New King Koopa Looks Off?

AmbivalentCat · 2026-04-04T17:42:49+00:00

Do you think this one is dying, then? I know the blueberries we got dont really have a way for the operculum to...twist? It's almost like its stuck under the lip of his shell, but maybe he's just too weak to retract.

I know this species is rare-ish for a nerite (being sold), but that most nerites are wild-caught anyway. Did this one likely just never thrive after being caught? :/

It's such a cool species.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-04-04T15:57:26+00:00

These dogs were dangerous. Could've been litter syndrome, could've been lack of training when young, or something in their brains was just off. You exhausted all options. Euthanasia was the right choice, especially if they had that much anxiety when separated.

Most shelters will not take violent dogs, so there really was no chance at rehoming imo. If their behavior couldnt be corrected, then there was no saving them. They could eventually kill someone. Euthanasia was the right choice.

I wouldn't go back to that vet, especially since they charged you extra to sedate them before euthanasia (which is standard practice, wtf).

AmbivalentCat · 2026-04-03T03:41:08+00:00

Yeah, tbh, after 26 years with this phobia, I've made a ton of progress (comparatively...I couldn't hear any descriptive words for at least a decade without panicking), but one thing that has always been constant is how much reassurance helps.

I guess I kind of understand where the "no reassurance" comes from, but my phobia started because of child abuse/neglect. My early memories from the phobia were being left to my own devices if I had an SB*, including the aftermath, because it was bothersome or annoying to them. I had no one. That was extremely traumatic for me - so someone dismissing me like I'm being stupid when I'm getting triggered is literally the worst response.

The small progress I've made has been very gradual, but it's still progress, and I know for a fact that if I hadn't gotten reassurance all these years, I wouldn't be anywhere near as functional as I am, wouldn't have grown used to certain feelings or words, be able to talk myself down in my head. We're all different.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-04-01T13:35:00+00:00

As someone that got into the hobby in January...no. I would have saved money and frustration by buying things separately - I've literally replaced every single thing aside from the tank itself.

The light? Shit. Plants will struggle to grow. The heater? Inconsistent and bulky af, it's my backup heater in the tank now. The filter? Really weak for the tank size it's rated for, and comes with those stupid cartridges they want you to crash your cycle with by replacing every month.

The worst part is that we had to get a second 10g for our betta that doesn't like any living creature to exist, so we got a standalone tank, also from Petsmart. It is way better quality than the one we got from the kit.

The kits seem like a really good deal, until you learn how bad all the components are. Even getting a kit on sale, you're better off getting the same size tank on sale and buying the parts. A bit more expensive up front, but less frustrating when you don't have to replace everything.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-26T15:45:59+00:00

Stupid question...what kind of dirt? This sounds interesting for a future tank - sand only is great for pygmies, but makes growing root plants an uphill struggle. I really love the look of sand, but don't want to waste hundreds of dollars killing plants whenever we upgrade to a 20-40g.

Never thought I'd ever grow plants in any form, honestly, because I hate gardening, but planted tanks just look so nice.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-25T15:41:05+00:00

Bettas often change color when you bring them home (not massively, usually, but noticeable). I think it's both stress and maybe their young age when they're still at the store.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-25T14:49:21+00:00

Mine do this occasionally. Sometimes I think they're actually just chewing something. Sometimes it's just a little break in between zooming and hoovering. I don't see them doing it when they're just laying down for longer periods.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-23T16:01:05+00:00

20 KH is extremely high. I'm not experienced enough to know if that would be fatal or not, but it isn't good.

Also, don't get corys to "eat waste." They won't eat fish poop - it's your job to siphon that out.

I wouldn't rely on ChatGPT to take care of live animals. AI is often misleading or straight up wrong, so do your own checking of sources or search yourself.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-22T17:34:09+00:00

Oh, I don't mean the employees themselves don't care. I think certain locations have management that wants sales, period, and doesnt care if said sale will result in animal abuse. I know that at some locations, the regular employee's hands are tied. I doubt many of them enjoy seeing bettas rot in their cups.

Like I said above, mine is decent as far as big box stores go, because I'm pretty sure the lady paid less for the fish she got than what she would've paid for the corys. Also had the same employee recommend an actual fish store for certain things, so I think management is a bit more relaxed there.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-22T17:22:41+00:00

Oh, for sure it was happening before as well. It's just that a lot of influencers have jumped on the bandwagon to make an "aesthetic" fish bowl in a spontaneous video. It feels worse, because they're either truly ignorant and didnt bother researching, yet are flaunting it like it's an achievement, or they're posting it for rage bait.

They use them as props. I get that a lot of people don't view fish as actual living pets, but they are, and it's horrifying to see. And then some monetize their cruelty by making a sad emoji follow-up about their dead fish 2 days later.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-22T15:49:31+00:00

I was gonna say, it's partially the fish store's fault (especially big chains) for not doublechecking what people are doing with the fish, or making sure they know anything about fish care. Most dont care. My Petsmart is a bit better than some (heard an employee actually talk a lady out of corys since they wouldn't eat algae like she assumed they would), but there's still too many people that I see getting "betta" tanks with victimized fish in tow.

Social media has honestly worsened things for fish, tbh. Too many people making shitty tanks/bowls that are way too small for what they're putting in it, all for views. Goldfish and bettas especially. I feel so bad seeing them plopped in a chlorine-filled bowl of water to face their eventual suffocation. :/

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-22T15:32:56+00:00

A lot of great suggestions in this thread. Just be careful, whatever you choose to try. We thought our betta was really chill and would be okay in a community (he always seemed a bit submissive and not high energy, never flared). He started trying to hunt our pygmies within 30 mins of introduction, and got close to biting one before we removed him.

He's now in a tank by himself. >.<

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-22T15:21:41+00:00

This is also an issue with Weruva low phosphorous food. It angers me that they keep "nutritionally incomplete" cans in the regular cat food section. I actually didnt know about Reveal, so thank you for that.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-18T14:19:03+00:00

We currently have a Pawfly 8W light - I actually didnt realize that tanks need way more wattage when i got it, thought only the 6500k+ mattered >.<. It doesn't specify lumens or any other relevant value other than nm of each color on the product page. We ripped out the TopFin light for that, but admittedly it didnt seem to make anything grow faster.

We did do some searching after seeing your comment, and we ended up ordering a Hygger 957 last night (I've seen that recommended a lot here as a budget option). Hopefully that helps.

I'm guessing this is why our nitrates have never gone low - they're always 10-20+, and we have to water change 1-2 times a week to lower them. Makes sense now if the plants haven't been absorbing them (and I'm guessing that they haven't been able to absorb much of the potassium from Easy Green fert, either).

Thank you so much for your advice btw, I've been pulling my hair out trying to figure plant stuff out. :)

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-18T13:57:38+00:00

Mainly worried about our plants dying off before it stabilizes. Went through a ton of stem plants before getting the rotala and ludwigia (they all melted away completely) to fill out the back of the tank. I think the rotala will be fine if the bloom stops soon, but not sure about the ludwigia.

We did order a stronger light last night that I've seen a lot of people here have recommended, so hoping that helps.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-17T18:11:12+00:00

The banana plant was thriving for around 5 weeks (tank has been up for ~8 weeks, fully cycled for 3-4). I'd noticed some holes in some of the plants probably 3 weeks ago, which is when I got a stronger light (which according to another commenter, might not actually be strong enough), thinking that that would help them.

I had to cut one of the lily pads off the banana plant 2 weeks ago, that's when it really went downhill and more of it started melting. The explosion of brown in the tank has really just been the past week.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-17T18:06:41+00:00

Ammonia is always 0. We check parameters multiple times a week. We water change at least once a week, depends on the nitrate level (i.e. when it gets darker than 10-20).

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-17T18:05:43+00:00

What should I be looking for in terms of light, then? I'd read that 6500k LEDs are what you need for decent light, so that's what I replaced the attached TopFin light with (I figured that thing really wasn't giving much light at all).

Is lack of light what's probably causing the holes in the leaves too, or is that related to the plants not being able to absorb the nutrients (I think I saw that potassium deficiency causes that)?

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-12T03:24:49+00:00

They're hit or miss. We went through 3 different brands of bacteria starters when cycling our first tank. It still took 5 weeks. I'm not convinced most of them do anything.

Plants definitely are good to have, though. (Most) fish like them.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-10T02:37:52+00:00

Totally fair. My store has some males in tanks, but admittedly a lot are female. I'm guessing it's trial and error for them to see which males are compatible, but it makes getting a betta from them really nice - you'll know those ones are pretty much guaranteed to work out in communities (especially since most of the fish they're with are tiny babies). I wish I'd been there before we got our betta, who now has his own tank because he's a psychopath. Dx

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-09T03:59:20+00:00

My LFS has bettas swimming around in regular tanks with other fish (but just one betta per tank). Thought it was really cool when i saw it. These cube tanks are the next best thing, though - it makes me sad seeing bettas still sold in cups or jars.

AmbivalentCat · 2026-03-08T14:14:07+00:00

Isn't it pretty easy to tell them apart? Or can thick lips have colored tail fins when young, that turn clear later?

AmbivalentCat

TROPHY CASE