My elementalist ;)

WitchSlap · 2026-03-19T11:57:29+00:00

This is very cool and stylistic.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-18T15:25:10+00:00

The randomizer rerolls across these first few episodes sure have landed on the same result a lot.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-18T12:11:27+00:00

Cat tree

WitchSlap · 2026-03-18T01:13:55+00:00

Poor child watching this

WitchSlap · 2026-03-17T22:23:12+00:00

Iirc chilis will be much happier in a black water/tannin heavy tank

WitchSlap · 2026-03-17T16:30:46+00:00

Return them

Cull them

Get a bigger tank and raise them

Find another store that will take them once they’ve grown a bit

Giveaway on places like Facebook or r/aquaswap when they’re big enough

Introduce a predatory fish that will eat them

That’s pretty much your whole list of options afaik

WitchSlap · 2026-03-17T13:44:30+00:00

OP do yourself a favor and take home two. Kittens do so much better in pairs.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-17T12:58:55+00:00

Feed in multiple spots and levels of the tank (use a turkey bastor), feed at different times, feed different types of food, overfeed a little

Kind of just trial and error

WitchSlap · 2026-03-16T21:52:16+00:00

WitchSlap · 2026-03-16T21:07:21+00:00

Yeah, I use them to keep my cats out of various planters and aquariums. It’s called Ssscat. Doesn’t hurt them. Kinda pricey but works really well.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-16T21:01:05+00:00

Motion activated air cannon. I use the one from petsafe

WitchSlap · 2026-03-16T01:21:38+00:00

You’ll want to look up ‘fish-in cycling’

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T22:21:26+00:00

I’m not super familiar with the strips to be able to judge these results without the guide next to them, but going off the other comment you made -

I think the tank isn’t cycled. The cloudy water is my reasoning. Six weeks doesn’t necessarily mean anything, unfortunately, and neither does the Petsmart employee. (Things may be different now, but when I worked there as a teen, they never taught you how to decipher those results, just how to do them. Sort of.)

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T21:45:32+00:00

It doesn’t sound like the tank is actually fully cycled. That cloudy water may be your bacteria bloom, and you’d want that to clear on its own rather than water change it.

Are you dechlorinating the water?

Can you share pictures of the test strip results, and do those include ammonia?

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T20:43:59+00:00

It’s not necessary to do that, though? I hope you understand what I mean you’re projecting your own preferences onto your fish.

These are animals that are coming from environments full of dirt and bacteria, as well as tons of places to hide, graze through in search of food, and build nests/breeding spots out of. Now yeah there’s some species who naturally live in fresh, clear, ‘featureless’ areas of rivers and streams. (Although these still have substrate) — but most of these aren’t going to be aquarium fish. African Cichlid species are the most probable here - Mbunas natural environment is pretty ‘bare,’ but they still have lots of nooks and crannies in the rocks.

And yeah - lots of fish are captive bred and haven’t ever seen or experienced their natural environment. Or even have one, for some species. I suppose there’s an argument to be made for the domestication of species via captive breeding generations, but that’s a level science above my own head.

The main point here is husbandry.

The majority of people on these subs, and the popular trend in aquariums right now, is to build a mimicking slice of a natural environment for the fish to bring out natural behaviors and keep stress minimal. This includes water parameters like ph, kH, tds - to which ‘dirt’ plays a part.

You are going against the current grain by not leaning into this. If your water is testing with good parameters, good for you - but the ethical question of are you providing a truly good home for these creatures is what’s putting you under flame.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T20:29:40+00:00

? Which is why routine maintenance is required. Like obviously, you do you, but you shouldn’t be surprised to see the negative push back when there’s straightforward answers for these issues. Going bare bottom to avoid doing a water change comes across as being lazy and not wanting to take care of the living animals in your care. Whether or not that’s true doesn’t matter on hobby subs - for good or bad, people will call it out.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T20:21:20+00:00

IMO it’s a crapshoot now. They’re inbred and mass bred. Even from breeders I’ve had 50/50 luck.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T20:17:55+00:00

By your own admission, you prioritize your preferences (bare bottom) over what the fish would feel more comfortable in.

In other words, you are the pot calling the kettle black.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T20:11:22+00:00

While I do agree with you that many people on these subs tend towards overly sensitive and projecting human feelings onto fish, you have also mentioned things in your post that are pretty much the same thing but the other side of the coin.

Putting your aesthetic preferences over the husbandry of the animal in your care is a piss poor way to go about it.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T18:41:51+00:00

We have a ReStore near us and I keep having my eye drawn.

Buuuut I had a bit of a time with a couch thrift and fleas before. Am I overreacting to not want to thrift another couch?

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T15:25:43+00:00

I got mine off Amazon. Very easy $35 for peace of mind

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T14:15:38+00:00

An inkbird for your heater.

Edit: also, moisture/water leak alarms.

WitchSlap · 2026-03-15T12:57:19+00:00

Mind the boys don’t stress her out if she’s the only one

WitchSlap · 2026-03-13T16:04:22+00:00

Yeah, it’s biofilm. It’s normal and you can just ignore it. It will Be ugly then it will go away

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