a1foxes Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 I'm one of those sadistic people that likes to go into a store, find a newbie and make them try to catch the fastest fish hehe. I think the longest i ever had to wait for my 'prize', was 3 little Botia Strigata(zebra loaches) from Petland. Those ornaments LOOK nice but also provide very nice little hide-e-holes. Stubborn fish wouldnt come out for nothin. I think the log was outof water for almost a half hour before the 4 fish in it decided to pop out. I know how many fish were in the tank when I looked, and I only wanted 3 of the 6 so how hard can it be right? -roll- The poor kid was so frustrated after just one, he had to walk off for a few minutes and come back. teehee He was almost sure that there were no more in there, then one scooted out, tore around and went back into hiding....damn there went the excuse 'theres no more left'. Yoyos are a blast, and tonight I had to catch me 6 fairly decent size syndontis cats out of my community tank-of course, I just HAD to do it with the plants and stuff still in it....those undergravel pipes are a pain in the BUTT...I did get them all, funny though, its NOT so funny when you're the one doing the catching Bulldog plecos are a pain in the you-know-what too....they must have really good radar- as soon as I get within a foot of the tank the brat is gone.... anyone got any good chase stories? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCallele Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 The toughest that I have ever had to catch was a horse-face loach. They can move through the sand almost as fast as they can through the water - and that is darn fast! I had to strip the tank, take out most of the sand, then herd the buried loach through the remaining sand with my fingers and into the waiting net at the edge of the sand. Over an hour.... David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dunl Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 Toughest to finally catch would be a mantis shrimp. There have been cases of people having them in a reef tank for several years before being able to catch them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FishBrain Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 Toughest fish to catch so far are the Clown Loaches, and the bala's It always seems to take hours before I can get them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 Well anything is hard to catch in any tank over 80G's when you're 5'3", especially anything at the bottom. They all become bottom-back dwellers when I'm trying to catch them. Ilyodon Furcidons - been trying to get all of those for a couple of weeks now so I can put the colony up for sale. Right now I'd pay someone to take them if they'd come over & catch them. Other than that, the fish that has more common names than I have hair elastics - Beaufortia kweichowensis/Butterfly Loach/Chinese Loach/Chinese Butterfly Loach/Hillstream Loach/Spotted Hillstream Loach/Butterfly Pleco/Hong Kong Pleco/DamnLoach! The safest way to catch them being when they fly off the glass to change locations - prying them off is a no-no and next to impossible anyway. You can nudge them with the net, beat their brains out if you're so inclined - they won't move if they're nervous. After 2 days of trying to transfer them to a new spacious tank and finally succeeding, they promptly died on me within a week of moving. They had been fine for over a year where they were and I waited 3 months+ before moving them so the tank would be well established. :grr: Haven't had them since, but my dream tank is a nice long river tank and I'll get them again then . Why? Because I'm a "sucker" for punishment, that's why... duh . Good thread idea . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midgetwaiter Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 My favorite would be peeling hillstream loaches off the glass with my credit card, always amusing and perfectly safe if you're careful enough. As far as customers go though "can you pick individual small male guppies out of this tank with a couple thousand in it"? No. "I'd like that ghost shrimp on top of the pile in the back corner under the filter please". Here's a net, I'll be at the till when you're done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melody Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 As far as customers go though "can you pick individual small male guppies out of this tank with a couple thousand in it"? No. You wouldn't last five minutes with me - if I want that Guppy, that's the Guppy I shall have or my money the store won't have. If the fish all look alike and they're all healthy, I let the employee do the scoop, otherwise that's what you're there for - to make me happy. However, stores don't pay their employees enough to deal with people like me, I'll admit....lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vapor Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 Clown and yoyo loaches are the hardest I dealt with. Even once the yoyo's are caught, trying to get them out of the net is a chore because of the little pointy things they stick out by their eyes. My angel fish on the other hand damn near swim right into the net. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ichthyosporidium Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 I once had to catch and wrestle a 1 1/2' Plecostomus by hand to get it into a cooler for a customer once. That was one of the hardest that comes to mind. No nets unless you want to surgically remove them from a net :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
a1foxes Posted August 12, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 I once had to catch and wrestle a 1 1/2' Plecostomus by hand to get it into a cooler for a customer once. That was one of the hardest that comes to mind. No nets unless you want to surgically remove them from a net :P Have to admit, my 12" Scarlett gave me a run for the money a couple times. When I went to pick him up, he was wedged into a log- took a while to get him out and there was some damage to his fins :cry: Then a few days ago i put him into his new tank(bigger), and the brat stuck me with his thorns- had to throw a towel over him to pick him up. Man, they squirm ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murminator Posted August 12, 2006 Report Share Posted August 12, 2006 Damsels have to be the worst Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyasa Posted August 13, 2006 Report Share Posted August 13, 2006 Loaches are definitely among the more difficult to catch. On the other end of the spectrum though, I'd have to say shelldwellers are the easiest to catch. Simply scare them into their shell and pull out the shell. No nets or spoons required. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
midgetwaiter Posted August 13, 2006 Report Share Posted August 13, 2006 You wouldn't last five minutes with me - if I want that Guppy, that's the Guppy I shall have or my money the store won't have. If the fish all look alike and they're all healthy, I let the employee do the scoop, otherwise that's what you're there for - to make me happy. However, stores don't pay their employees enough to deal with people like me, I'll admit....lol. Have you every really asked someone to sex 1cm feeder guppies and then net that particular one out of a 30 gal tank with a thousand other guppies in it? Really? While god knows how many other customers are waiting? Seriously? I don't say this often but in this case, you can keep your 20 cents. -roll- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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