Jennifer

As some of you know, there is a qualification called the National Certificate in Animal Care. it is an NZQA approved qualification and as such there are unit standards that outline what competencies the students are required to have in order to graduate. One of these competencies is the care of reptiles and amphibians. In the qualification there is a unit called Monitor health and provide husbandry for reptiles and amphibians (unit standard 21383). If you want to read the unit standard, go to the following website: http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/framework/ enter the unit standard number into the search framework box. As you can see, for students wanting to learn about how to care for these species, they must work in an animal facility and be assessed on their competency with caring for real animals. This is great for the reptile and amphibian community because more people are becoming educated in proper care of these species but as you can imagine, there are a number of students who want to learn these skills and far too few facilities willing to host them so they can learn. I am sure that some of you have had contact with some of these students, and as you may have found out, there are variations in individual capabilities and suitability for the tasks. However, every time that we send a student out with a great deal of competence in these areas, we are increasing the overall knowledge in the community and this will have long ranging benefits both to the health and strength of the aquatics/reptile community and by increasing the market not only for the animals we produce locally but by creating demand for more imported species. As such, I do hope that you might consider putting your hand forward to teach a student in your facility. The time commitment will be minimal, perhaps a handful of days all year and the students should be prepared to work in exchange for the time you offer them in instruction so there should be some give and take. If you are interested, please contact me on [email protected]

Believe it or not this is what I do: 1. Rinse all the new substrate so it is ready to go in. Keep it in buckets that you can bring near the tank. 2. Use a wide hose and siphon all the old substrate out (since the substrate displaces the water you can usually get all the substrate out while removing no more than half of the water) 3. Use a large cup or other type of scoop and pour the new substrate in, leveling it as you go (if you hold the cup right near the bottom of the tank, and gently pour the new substrate out it will not cloud the water). 4. Top the tank up with water. 5. Sit back and enjoy. I have done it this way dozens of times and it works a treat. Always wanting to change things up. :roll:

The amount and frequency of water changed can vary a lot but is generally a balance between maintaining a stable environment for the fish and keeping the water in good condition. Frequent small water changes can be better for sensitive fish - this way they aren't subjected to a big change in water parameters all of a sudden. The fish you have aren't overly sensitive but like all fish they will not do well if the ammonia reaches a toxic level. During cycling you would ideally test ammonia daily to make sure it isn't too high and if it is too high you would do a 20 - 50% water change to bring the ammonia down to a safe level. Don't be concerned about the green water right now, it won't harm your fish and will help to keep other algae at bay. If it bothers you a lot, you can turn off the lights but be sure to keep a close eye on the fish - if they are breathing hard that is a sign of ammonia toxicity. The main thing you should be wary of is overfeeding. The more the fish eat, the more they produce ammonia and it can quickly reach toxic levels in a cycling tank. Fish can go for some time without feeding so it may be best to cut right back (or stop feeding entirely for a week or so) until the filter is cycled.

I prefer to use mature media from an existing set up and then increase the number of fish gradually. If I can't do that then I use fishless cycling. You can also 'seed' the filter with a commercial products like TLC Smart Start. There is some good info about fishless cycling here: viewtopic.php?f=10&t=43660&p=473162&hilit=fishless+cycling#p473162

Fenbendazole has shown some clinical efficacy against some tapeworms and flukes. It is often what we use against these parasites when there is praziquantel resistance. However, there are limitations with any medication and in general praziquantel works very well against virtually all trematodes (flatworms like tapeworms and flukes) so it is the drug of choice if you know these parasites are present. Praziquantel is safe to use in conjunction with Levamisole and Fenbendazole.

Congrats to you too! 8) I hope you are prepared to get your hands dirty. The small 'h' was annoying me for ages. Everyone kept addressing me as jenniferh, even in email correspondence...as if that is how it is actually spelled. :roll: Had to go.

Now that all official notifications have been issued, I am pleased to be able to publically share election results from this year’s FNZAS AGM: Patron: John Eastwood Vice Patron: Grant Simpson (Grant) President: Jennifer Hamlin (Jennifer) Vice Presidents (2): Owen Lingard (Simian), Norman Evans Secretary: Diane Wilkie (Zev) Treasurer: Jane Hewson (Janey) Librarian: Grant Simpson Editor: Caryl Simpson (Caryl) Breeding Coordinator: Paul Young (Wok) Executive Committee Members: Sue Fleet (Sue Fleet), Alan Minnery (Alanmin4304), Adrienne Dodge (Adrienne) Judges and Standards Committee: Hazel Goodin Fish Committee: Darren Stevens (Flatfish), Sarah Giblin (Neon), Jennifer Hamlin, Stuart Kenyon (stuartk), Herrie ten Oever Plant Committee: Alan Minnery, Peter Robinson (purplecatfish), Simon Check (Supasi), Aakash Sarin (Phoenix44), Website Committee: Caryl Simpson, Diane Wilkie Thank you to everyone who is willing to serve this year. Ultimately we are all here representing the united vision of clubs around the country so it is vital that we have input from the clubs. In the coming months I will be seeking input from everyone at club level and the role of the executives will be to take on board all ideas and provide feedback as to what trends we see and what changes we can realistically strive for. I will be communicating regularly with club delegates and asking for more people to get involved, particularly with respect to shows and regional club involvement. We need this expertise and valuable input so if you were thinking of getting involved, now is the time! Jennifer

Those dewormers only work primarily for nematodes/roundworms. If you are wanting to treat for flukes and tapeworms you will need to use praziquantel. If you are wanting to treat for flagellates/protozoa you will need to use metronidazole. Don't double dose unless you really need to or you could end up with resistance issues that you can't safely resolve. Aim to use the exact dose rate for the exact amount of time and them remove it quickly from the tank so you don't end up with a low dose that could promote resistance as well.

Most drugs are human drugs that have been licensed for veterinary use. A small few drugs with bad side effects have been taken off the market for humans but are still used in veterinary medicine. In NZ, a veterinarian can only legally prescribe medication that is licensed for veterinary use. If there is no suitable drug licensed for veterinary use, the vet can write a prescription for a human drug that you can get filled at an ordinary pharmacy. It would pay to call the pharmacy and ask if they have it in the country. If they do, you can provide your vet with all the research you have done and ask them if they will prescribe it for your fish.

Its not in the IVS so unlikely to be found in a vet clinic but perhaps you could ask your GP or local pharmacist if it is in the country then go from there.

That is probably a good mix, (although I haven't done the calculations so can't tell you for sure what the phosphorus levels are) I would be inclined to use a lower ratio of liver, but that is just me. Go ahead and use varied vegetables, any kind really. The ones that I would tend to move away from (or use only in small amounts) are spinach and rhubarb since they have a high abundance of calcium oxalates. If you do use shrimp, use the whole thing, head and all. I personally used to use a lot of insect larvae for my discus.

Good point Morcs. For most domestic animals this is certainly the case since millions of dollars in consumer dollars can be invested in research but fish are slightly different since commercial fisheries are the only ones who really have the consumer backing to support research into nutrition. This means that ornamental fish foods are mostly based on diets derived from carp and salmonid research as well as anecdotal information about local habitats and informal studies. That is not to say that these foods are bad, just that we really can't be sure. I agree about discus not requiring a whole lot more than other fish, but as I said above, they are prone to cranial deformities (stunting) and this can be prevented if they have sufficient phosphorus which is no doubt why keepers have gone the extra mile to ensure excess. More is better, right? :roll:

:lol: KFC queue...tee hee Variety is important, but it does pay to say that discus are prone to cranial deformities and these can largely be avoided if a phosphorus level of at least 0.7% is maintained. Read your labels and do your dry weight analysis calculations. 8)

Pure muscle tissue (e.g. ox heart) has a lot of phosphorus, iron, B vitamins and zinc but it is lacking in some other key nutrients. Phosphorus is critical for development and for the prevention of skeletal deformities in fish. In most fish, the phosphorus requirement is around 0.7% of the total dry weight nutritional requirement. Liver has a lot of the major and trace minerals that muscle tissue is lacking but it also has a lot of Vitamin A (an insoluble vitamin that is toxic in high doses, especially to developing young) and Selenium (also toxic in high doses). Picture the fish eating a small fish, the percentage of total nutrients derived from eating liver tissue would be very small compared to all other organs and muscle so why would we even try to feed more than 30% liver to a captive fish? My point is, nutritionally it is potentially risky to feed one single type of tissue since deficiencies and toxicities can easily occur. If at all possible, aim to mimic the variety and nutritional ratios that the animal would get in the wild. Sure, you can find lots of people who will tout all sorts of magical diets and nutritional theories online but I would advise that you keep a keen eye out for evidence based scientific information - that is if you are really serious about getting valid nutritional advice.

Well said Owen. I had a great time - my abdominal muscles are sore from all the laughing (thanks Stuart and John); my ears are sore form all the listening (thanks Joe); my voice is sore from all the talking (thanks again Joe); my wallet is empty from all the raffle tickets (thanks John); my tanks are full from all the fish & plants (thanks Diane, Simian, Caryl, Erica and Sarah); my fishroom has a new filter (thanks John); my notebook is full of fresh ideas (thanks Caryl & Grant); my to-do list is full of new tasks (thanks everyone); my calendar is full of new dates for implementing ideas (thanks Diane, Owen, Alan, Sue, Paul, Caryl & Grant); my email inbox is overflowing (no thanks will be offered for that one folks - unless you will help me come empty it) and my weekend was full of lots of food, fun, friends, new ideas, inspiration, dedication and an overall great experience (thanks to all of the Totally Tanked members who helped to make this a memorable experience). I am sure there will be many photos posted as I seem to have spent a large part of the weekend posing for pics (thanks Grant and everyone else who was motivated enough to document it all). Looking forward to 2010! Now for a glass of wine. 8)

Try a double dose treatment of Levamisole (only use Aviverm as it is pure levamisole) and/or Fenbendazole. If after 24 hours you still see the worms moving, repeat the dose. Redose after 7 and 14 days and remove all substrate if you can (a bit extreme but if you have drug resistance, you need to get rid of the ongoing risk for re-infestation. It is best to feed the medication orally. You can use both chemicals together, at the same time. Remember, medications of any kind can pose a health risk, especially if the animal is debilitated, and this is especially true as dose rates increase (although these particular medications are generally known to be safe at more than 10 times the regular dose rate). In any case, use at your own risk.

Are the worms still there now? Often they will become paralysed by the medication but will eventually be passed after a few days. If they are still alive, repeat the dose or try a double dose. Regardless, consider doing a follow up treatment after two weeks. Keep us updated.

Yeah, like pumpkin pie....

+1, excellent advice

Graaaand birrthdaayy caaakkee???? Woohoo!!

That's an amazing video. So funny how carefully they 'plant' those little cornrows. :lol:

Farmed plants is right! :lol:

Try adding Flourish comprehensive. Trace nutrients can help prevent nutrient deficiencies (lack of one nutrient can mean a failure to absorb other nutrients).

Fastways couriers ships from Auckland to Chch and the people are very clued up about fish. I have had excellent service from the locals here.

Yes, they are. Mine do exceptionally well with JBL root balls once a year. Couldn't be better -fast healthy growth.