Holly

Wow thank you all so very much for such kind comments! This was something really new for me and without the help of everyone on here it would never have happened Truth be told, it was only around a year ago I got my first tropical tank, I had coloured gravel and plastic ornaments :sick: Thanks for providing me with the inspiration and knowledge to keep getting better. You are all wonderful!

Funny you say that! Most of it is gone now The tank is about to be pulled apart for more exciting things but the tiger lotus will definitely be staying!

Thanks heaps Adrienne It means alot! And thanks for the tips Liam! I have real issues getting decent photos!

Thanks heaps! Something new for me, I'm loving them! Sooo cute

Well I've been admiring other peoples tanks for quite some time on here now, lurking in the background I guess! I'm about to make some big changes to my 215L community tank so I thought I would share it before I pull it to bits. Sorry for the terrible photos, definitely time to upgrade the camera! http://s1052.photobucket.com/albums/s447/Holly_Kendrick/Community%20Tank%20Feb%202012/

So my new tank is finally up and running! Still a long way to go but I'm pretty happy with it so far I got some beautiful Demasoni and Electric Yellow Cichlids from Ryan Jury- I have to lure them out with veges at the moment but they are fantastic to watch. Please excuse the need to siphon the sand! http://s1052.photobucket.com/albums/s447/Holly_Kendrick/Demasoni%20and%20Electric%20Yellow%20Cichlids%20Feb%202012/

I'm not a massive fan of Guinea Pigs- despite being little they are quite alot of work How about a Chinchilla? These guys are a little more expensive to start with but they have incredible personalities and tame up really well!

New fish arriving next week! :nfs: Yay! Still some tinkering to do but if everyone saw my before photos they are sure to be impressed! I'm still a newbie so you best cut me some slack

What cool person gave you the paradise fish?! And yes it's a mighty fine fish wall!

1-day have just announced on their facebook page that the fish tank has been taken down and replaced with the V due to the huge number of complaints they received.

I know Jennifer Hamlin sent an official complaint to 1-day earlier, this was when there was a photo of a fish in the aquarium and also a question from a customer asking as to whether it was for cold water or tropical fish. Both the photo and the question have since been removed and I'm guessing that's who they got the fnzas website from I'm pleased they have tried to make this better but also hope they think before selling something like this in the future.

Oh sneaky sneaky, it did have a photo of a fish in their earlier but clearly they have had so many complaints they did a little bit of photo shop to make it look better. I agree that for aquascape this could be kind cool but otherwise not so much!

You would really put a fish in here?! Isn't the guideline for every 1 cm of fish (including the tail) you should allow at least 4 litres of water? Going by the measurements this tank will only hold 1.4L- and that's before all the gravel is added. I know most of the people on fnzas aren't stupid enough to set up one of these with a real fish in it but it sure worries me when I think about members of the public are buying these!

Has anyone else been unlucky enough to see the horrible desk aquariums 1-day.co.nz have listed today?! How are these even allowed to be sold? Surely they breach the animal welfare act! http://www.biosecurity.govt.nz/legislation/animal-welfare-act/index.htm https://www.1-day.co.nz/products/AAIEBN1DA Grrrrr!!!! :an!gry

I was thinking about the silica sand, is it ok to have this for a cichlid tank? Will the pH remain adequate or will I need to get some coral?

I will try to put a photo up tomorrow I did a water change today to reduce the cloudiness caused by the poorley washed sand! Hopefully it will have settled enough by tomorrow! I've had a good look at some photos and I think I prefer the look of the white sand so am leaning towards to aragonite sand. What's the upkeep like on it? Where do you find the best place to get it from? Like you said, Dunedin is pretty useless so might need to do a ring around and see what I can find. Thanks for all your help!

Hey guys, After getting terribly excited about my new tank, hunting out plenty of rocks, sand and filling it up I've decided I'm not happy with the substrate I've used. Not cool! So rather than get my fish and then look at it for months, regretting not changing it I've decided to swap it over now! What are you all using for substrate? My tank has a black background, plenty of rocks and is going to have Demasoni and Electric Yellows. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Cheers, Holly

New tanks are fantastic! I have 2 other tanks at home so have added some established filter material and will pop some fish from my community tank in for a bit to get things going There is something about cycling with ammonia that freaks me out! I would no doubt bugger it up and kill off all my new fish!

Well my new tank has arrived and I've got it all filled up! Woohoo! It's a 250L Jinlong and will be my first Cichlid tank- very excited is an understatment! :happy1: I just need to get myself a decent heater and allow the tank to cycle and then I'll be ready for some fish I've decided I am going to go with the Demasoni & Electric Yellow combination and have had a few offers of fish from various breeders. Anyone else have any out there they are looking to sell before I commit to a seller? I hope you have all had a fabulous holiday season. Cheers, Holly

It's up to the individual I guess So long as you stick to your guns and do whatever it is properly you should be fine I've worked in several vet clinics who all back the commercially produced pet foods but that's not to say that is the only way to go about it. I feed my 2 labradors Eukanuba but they also get some raw food and love a good cannon bone! It's entirely up to you what you decide to feed, I think alot of people go down the commercial road because they know that their pet is getting all of the required nutrients and it is easy to feed with little to no preperation- therefore convenient for todays busy lifestyles Don't let people put you off whatever you decide to go with, so long as you do it properly you shouldn't have any issues! Like I said before, calcium is the main thing you will need to consider. Some people still think feeding dog sausage/roll is a good diet- I promise you your raw diet is 100 times better than that! Dog sausage is the most expensive way to give water and fat to your dog! One massive benefit to raw diet is the enviromental enrichment it will give to your dog while it eats it

What a beautiful wee pup! Congratulations on the new addition I see you are going to be feeding a raw diet, good on you for throwing the trend and doing something different! I'm a lecturer in Veterinary Nursing and have a few colleagues who do the same thing and rave about it. One thing you might want to consider is Calcium Supplements just while he is little to help his bone growth, you can get a supplement for this from your vet clinic. Good luck with all the joys of a little puppy. He is super cute!

Working in Veterinary Medicine I certainly wouldn't recommend 'gouging' out the fishes eye or the tumour. Firsty it is inhumane to do such a thing without any form of anaesthesia or pain relief, secondly- you have no idea what you are dealing with below the skins surface. There is likely to be blood vessels supplying the tumour which could result in not only extreme pain but death due to blood loss. Also how were you planning on removing the eye/tumour? In opthamology (treatment of the eye), the instruments used are very sharp which allow delicate removal of tissue without damage to the surrounding area. You would need to consider how you would stop the bleeding which chould be near to impossible- getting something to clot while in water is a little tricky!

Yay it all sounds pretty fantastic and gives me a great place to start- thanks guys Now just to wait for my tank to arrive so I can get started!

Sounds like this could be a good option then How many of each fish do you have in your tank?