like monks when it comes to breeding.
Isn't this the truth! The struggle can be real. It takes about 3 months for babies to totally color up and be ready for sale. I try to get mine out the door at 10 weeks. In the meantime, more babies are born!
I separate my males and females now. Especially knowing that the females can consecutively give birth for up to 6 months after their contact with a male. Don't be me and have 3 strains and mutt guppies going at the same time, in the winter.... Mistakes were made... but I'm still happy and in love with all of the babies I have. I just wish I had more tanks to put them all in! Curse the winter months!
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It's not uncommon to lose Otos unfortunately. As InkedPhoenix said before.
Once an Oto is starved to a certain point, they refuse food from then on. Generally if the Oto's don't have a little pearl shape to their tummies in the shop, I won't buy them. The ones I've gotten that were thin in the shops have all passed within a month of being in my tanks. However the one's I've gotten that had a good shape to their stomachs (no ribs showing, or sunken bellies) have all survived.
Blanched zucchini is a favorite of most of mine; they prefer it after it's been in the tank for a day. Some prefer the Reef Nutrition TDO Chroma Boost pellets and will sift for them with the corydoras. They all love to munch on brine shrimp. They are also happy to accept Repashy coated river stones now and again. I coat the stones and then let them turn to a jerky coating before I put them in. I feed my fish a ton of variety.... By no means am I saying you need all of the food I offer mine. 😛
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First photo highlights the Myrio.
Second photo highlights the Ludawiga.
Third photo the ltawain lily Nymphoides hydrophylla on the sides of the fast growing pogostemon.
Fourth photo more of the myrio and some green hornwort that I can't decide if I like or not.
Fifth photo shows how the pogostemon is flowing over the top to the front.
Sixth photo shows the scale of the plants compared to the 75G volume, same with the 7th. -
I'm a fan of Myrio. For green, Myriophyllum Pinnatum, for a lighter green/reddish, Myriophyllum Roraima (seen in the background of my 75. Pretty fast growing, cuttings grow super fast. Some fish love to snack on it. My guppy babies and Swordtails eat the lower leaves, but when they go bare, it's about when they hit the surface, and I just cut them and replant the tops to hide the bare stems while they regrow.
I also have a few cuttings of Pogostemon Stetellus Octopus in the middle, which is now reaching over into the front of my 75G from the back wall. And that has grown in very quickly.
Then if you want something thin and that will let a lot of light through, red/maroon in color; Ludwigia Arcuata. Seen in the far left of my 75G.
Then, of course, there's my favorite, Nymphoides hydrophylla, which can be seen on each side of my pogostemon bunch in the middle back wall of my tank.
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I'm sorry you're still fighting the good fight with Curly. Keep it up!
Make sure you're keeping everything in check with your water parameters while you're treating.
Keeping you and Curly in our thoughts. We're rooting for you guys!
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Babies are always exciting! ALWAYS! So to me it's very exciting! 😛
Congratulations on your first batch of fry!
Mark your calendar. I do this with each batch of my guppy fry, for each mom. My shortest pregnancy was 23 days for one of my guppy females. Marking the calendar makes it so I know roughly when I should put them in a breeder net. I try to catch them at 22 days. Misty being at 23 days was a surprise. I expected to have a few more days before so she could settle in and get comfortable in the breeder net.
Looking forward to seeing those babies color up! ❤️ Congratulations again!
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I am excited to see what you choose to do. I would use the weeping moss but I'm sure you'd probably have shading issues with it similar to the java moss and have to groom it as well. I have Christmas moss on my spiderwood and the tufts that are closest to the light grow a bit of hair algae, but it doesn't bother me all that much. Had I known exactly where to buy weeping moss, I would have done that instead of christmas moss.
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On 12/9/2021 at 8:55 AM, Guppysnail said:
You sound like me playing musical tanks. The larger water volume will help with the smaller filter and buy it more time to do its job. I’m glad all is going well with you. Hey was it you who said rotala grows like crazy? I bought some to try.
I seriously spent all day on fish tank stuff yesterday. I should have put on some music! Then it really would have been musical tanks! 😛
Yeah it was I with the rotala obsession. I just got some Rotala 'Bangladesh' as a tissue culture. We'll see how that one does. My first time using tissue cultures yesterday.
My rotala indica, rotala macrandra green, and, rotala h'ra gia lai do great. My rotala nanjenshan does not do quite so well but it could be because of where it's planted. Rotalas do have a more delicate leaf, and the nanjenshan has the finest leaves of the bunch so that could also be a factor. The rest of the rotalas handle my swordtails, guppies, harlequins, shrimp and otos traffic just fine.
I have a ludwigia arcuata that does alright and looks the way it's supposed to; however it's just slower growing than my Rotala and a bit less dense of a plant than I like.
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On 12/9/2021 at 3:49 AM, Guppysnail said:
Your guppies are very beautiful. Fellow daily water changer for nitrates. I feel your pain. I pull my babies to a 20 long after they are too big to be eaten. Then move boys to 2 10’s as soon as I can tell. They max out the capabilities of the tanks even with ridiculous amounts of filtration. I get nervous as they approach size to take them to the LFS.
Thank you. They're all doing well, too.
Yesterday I moved all of the babies that were in the 10 to the 20t I received. However, I also added the new babies that Misty and Shiva had as well. Probably 30+ week old kids. Squad 5-6. Squad 1-2 will be leaving for the LFS the week after Christmas so that will help a bit. Things that aren't helping... I had to pull the sponge filter I had in the original 10 to put in a completely new shrimp tank and I don't have a bigger filter for the 20 so it's still using the one that was on the 10. So.... Now I just have more water volume, not so much a better filtration situation to match the new size. But, I mean, it's just nitrates anyway, so I was keeping up. Just, losing that sponge was not ideal.
My original shrimp cube was doing great. Had a ton of algae and happy snails. pH was stable. GH, KH all good. Cycled and happy. I ordered my shrimp. Then, the same day... Hydra appeared, they ate all the cyclops and other inhabitants, I don't know how, but then the nitrates spiked and the pH fell. Tried to get it back to happy even with the hydra, no dice. The controsoil was now playing a roll in over buffering the water. Tiny tank challenges...
So the same day the shrimp shipped I had to bust out that 5.5g. I put in inert sand substrate, got all new tissue culture plants. New rock. Rolled the dice with the sponge and wood from the fry tank and got the shrimp in a whole different setup when they arrived yesterday. Making the decision to abandon the 2.6g until I can reset it was the hardest thing I've had to do. I spent over a month getting that ready and then didn't use it!
I hope the shrimp do okay in the 5.5 while I get the old tank set back up. I'm waiting for some "no planaria" to show up. Trying to save the environment in the 2.6. I switched the substrate to inert sand and replanted everything that was in there. All else fails, I actually really like the 5.5. I love that they have more room in there. I had only done the 2.6 because my husband wanted it to take up very little space and he loves the cube.
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Help with Betta! He's lost more than 50% of his fins in the last few weeks and appears to be ill
in Diseases
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I agree with exactly what Colu has stated above. Curly isn't doing so great. I'm so sorry that this has been such a rough road with him. Offer Curly a variety of foods to see if he will accept any of it more readily than the pellets. Flakes may be easier for him to ingest than pellets or frozen brine shrimp. Be sure to remove uneaten foods promptly so they don't foul the water. Foods that are high in nutrition are crucial if they aren't eating well. You can also use some seachem garlic guard to help entice him to eat whatever you're presenting him. You can suck up uneaten foods with a turkey baster or oral irrigator. Tiny bits of water removal aren't detrimental to the effectiveness of the medication. Especially if you're only removing a small amount of water to keep ammonia from spiking because of food waste.
Check your ammonia and nitrite daily during treatment. Prime can help while treating diseases where you can't change the water during treatment. Prime detoxifies ammonia, nitrite and nitrate but only to a certain degree so it's very important to monitor everything daily, remove uneaten foods, and otherwise keep everything stable and clean.