Blue Ram

Just a heads up to do your research when buying any fish - especially when mixing cichlids. They vary so greatly from region to species you can end up with a disaster on your hands. If the retail outlet you bought from cannot identify these fish, they are very lacking in knowledge.

Keep it in pristine water conditions with no other fish to stress it out. It should not die if it lost its eye to an attack but it's important that it be under no stress until it heals. Aquarium salt would most likely be beneficial.

I rec'd 8 snails yesterday from Vancouver via mail. No casualties. Divided them up into 5 tanks. This morning I could see 4 of them in the act!! Pretty little snails too - only 1/2 inch now but supposed to max out at 1".

I feed my tropheus a high qualilty spiralina flake in the AM and NLS pellets in the PM. They love both. The flake is good for fry because I can crush it up for the fry who cannot eat the larger pellets until they are bigger.

Anyone have any advice on how best to treat a cloudy eye. Most of both eyes are opaque but not completely. This could be the result of stress as new fish were added to the tank recently. Do you think the fish can see as it is not eating? I'm keeping the water conditions pristine. I added melafix last night but was wondering if anyone has had any experience using something else?

what do you mean by this

"Thee first two being at 2 is good"

Since it looks like you are in Calgary, you might want to check out the Calgary Aquarium Society auction on Sunday - see other posts here - very good auction for starting up a tank on a budget.

I found a source (April's in Vancouver) who is going to express mail me some. From everything I have read, shrimplets should not be in any danger - the assassins only eat snails.

Do lots of reading about tropheus, they are very hard to keep after they get to breeding age. They are also very aggressive fish and have very strict feeding requirements.

I have to disagree with this statement. I have had a breeding colony of 14 adults for 15 months. I have approximately 20 juveniles of different ages. The aggression is very minimal if you have the tank stocked appropriately. My 1/2 inch fry swim actively with the 4" males. As for care, regular water changes and the appropriate diet are all that is required. I do however think they are best in a species only tank. I only have one pleco in with mine.

You are running almost 3 watts a gallon with your current lighting. You can cut back on the number of hours the light is on or try DIY C02. Are you doing weekly water changes?

Just wondering if anyone is keeping these in any of their tanks. I'm looking for a solution for snail control in small tanks with fry where you have to feed alot. Lots of baby ramshorn snails are in these tanks. Has anyone seen them in town?

You can actually see the worms dying and leaving the fish's body within minutes of adding the medication. Make sure you do a large water change - do not leave the medication in the tank any longer than 24 hrs. A second dose should probably be done after a couple of weeks.

If it's that hard, the plecos may not help much. You may have to use a stainless steel glass scraper. If it doesn't come off with what, I don't know what will.

You need to get yourself some levasimole. It will kill all of the parasites. If you're fish are not too far gone, they should recover. Levasimole is very difficult to get. Try "mykiss" who is a member of bcaquaria.com. He can express mail it to you.

Unfortunately a perfect example of why to quarantine new fish. Some diseases and viruses only affect some fish. Without knowing what it is, it is very hard to treat.

Check and make sure your yeast is still active as it does expire. It is best to keep it in the fridge.

Need to more information to properly answer your concerns. What type of fish are in the tank? What are you currently treating with? What is the temperature?

Glad you're happy with them. They are quite stunning. I'll have to post pics of mine when I get a chance.

Best to check for ammonia and nitrites first.

Were these tanks cycled before you added the fish? How much prime did you use?

IMO it's not a STEAL for $550. You still have to buy a stand. It may not have enough filtration for what you want to stock it with. If it is more than several years old, I would pass. There are lots of good deals out there if you are patient.

Good to hear everyone's experiences. I think I will pass on purchasing one.

I'm thinking of getting a juvenile (less than 2") electric blue jack dempsey. I would have to put him in my 46 gal community tank to start. This tank is a) heavily planted with crypts & swords and houses 4" plus roseline sharks(5), a pair of kribensis, two angels & 4 synodontis. Anyone have any comments on whether this would be a good or bad idea?

Cories are not "scavengers" - they are bottom feeders and can be very fun fish to watch. Most of them are easy to keep but you must have a school to witness their behaviour. Although siamese algae eaters are great for eliminating some kinds of algae, they do get large - 4" plus if they are fed well.

Cannister filters should not leak if they are assembled correctly and maintained. Just make sure your tank is level and your stand is made to support the weight.