Something to think about

I found this article and would like to share it with all. You may look at it from two different perspectives.

One way to look at this is through faith - we may have unfaltering faith that GOD will protect us at all times and we may tempt fate and put ourselves at risk, in the sheer determination and belief that whatever we do, GOD is bound to protect us.

Another way to look at it is in opportunities – we may get an once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and let it pass, but when GOD gives us another chance, and yet another and we still miss it…that is beyond anyone’s comprehension!

Here’s something else for all to contemplate upon.

GOD WILL PROTECT ME

There was once a man who lived near a river. Now, this man was very religious and he had an unwavering faith in GOD. One day, the river rose over the banks and flooded the town and the man was forced to climb onto his porch roof. While sitting there, a man in a boat comes along and tells him to get in the boat with him, but the man says “No, that's ok, GOD will take care of me.” The man in the boat drives off.

The water rises, so the man climbs onto his roof. At that time, another boat comes along and the person in that one tells the man to get in, but the man replies, “No, that’s ok, GOD will take care of me.” The man in the boat leaves.

The water continues rising and the man climbs onto his chimney. A helicopter comes along and lowers a ladder. The woman in the helicopter shouts to the man to climb up the ladder and get into the helicopter, but the man tells her, “that’s ok.” The woman asks, “Are you sure?” And the man replies, “yeah, GOD will take care of me.” The helicopter flies away.

Finally, the water rises too high and the man drowns. He gets up to Heaven and is face to face with GOD. The man asks, “You told me you would take care of me,what happened?”

GOD replied, “Well, I sent you two boats and a helicopter, what else did you want?”

Seven Neon Tetras....

Today, my friend was supposed to get me the silver tetras but unfortunately, something came up and he couldn't go to the fish farm....sigh....

As such, my brother went to the aquarium and bought 7 Neon Tetras. Just finished transferring them into their new home. Hope they will last long (keepin my fingers crossed).

Fresh new start

Its time to have another shot at rearing fishes...despite my previous failures....through my failures, I have learnt a few things....

It seems that I made a few fatal errors...

Error 1:
I cared for the fishes too much such that frequent water change was actually bad for them.
The water may look yellow and dirty but it is OK for the fishes.

Error 2:
Always quarantine newly acquired fishes and keep them in a separate tank for two weeks to ensure that they are OK before introducing them into the main tank and risking full infection without any quarantine (which is EXACTLY what happened in my previous attempt ).

Error 3:
After a water change, DON'T feed the fishes....feed them a day later .
Well, there is a reason for it....after a water change, the fishes usually need time to adapt to their new environment and are not hungry..so the food simply causes the water to become more dirty and increase the risk of infections.

So this Saturday, my friend is gonna get me silver tetras ..I think.....yes....tetras again but with some shrimps...it seems that they help to keep the bacterial balance in the water....so I've been told .

Actually, another friend offered me recently hatched angel fishes (abt the size of a pin head) ...but I told him not at this moment...maybe once they are abit bigger, say the size of a 1 cent coin (that will take about a month), then I'll take them, provided my tetras are surviving.

Well, gotta go and prepare my fish tank for the arrival of the new occupants on Saturday....so wish me luck

Submission of my first "OFFICIAL" Draft Report

Today marks an event where I submitted my first "OFFICIAL" draft report....I have had numerous unofficial submissions which always led to the outcome of my doing more analysis.

Nevertheless, today was also the same but atleast I have submitted a proper full report for vetting

"Ick" or more commonly known as White Spots

This is one of the most common diseases that plague many fresh water aquarist, especially during fall or the raining season in the tropics where there can be a sudden temperature change which can trigger the infection under poor water conditions.

Fishes play host to some parasites/bacteria which seldom cause much harm under normal water conditions. However, the situation changes when the fish is under stress and the immune system wears down. This coupled with poor water conditions (e.g. presence of ammonia, pH or temperature variation) will exposed the fish to infection. Injuries, bites or cuts on the fish can also lead to infection if not treated properly. In the worst case scenario, the infection from a single fish can spread to all other tank mates and can lead to mortality.(This is precisely what happened in my case )

Firstly, the prevention of fish diseases must be dealt with. It's best to take the following basic precautions as first step in keeping a healthy aquarium :-

1. Avoid purchasing/adding fishes to the established tank which exhibits the following symptoms:

a) Unusual swimming behaviour e.g. tailspin, rapid or jerky movement
b) Signs of injuries to fins and body. e.g. bleeding, ulcers, skin or fin tear
c) Not eating. A healthy fish will devour any food gladly
d) Blurry eyes. Popeye or cloudiness.

2. Pay attention to the fishes for at least a few minutes a day and observe the behaviour. Stressed fishes may exhibit certain unusual behaviour :

a) Not eating.
b) Always hiding, being bullied by other tank mates regularly.
c) Coming up to the surface to breath regularly, could be a sign of an over-crowded tank or insufficient dissolved oxygen in the water (in the latter, changing fresh water will help) .

3. Ensure the water condition is kept to the ideal level.

Check for presence of ammonia and variation in pH (test kits are easily available) at least once a month. Practice regular fresh water changing, make sure the temperature and pH level is similar and not more than 50% of the water must be changed at one time. Avoid cleaning the biological filter all at once, alternate the cleaning.


If the above guidelines can be adhered, the risk of a mass tank infection can be reduced and hopefully would not have to resort to any treatment or tank "overhaul". The steps mentioned above are not hard and fast rules that one must adhere to religiously. In time, an experienced aquarist will know what to look out for before any disease outbreak.

And now, some basic in treating "white spot" disease.

Sc. name : Ichthyophthirius multifiliis (causative agent)
Distribution : World wide, in fresh and brackish water
Prevalent in water conditions : Increased Ammonia and Nitrate levels, abrupt changes in temperature especially a fall in temperature can cause an outbreak.
Infection Symptoms : Non-feeding, hiding abnormally, itchiness with rubbing & scratching , surface breathing and rapid respiration. Most obvious are the presence of white spots (about 1mm) all over the body and fins.
Treatment : The treatment prescribed varies depending on the mass of the fish, the fish general tolerance towards temperature changes and depending on the stages of the infection. The most general medication used is Malachite Green (available commonly) and the dosage is normally about 0.1mg/Litre of water. It's best to separate the infected fishes in another empty tank with similar water pH and temperature when applying the medication. Change the water every 10-12 hours and repeat the medication gradually for up to 3 days.

Note: Some scaleless and smaller fishes may not be able to tolerate similar dosage for larger fishes, it's best to reduce the dosage to half (read the medication instruction carefully, the dosage recommended may vary). If the fish can tolerate higher temperature conditions, one can also try to increase the temperature of the tank (must be done gradually) up to 27-28 degrees celcius. This will help to "kill" the causative agent which are very sensitive to higher temperature especially in the later stages of the infection cycle. The higher temperature condition should be maintained for at least 2-3 days.

Adapted from http://www.seremban.net/fishcorner/ft250399.htm.

I have had enuff!!!

Both the remaining Glolite Tetras died last evening despite of doing what I was advised to do!!! I'm gonna find out the cause of this casualty before I start keeping fishes again. For now, I gonna go back to fully concentrating on finishin up my report.

Do Fishes go to Heaven???

Today marks another sad day where all my Cardinal Tetras died ....all five of them to be exact!! It seems that the salt and Tetracycline couldn't save them.

It all began in early this morning where I spotted one of them swimming upside down. An hour later, it died. This trend occurred throughout the day until all of them died by evening.

Now, I just have two Glolite Tetras surviving. Don't know if they will get infected but so far, they have yet to get this infection. I really hope that they will SURVIVE. I will give them abt a week before getting new fishes as I'm not gonna give up rearing fishes and give it another try.

The Infection spreads...

It seems that although I had isolated the infected black neon tetra, this had not stopped the fungal infected to spread. To my dissapointment, I spotted white spots on my Cardinal tetras this morning

I quickly changed the tank water and added salt but a very minimal amount of Tertracycline. The fishes seemed to be stabilizing and were still active an hour later. I just hope for the best till next morning.

Death of my Black Neon Tetras...

Yesterday morning, I spotted white spots on my black neon tetras. Fearing that this may be fungal infection, I transferred them to another smaller tank.

The next morning, I managed to obtain a fish medicine (a form of antibiotics known as Tetracycline) from my friend. Upon returning home in the evening, I spotted one of the black neons to be swimming upside down. This was a bad sign. Nevertheless, I added the medication and hoped for the best

1 hr later, I found both black neons to be lying at the bottom of the tank, upside down and motionless

I then found out that these white spots are caused due to cold temperatures. Experiencing cold weather these past few days, this might have been the cause. However, this can be minimized by adding salt during change of tank water.