So why did you choose the fish you have?

[cope]

I think this could be a nice thread..... I wonder what the certian appeal of the fish you chose? I had no clue as to what fish I wanted.. You go to the fish store and look and then find out the ones you like won't habitat together... So why did you choose .. your particular type of fish..

I have tiger barbs.. and they are so playfull and a joy to watch... very anitmated.
my tinfoil is the brute of the tank.. I thought he was cool looking
my angel fish are the old men of the tank.. slowly floating around and keeping watch over everything... and they are cool looking  (got these from Mike's on a whelm...made me an offer I could not refuse.... )
my gold gouramis was like my first fish... no clue why I chose him.. thought he was different
My Bala Sharks.. thought cool looking... seem to be intreverted.. always lurking under the ornimentaion... waiting for the right moment to dart out..


My other tank the 50.. my wife has claimed that one... and she has loaded it up with what she call CUTE fish....a cornicopia of fish to say the least... all community fish.... and she chose each one bases on the cute factor.....

So lets continue this thread and I would like to know more about fish that I do not have and might want to get.... like Cichlids, .. community tanks, semi aggressive tanks.and so on.....

this is a great site  thanks for all your help... it seems like my tanks are running very well.. thanks to the info I found on this site... and the helpfull residents here.... thanks again..Cope...

[Brownsnoutuk]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

First fish i chose were guppies, cause they were cheap and colourful. I dont have them anymore.

Angels because theyre pretty and easy to take care of.
Bristlenose because i like the common plecos but didnt want to have to sell one every year when it outgrew the tank.
Frontosa, because i had a good deal on them and had wanted some since seeing Scotts(Now some of Rauls stock)
Duboisi, cause i think as babies they are the prettiest trophs.
A Fahaka...Because hes as cool as ...An Mbu only smaller.
Recently got some Discus and sold all the angels. Wanted to upgrade from the angels and try Discus.

And of course the shrimp - cause they are cool to watch.

I have some other fish that came in as trades for some of my shrimp, and other fish that were only bought because they could live with my existing setups(not because i particularly wanted them)

[cope]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

so tell me aboutthese shrimp.... that would be cool... do the fish eat them? where do you get them? and how many is too many for a 60gallon tank... are there any down side to shrimp.... or other non fish residents.... what else can you put in a freshwater tank?

[wvgdiscus]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

I started with Discus back in the early 90's & still keep them around.
Its hard not to be able to pronounce the name discus.
When I 1st started with them most would tell me I would not be able to keep them alive much less breed them.
Now I can keep them with much easy & breeding them as well.
They continue to be some what of a challenge to me. Now I am working on being able to keep them alive longer then 5 years & getting them to the size of a dinner plate.
For me there is nothing like watching them grow into adults & know that I am the one who is the allowed to watch over them.
The other fish I keep I will make sure they can live in the same water as discus.
I also breed Angels & Bristle nose.

Walter

[fishlady]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

i have chosen as my favorite german rams.....they are so regal and fun to watch.....hard to keep so it is a challenge...
my green terrors because i found a balloon green terror that i fell in love with...and i got a buddy for him that my sweety bought for me....
my baby chimba's cause i wanted trophs soooooo badly they are the most curious little guys....and they grow up to have such personalities....i can't describe the love i have for my little colony.....and eventually i want alot more of them.....they have faces you just want to kiss them and hug them.....
my angels because they have such big bodies and such small mouths....they are alot of fun to watch and they are so graceful in their movements....
my brichardi's for their beauty .....and they breed like rabbits.....
the other fishies i have are my kids......i love them all so much...they are a solice to me....refreshes my inner self after a hard day at work.....
and my little green bottle puffers....they are so tiny and needed me as much as i needed them.....

i don't have a really good explaination of the fishies i have chosen....other than they all speak to me in their own way and let's me know they like me somehow......so i try very hard to give back to them as much as they give me......

my kids are grown and gone on with their own lives and have so little time for mom......so i have fish my kids.....
and of course i have my cat and my parrot....and my turtle named Chewie....short for Chewbaccha....(i'm a big star wars junkie).....
i guess i just needed to be needed.....and that's how i choose my little fishies....they have that look about them  that tells me they need me....

it's nice to be needed........

[J-WS6]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

I always had guppies, gourami's and goldfish growing up...just because they were accessible and cheap. Then, I went through the whole malawi stage because of the color and about after 8 months, I got bored with them. After that, I did a few fowlr's over the course of 6 months and still wasn't happy. I also did a few low tech planted tanks, but ended up selling them off. Went through a predator stage with a mbu puffer for about a year and a half, then he outgrew my tank so I sold him. Around the same time I really started getting into tanganyikans and have been hooked ever since. The personality, rarity and unique colors are what initially attracted me to them. However, one day I plan to do a full blown reef, whenever I get more money and time.

[cope]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

fish lady.. you are the sweetist...... I can tell you truely love your fish.... almost teared up reading your reply... strang the effect these tiny creatures have on us.... I too feel like my fish respond to me... I come home and they greet me (wanting food I'm sure).... but they are a nice extention to the family....  

keep em coming guys.... I am gonna look up some of these fish.. and they might become my next....... fun thread...

[imagirlgeek]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

Started with a mixed bag of cichlids because I liked that they rearranged their rocks to make it a home they liked.

Then I bought a tank from an individual and all the fish came with it.  I ended up with a colony of Frontosa and think they are some of the most elegant fish in the hobby.  

Bought some Tropheus Duboisi because they are so pretty, and I liked the idea of watching them change from spots to black with a bright yellow stripe.  That was the beginning of my Tropheus obsession.  We now have Nkonde, Kachese, Moops, and Moliro in addition to the Duboisi.  They are my absolute favorites because they are just so happy all the time!!  They are like little puppies (that's how I address them, too)    And there is no way you can't smile when you look at those sweet Troph faces!

We got the puffers because, well, they have the best facial expressions AND they talk to us when they are excited...which is usually at dinner time.

We got the Rams because we really liked their colors and they live well with the angels.  We got the angels because the kids liked them.

We get lots of fish because we will take just about anyone in.  So...we refer to our house as the 'Home for Wayward Fish'.  And that includes our Flagtail (who is gigantic now), a 16" Giraffe Catfish, 2 incredibly large Blood Parrots, a couple of Peacocks, a bicher, hmmm...I'm sure I'm missing a few....

At the end of the day, me and guygeek just love love love fish and instead of trimming back so we can try them all, we just buy more tanks, knock down walls, move out furniture.  

[wvgdiscus]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

At the end of the day, me and guygeek just love love love fish and instead of trimming back so we can try them all, we just buy more tanks, knock down walls, move out furniture.  

Now we all know who is really addicted.
At least tomorrow you can get another fix.

[Brownsnoutuk]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

so tell me aboutthese shrimp.... that would be cool... do the fish eat them? where do you get them? and how many is too many for a 60gallon tank... are there any down side to shrimp.... or other non fish residents.... what else can you put in a freshwater tank?

Most large fish will definitely eat them. Smaller fish will eat the babies. They work well in a tank of their own, or a planted tank.

I have Yellow, Orange, and Red Cherry. I'll be advertising some yellows for sale in a couple of weeks.

[imagirlgeek]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

Now we all know who is really addicted.
At least tomorrow you can get another fix.

Yep!  We've been working on tanks all day in preparation.  

[Zulaab]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

Originally when I lived in Denmark I had 7 tanks in my room -- at the time the biggest one was basically a 45g tank.
I had a ton of different South Americans

I moved to the US 22 yrs ago and decided back then I wanted when I bought a house to have fish again.
I got one tank and its grown to about the same number of tanks now.
I changed from South Americans to Africans because I wanted something different from what I was used to, and people here on the forum gave me fish because they had to many or needed new homes.

My 75 hold Yellow Labs (Labidochromis caeruleus) one of the more peaceful mbuna family of Malawi cichlids, bright yellow and easy to care for.  To that I added Some Hemitilapia oxyrhynchus which I picked up from Charles at 1800-Seahorse.   They are one of the more rare fish to see out there and this is why I picked them up.   To this tank I will be adding my Red Rubescent Peacock and most likely my Alhi because they like the longer tank to swim in compared to the 3ft 70g tank.

My 70 holds a mixture of my Sunshine peacocks (Aulonocara sp. "Stuartgranti Maleri" (Chipoka)) and Labidochromis sp. Hongi.

My 58 holds Neolamprologus leleupi (Yellow) and Princess of Burundi (Neolamprologus brichardi)
My 20L holds `Lamprologus` ocellatus (Gold)... I got these because I wanted to try out having some Shell Dwellers.
The last tank the 29G hold an oddity of guppys, Ottos, and Yoyo Loaches  -- got these because my roomate's son wanted a tank.. 3 months later no interest at all.  :(

[eklikewhoa]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

Started it all with a Pair of convicts in which I had a stunning male that had maroon colors in him...bred like crazy and the LFS bought them from me which paid for food and stuff(only reason I see now for them buying them all the time was cause they were good friends with my pops). Guess what? went out and got me another pair and now breeding them in odd places to see if they hold true to their reputation...breeding them in a bucket which there are hundreds of fry.

Tropheus....love how they are colonial fish/breeders....love the uniform look of a tank full of them and of course the challenge everyone made them up to be peaked my curiousity.

Moba cyphotilapia....well what word can I put here that has not been said about them alread? MAJESTIC!  Although they are in a new home now.

Tanganyikan fish really appeal to me and it's probably their lack of color which is abundant in other fish but what they make up in personality and gracefulness is the shizznit!

Onyx Perculas....very fun to watch clowns and being Onyx they are a bit less common. Also love the Anemone's in the tank.

Puffer.....what's not fun about these guys? under finned fish that can still shoot across the tank when they find the need!


Not a fish but planted tank is something that I like doing and it is almost up there with keeping tropheus! I like testing the "rules" and finding out for myself how far those rules bend.

[cope]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

well I was interested in the shrimp....I wet and bought 10 ghostshrimp.... put them in the tank.... and I think everyone had a shrimp dinner..LOL  ..not to laugh..but these guys did not stand a chance..... I am sorry I bought them...only 30 cents each...live and learn....holy cow... my tinfoil and my large angelfish has a field day....... better re-think the shrimp deal..... oh man...... there might be one left... but I bet he is shaking in his boots.... I am sorry, I can't help but to laugh...

[eklikewhoa]

Re: So why did you choose the fish you have?

Ghost shrimp are usually kept in really bad conditions and will transfer nasties....hopefully you didn't just pour the bag water in your tank.

You named some of the shrimp eater alright! Those guys would eat small fish moreless tasty shrimp.