OVAS changed my life.

[Supressor]

Since I'm in the mood I'll tell you how much OVAS changed my life.

First off, my back ground.

Well, about a month before I found ovas all I had was my puny 10 gal tank -- the largest tank I've ever had since I was 6. I've had fish all these years, I went from a 1 gallon to a 2 gallon, then to my 10 gallon. Unbelivably, it wasn't tropical fish for about 6 of those years. It was a single barbut I got from the ottawa  river as a baby, and kept it all those years till it was 6 inches long. He got hard to catch in a 10 gallon tank so we let him go in a private lake that I can gaurentee never gets fished on due to its secluded area. I was pretty sad over that, but then my mom and dad bought me 3 of each of those strawberry and blueberry tetras (believe me, If I'd have known what I do about them now I'd never have bought them, as I do not support artificial coloring and dying). I made a n00b (amatuer) mistake and left the lights on the aquarium ( I wasn't used to it at that point as I only had it a few months) and I left to go to Renfrew? (not sure where at that time but was gone a while) although we have central air, incandescent lights brought the temp way up to like 30 degrees, and 3 or 4 died and the others got ich from the change of temp. they all eventually died because for me I'd never seen ich before. Then came the guppies. I didnt know how to tell the males from the females at that point, ended up I got 3 pregnant females. one guppy died giving birth, the other two spawned on for a long time. I ended up with a population crisis and my tank got disease ridden (again) and then I lost all but my pleco. Oh and I also got 3 glolite tetras but they died from that too. BUT... My cousin had some of my fry and luckily the chain lives on to this day... through one LOL. I'm not actually sure what I had after that. I think it was more guppies... Oh yes Neon tetras. I bought 3 neon tetras to keep the pleco company. a short while after having neons for so long I got more guppies. by this time the pleco was 5 inches long and this brings me to the month before ovas. I decided to get a 29 gallon through fighting with my parents. Of course, my pets and everything I look after and fund. So a week before I picked up my tank, my poor pleco died a sudden death. Was suckling on the glass that morning, that night he was dead. no idea what killed him but then I got my 29 gallon with 3 guppies in it. I was starting to get annoyed by the ammont of ich and fish loss I have had. I was starting to really think fish sucked. but then for some reason I took an interest in it again because I had looked up different types of fish, instead of the regular ones i've had for a long time.
I then was searching for local fish breeders and pet shops and came accross a local listing in OVAS. I signed up, and there I was, wondering wow what's in this place and what do I do. Over the time I've been on here searching and reading the classifieds (my fav on account of the fact I can't get, but I can gander )
I then got a load of fish from jGolden through Aiglos, and now my tank is fairly close to the stock i'd like.

I've learned so much... my life turned around. Instead of getting up as late as I could, usually weekdays 730, I'm up at 630 or earlier (I go to bed at 11) just to check for fry everymorning. Instead of the regular 2 feedings a day, I feed about 5 times a day and I even have a fry tank now :-). I'm even addicted to OVAS I rush home to check this site, and I do every hour till I call it a night.

I have everyone to thank for this, but I really have to pay my respects to those who pm'd me with things, and those who added me to msn, especially those who offered me free items that I mostly had to decline since I live in Pembroke. But most of all I think the members that really come to mind when I think of OVAS are Aiglos and jGolden for the trouble they went through to organize a delivery of fish for me (on top of it all free, although I did offer Aiglos a donation as a sign of thanks, but he generously declined)

Thanks all, I owe you. I'm drunk on fish. Sorry DarkDep, we get drunk off different things maybe when I'm 19 LOL.

One question for you all.... HOW DO I KEEP THAT DAM CAT OFF THE TANK?
I even put duct tape upside down so when he jumps on he gets stuck and falls off. He puts his hand in the little hole for the heater and swats at my fish, he even injured a molly and I'm kinda tired of replacing filters weekly from cat hair clogs.

And don't say kill the cat or get rid of him. I couldnt do it knowing that I raise him from a kitten.

ANY HELP???

[fishycanuck]

Hee hee! Sounds like you have multi-tank syndrome, just like the rest of us. Sure you had a lot of problems with fish sickness and disaster, but 75% of OVAS members will admit to having similar problems. The other 25% are lying.
I don't know what to say about the cat, though - but as you have discovered, there are a lot of helpful people on this site. I'm sure you'll get some answers.
Good luck! 

[darkdep]

Hee hee! Sounds like you have multi-tank syndrome, just like the rest of us. Sure you had a lot of problems with fish sickness and disaster, but 75% of OVAS members will admit to having similar problems. The other 25% are lying.

LOL!  It's so true

[apistome]

thanks for sharing your story. What kind of fish did you get for your 29 gal?

One question for you all.... HOW DO I KEEP THAT DAM CAT OFF THE TANK?

One answer - Water Pistol 

[Underwater]

Take an old soup can.  Put about 20 cents worth of pennies in it.  Put a lid on it and tape it shut.

Balance it ever-so-carefully on the edge of the canopy.  When the cat jumps up, it should drop and make a huge crash, scaring the cat.  A few times and the cat won't bother jumping up anymore.

Another option is to crinkle up a bunch of tin foil and flatten it out again, so it's kind of pointy, then put it on top of the tank. Cats hate the feel of it on their paws.

[apistome]

Or you could take the gun free, thoughtful appraoch....

Take an old soup can.  Put about 20 cents worth of pennies in it.  Put a lid on it and tape it shut.

Balance it ever-so-carefully on the edge of the canopy.  When the cat jumps up, it should drop and make a huge crash, scaring the cat.  A few times and the cat won't bother jumping up anymore.

Another option is to crinkle up a bunch of tin foil and flatten it out again, so it's kind of pointy, then put it on top of the tank. Cats hate the feel of it on their paws.

[darkdep]

Super soaker.  No small water pistol crap, go for a BIG gun.  I used to use one to train my cat to stay off the dining room table.  Once the cat took a few hits I just kept it (unloaded) behind the couch...cat ever jumped up all I had to do was lift it into view and the cat tore out of there.

[UCGrafix]

Hee hee! Sounds like you have multi-tank syndrome, just like the rest of us

Yep.
Welcome to the insane world of aquariums and fish keeping.
It usually starts off with a simple interest, then turns into curiosity,  if you pass that point you get into passion, then you develop a kind of illness and obsession. lol take all that and now try to keep the tanks down to a minimum. lol
Minimum is a relative term in the aquarium enthusiast world = what ever you can fit, where ever you can fit usually fits the bill. lol
I love it

Take an old soup can.  Put about 20 cents worth of pennies in it.  Put a lid on it and tape it shut.
Balance it ever-so-carefully on the edge of the canopy.  When the cat jumps up, it should drop and make a huge crash, scaring the cat.  A few times and the cat won't bother jumping up anymore.

Great idea.

[PaleoFishGirl]

Thanks for sharing, Suppressor  

I can't begin to tell you how much I've learned since starting to keep fish 7 or 8 years ago.  I don't want to tell you some of the mistakes that I have made in the past   What I will tell you is that the best resource I've ever found is this Forum and the wonderful people in the club!

I have to concur on the water pistol idea for the cat.  I use a spray bottle on mine when they are being bad - now I only have to reach for the bottle and they take off!

[Seanc]

well good to here that you have changed so dramaticaly ovar the last while. Maybe i should get some liveberers so i can get up at 6:30. Its helarious, i have the same thing with this site, every hour, i have to check it. when we are in the computer lab, all i do is surf ovas, and other fish websites. when ever i get a project i always try to sneak in something about fish(once i wrote an essay about golobal warming and effects on marine ecosystems, wich was totaly off the topic, and not at all what the teacher asked for, but it was soo good i got 100% anyways) Its so much easyer to write and do things about things you enjoy and intrest you.
But all the kids at school always ask me
"whats up with you and fish?"
"are you on that stupid fish website again?"
but they have learned to accept that i have a obsession with fish.\

well good luck with the cat problem, i would love spraying one with a supersoker.

And embrace your MTS

[darkdep]

True story:  I had a guy up the street come and ask me if he could buy some "weed" from me.  I asked him why he thought I had any of that stuff...he said "because of the lights in your house that are always on, you must be growin'. 

One of the reasons I'm moving my tanks to my basement...everyone on my street thinks I have a grow op because of my fish obsession

[Seanc]

lol you should of given him a bag of Duckweed! that would of been funny.

[FishBuddy]

Yeah DD, you should've give him a bag of those 'super-sized' weeds you have in the 90gal. 

When the guy is puzzled by it, then you said 'Weed for you is **not** the same weed for me :-) :-)'....

[UCGrafix]

True story:  I had a guy up the street come and ask me if he could buy some "weed" from me.  I asked him why he thought I had any of that stuff...he said "because of the lights in your house that are always on, you must be growin'. 

One of the reasons I'm moving my tanks to my basement...everyone on my street thinks I have a grow op because of my fish obsession

That's the best one I have ever heard.
You selling weed ( Sea weed, duck weed ) on the side to support your obsession there Dark ?. lolol

[Mettle]

Well, you know you're a fish geek when you're trying to decide what to do with your Thursday night... go to Retro 90s Night at Barrymore's downtown with friends. OR. Stay at home and attach new java moss (thanks gvv!) and anubias to pieces of mopani driftwood in order to redecorate a tank.

[fishycanuck]

Ask dpatte.... he's got a good "grow op" story for you too.

[Supressor]

Thread jackers

Ok answers to all you people.

1) Apistome- the cat only does it at night when we sleep, we only hear him jump down from it. Supersoakers and water are out of the question- hardwood floors.

I have 2 Adult Black mollies, three 2 1/2 month old black molly fry. I also have 1 zebra danio and 2 female guppies, one male guppy, um and the rest are a combination of blue platy and pineapple swords (sorry havent counted them since I got them)

The 10 gal just has 20 gup fry and 2 platy or swordtail fry.

[feral]

"Supersoakers and water are out of the question- hardwood floors."

Fishtanks and hardwood floors don't seem to mix very well.... wait until the motor for a filter isn't seated in the housing properly.  "I have no idea how 15 gallons of water ended up on the floor and why my tank is half empty"

[Seanc]

or forgeting you were doing a water change
my dad wasn't happy that day

[Supressor]

Feral, The fitler I have is impossible to leak unless the plastic itself cracks. It works with magnetic pulses.

And Seanc... How the hell can you forget your doing a water change? I never hear the end of it until I do it and get it done lol

[Seanc]

well, OVAS is the reason for that one, I guess OVAS has changed my life in more ways then one, My Dad will always be on my case about water changes, and "remember that one time you forgot and spilt it all? No more tanks for you son"

[Supressor]

meh, I make messes all the time, I'll tell you what I do. I get 2 or 3 beach towels, and I place them on the floor around the tank so any little spills will be fully obsorbed, and if a big spill happens well at least I have a head start on the clean up 

[PaleoFishGirl]

I'm sure your mom is really happy about you using her good towels for the fish water too

[feral]

"How the hell can you forget your doing a water change?"

If we knew that answer to that we'd never have the bucket overflow....
Python is seriously the way to go on bigger tanks!

[Supressor]

PFG, notice I said beach towels and we DO wash the towels when I'm done.

[Supressor]

I have a question for you all, I bought some Hornwort to put in my aquarium, only 2 long strands (and i mean long) so... What do I do?

[aidensmomma2000]

How the hell can you forget your doing a water change? I never hear the end of it until I do it and get it done lol

Yep, Python can be a problem that way...makes for a problem with both hardwood and carpets though! Youre lucky to have your folks to remind you  My fiancee doesnt pay attention to the water changes, but my 5 year old has saved our floors a few times now!

[BigDaddy]

I have a question for you all, I bought some Parrot's feather to put in my aquarium, only 2 long strands (and i mean long) so... What do I do?

Cut it into more manageable sections and plant the sections.  Where you cut... you'll get two shoots coming out.  If you do this along the plant, you'll get a nice bushy stem.

[Supressor]

Sorry BigDaddy, It was hornwort, The lady at the stand marked it wrong and argued with me its Parrots Feather, but I guess I was right after looking it up.

But it will still be the same way, right?

[BigMomma]

Sorry BigDaddy, It was hornwort, The lady at the stand marked it wrong and argued with me its Parrots Feather, but I guess I was right after looking it up.

But it will still be the same way, right?

With hornwort you can either plant it or leave it floating, that stuff grows really fast though.

[Supressor]

What about lighting?

[BigDaddy]

If you can see your tank at night... you have enough lighting   

Hornwort will grow under lower light levels.  A standard aquarium hood/strip is enough.

[Supressor]

Thanks big daddy, I leave the aquarium light on from when I wake until I call it a night, so roughly 13 hours of light. It's in my basement, so it gets light from the windows just not much because the blinds have to stay closed. lol.

I'm going to chop it into 6 inch sections after I get back from camping and plant it in the 29 g upstairs.

[ophelia]

Back to the cat question..... i think eventually the cat will tire of the tank. Mine all did. However, if time is of the essence you can elaborate on the pennies in a can idea. Hmmmm, that one might put a nice dent in your hardwood floor. Buy a bunch of cheap mouse traps, set them up on top covered with a sheet of newspaper. I've heard this way works wonders for keeping your cat off the kitchen counters.

[clouxles]

"How the hell can you forget your doing a water change?"

I forget way too often, I think it's from trying to get more than one thing done at once... more spills and dirty looks than I care to remember Thank Goodness my tanks are in the basement... concrete floor and inexpensive rug (with a wet vac in close proximity)... What would the perfect floor be, rubber like in the weight room of a gym? With a drain in the middle... Ahhhh

[Supressor]

What would the perfect floor be, rubber like in the weight room of a gym? With a drain in the middle... Ahhhh

lol, wouldn't it be the shower room then?

[Seanc]

man that would be sweet, you wouldent eavin need a bucket! good idea! maybe my next tank will be a bath tub, that would make it easy to change the water!

[Supressor]

man that would be sweet, you wouldent eavin need a bucket! good idea! maybe my next tank will be a bath tub, that would make it easy to change the water!

Or why not just get your tank drilled and put a small hose or pipe and put a shut of valve, all hooked into your plumbing, would be more cost efficent and a little more attractive.

[babblefish1960]

Oh I don't know about cost effective, nor looks, it occurs to me that there are some pretty amazing bathtubs out there, and what a cool idea to turn one into a tank.