Jennifer

shears

He's got his toenail in his ear. :lol: ...better than his nose!

tank

I used to run a 6 foot sump with 4 Eheim compact 5000 pumps (approx 5,000lph each). They were quite good and lasted the three years I had them with no problems at all and relatively low maintenance but they weren't exactly quiet.

Dude!! I need that fish.................

Aw, poor kitties. Frontline works well to keep flea populations at bay but nothing will kill fleas faster than Advantage (usually within a minute or two, while you may see fleas still moving around, they will be unable to bite). Back in the old days there was no such products and we had to bomb, and spray, and powder, and use flea collars. Yuk. So happy that Advantage exists now!! Hope you get some relief soon!

cents

Goodness, that last pic makes me REALLY green. That just might make me get a bigger tank.... :roll:

Yep, worms too. 8) Not tapeworms though, but if your cats don't have fleas then they shouldn't have dipylidium tapeworms anyway. However, if they are eating wildlife they could get taenia tapeworms. At any rate, if you see any 'grains of rice' near the anus it is time to deworm with praziquantel (Droncit or Drontal).

Good man! That's an excellent strategy. Fleas and worms in one go.

You probably know this already but I would advise avoiding the flea treatments that you can get in the supermarket, they do not work well and they can be very toxic to cats. Also, fleas can survive all year round in warm moist environments. Using a good quality flea product like Advantage or Frontline, etc. will keep the fleas out of your house all year long. When you use the bomb, prop up couch cushions, matresses, etc. A cat that has a load of fleas will drop hundreds of eggs every time it sits in one place for a few minutes so everywhere the cat goes will be a lot of eggs and these fall into cracks and crevices that can be protected from the bombing chemicals so eliminate any cracks and crevices if you can. Also, the flea is the intermediate host for the dipylidium tapeworm (flea larvae eat tapeworm eggs and your cat eats the fleas when it grooms, thus ingesting the tapeworm) so you will need to deworm as well. Good luck!

mouse

IMO, add tetras first to gradually build up the bioload and ensure the tank is settled then I would add the rainbows as they are hardy and will further build up the bioload. Loaches next and then the gourami and then cichlids once everything is stable (tank might be a bit 'fast' for gourami though IMO).

Yeah, I saw some nice specimens at Organism in Chch today too.

kilt

Nice selection of fish and your tank is looking great! Those loaches will be happiest in a group of 5 or more - and you will see their true behaviour then too. Also, schooling fish, like tetras, are quite impressive in larger groups.

transport

Planetarium

That is terrible. It is a sickening feeling to have someone steal from you - so violating. Thanks for the warning though - even for us small timers it is a good reminder of how vigilant we need to be in terms of security.

What, did they nearly find the trap door in your fishroom Nav? :lol:

Yeah, well I have had mine for 6 months and they have doubled in size from the 'standard' small hatchets you see in the shops. Hopefully they will just stay the size they are now. I have seen a really big group in a photo but my guys won't go near eachother. Maybe I need more. Don't often see the spotted variety in shops though.

Just did a search.... 9cm??? I can see these guys seriously outgrowing my tank! ...any idea how common these guys are?

:lol:

Rainbows mostly, some shoaling tetras. This is the first time I have had hatchets - have always liked them - and was under the impression that they liked to be in groups, but these guys definately do not appreciate eachother's company. There are quite a few surface plants and I feed them a lot of flying insects harvested from the garden. Maybe they aren't hungry enough to spend ime at the surface. :roll:

bliss