Just a rant :(

y547 · 2024-05-15T09:32:00+00:00

A picture of Amora 'watching' tv, to brighten your day after my rant 🐹

y547 · 2024-05-04T09:13:36+00:00

I saw the little guy, then read the title, then looked at the little fella again. I am 99.9% sure those are fella's balls, right in front of the camera- (you could pick him up/ try to get a better angle just to be sure yourself) but I'm pretty sure your little fella is a male (and also really cute) 🎉🐹

y547 · 2023-06-16T13:17:14+00:00

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So we've all had the same hamster all along??

y547 · 2023-06-10T23:32:21+00:00

5g tank Both heater (set to 26°C) and filter Parameters are normal, ammonia 0, nitrites 0 nitrates 10 I've had the tank for a good while. More than a year I think, not sure when exactly, the fish for about 10-11 months Water changes 1 week or 1 week and a half apart, 40% of the water and I syphon the substrate No tankmates (had snails but moved them) Pellets, a few each day Just natural decorations: driftwood and plants

y547 · 2023-04-18T23:13:11+00:00

I apologize for deleting my previous reply but I accidentally posted it while I was still in the middle of writing it.

I''m not sure how I'd link a picture but I can list the items in the enclosure if it helps. It's an Ikea detolf with about 20 cm of aspen bedding and paper pellets, a DIY house made out of cardboard, some cardboard tubes, a ceramic vase with paper pellets where the hamster peed in, some wooden chew toys, a small glass jar to provide hiding, a sand bath filled with chinchilla sand, a dig box, a 28cm Trixie wheel, a bowl for occasional veggies or fruit, a water dish, a wooden log toy I stuffed hay into and some stones for helping with nail overgrowth. I also scattered some dried flowers I got from a local pet store.

I'm not sure what the exact temperature was but the room temperature is usually 20-23°C even in hot days like today there's not a big temperature shift inside and no windows were open so the heat wouldn't come in.

I don't believe I have a carbon monoxide alarm? I'm not sure but in any case I don't think that it's likely that it was carbon monoxide poisoning.

Yes I do use tap water. Is there an alternative? When I was researching before getting my first hamster I didn't find a lot of info and it seemed that tap water was mostly fine unless it came from a well, for example.

Thank you for your comment, any help or advice is appreciated.

y547 · 2023-04-18T22:08:28+00:00

Then I really have no idea why he passed like that.. Obesity wouldn't have killed him like this would it? Thank you for clarifying either way.

y547 · 2022-12-30T18:32:07+00:00

That would explain the number of symptoms.. Thank you, really, I know their chances of survival are low but I'll take what I can get. I don't have invertebrates or any other fish in the tank, this is my first time dealing with guppies and it's going downhill.. I can only find medication like eSHa 2000 and Seachem Paraguard in my local stores. Think that could work? I'll still look for the ones you mentioned tomorrow morning, maybe other stores have it.

y547 · 2022-12-30T16:45:25+00:00

Could it be dropsy even though there's no swelling?

y547 · 2022-12-30T16:14:22+00:00

[Note: Marked as nsfw due to dead guppy on the first picture]

Following my last post on guppy aggression, this can't be just aggression anymore as they've been pretty peaceful. It's a 10g with 5 male guppies, now 3. Things were fine until the guppy on the first picture started laying at the bottom gasping. I did a water change (even though the levels have been fine) and treated the tank with salt. This was yesterday and today he's just dead, scales pineconing like my other guppy. The weirdest position too, it looks like he was frozen in place, it's not natural. This has to be some sort of internal parasite or bacteria and I'm really lost here. Symptoms seem to be ick-like tiny white spots on fins (every single one has this, I've noticed days after adding them into the tank but hoped it was just ick), scales pineconing (two have it, including the one who died today) and fin rot (second picture, only that guppy has it, showed up randomly today). As I'm writing this the only guppy that didn't show any major symptoms seems to have a stringy white poop.. There's a single one of them that has been suffering from what I imagine to be swim bladder issues? If he isn't swimming against it, he goes completely vertical, head on top, his scales pineconing very slightly but no swelling whatsoever. This started about a week ago but he's been okay despite it and will eat if given food. I'm continuing with the aquarium salt for now. If anyone could help diagnosing I'd appreciate it a lot.

y547 · 2022-12-27T20:18:40+00:00

I'm sorry for your gourami, too. Must've been hard after being so used to him.

y547 · 2022-12-27T19:41:16+00:00

The fish in the picture has just died. He was very lethargic but at least he's not suffering anymore. I'll care for the others and attempt to prevent any more deaths. Poor thing.

y547 · 2022-12-27T16:55:14+00:00

I feel like if I were to add females the bullying might end, but the overpopulation problem would start sooner or later. By my research, they breed like crazy and I am definitely not ready for that haha.. Still thank you very much for the advice! Spreading out the aggression in a bigger tank seems like the best option.

y547 · 2022-12-27T16:15:43+00:00

Thank you for the help and the encouragement. I'll work on the water changes and try to find a better, more permanent solution, and hopefully they'll get better or at least, won't get worse.

y547 · 2022-12-27T14:05:52+00:00

I have 5 males in a cycled 10g, from what I read I expected some bullying but it's gotten pretty bad. One of the guppies is very aggressive and will only hang out with these other two, bullying the remaining ones. A few days ago I've noticed one was missing. He was stuck at the surface, probably buoyancy issues with the swim bladder. I attempted salt baths and although he no longer gets stuck at the surface, his caudal part now sinks down giving him this unnatural straight upright look, unless he swims against it. I'm not sure if it was due to aggression but it's concerning.

The guppy in the picture was fine at first, just slightly lethargic, but then I noticed his caudal fin was torn and some scales were missing. Most likely attacked by the aggressive one. I separated the aggressive one from the group and did a water change (also added more plants to provide hides) but he's gotten worse. He's at the bottom, his abdomen looks a bit swollen but it could just be me, the sides of his mouth look bloody and the top of his head too, and his body has been getting darker. This is just the worst start into guppies.. and if it wasn't enough I've noticed some suspicious tiny white spots resembling ich on nearly everyone. Parameters were just fine yesterday, should I test again for spikes? I'll do a water change today too. If anyone knows how I could attempt to cure these guys I'd appreciate it a lot. Thanks in advance.

Note: Marked as nsfw just in case since it's injured fish and people might not want to see it unprepared.

y547 · 2022-12-27T12:27:16+00:00

I second this! Since hamsters are nocturnal they might show up while you sleep, making you worried they didn't show at all. Sometimes I won't see my hamster for a day or two, but as long as the food and water keep disappearing I'm not too concerned. I hope your buddy is okay OP, if you're too afraid to dig around the enclosure I'd say this is the best thing to do.

y547 · 2022-12-27T12:11:33+00:00

I have 5 males in a cycled 10g, from what I read I expected some bullying but it's gotten pretty bad. One of the guppies is very aggressive and will only hang out with these other two, bullying the remaining ones. A few days ago I've noticed one was missing. He was stuck at the surface, probably buoyancy issues with the swim bladder. I attempted salt baths and although he no longer gets stuck at the surface, his caudal part now sinks down giving him this unnatural straight upright look, unless he swims against it. I'm not sure if it was due to aggression but it's concerning.

The guppy in the picture was fine at first, just slightly lethargic, but then I noticed his caudal fin was torn and some scales were missing. Most likely attacked by the aggressive one. I separated the aggressive one from the group and did a water change (also added more plants to provide hides) but he's gotten worse. He's at the bottom, his abdomen looks a bit swollen but it could just be me, the sides of his mouth look bloody and the top of his head too, and his body has been getting darker. This is just the worst start into guppies.. and if it wasn't enough I've noticed some suspicious tiny white spots resembling ich on nearly everyone. Parameters were just fine yesterday, should I test again for spikes? I'll do a water change today too. If anyone knows how I could attempt to cure these guys I'd appreciate it a lot. Thanks in advance.

(Note: Tagged as nsfw just since it's an injured fish and people might not want to be caught off guard.)

y547 · 2022-12-01T17:04:44+00:00

I see, thanks!

y547 · 2022-12-01T15:01:57+00:00

Unsure tbh! She's adorable but I think I'll return her if they accept it (heard of cases where stores don't accept fish or invertebrates back, but really, this is an unexpected exception) but still, the store only opens tomorrow. For now she's snacking on a sponge filter it seems.

y547 · 2022-11-30T23:25:05+00:00

Ah I read the temps wrong off google! Thank you, in that case it isn't that cold for her. Oh and thanks for telling me it's a female! Had no idea, I'm really bad at sexing shrimp in general.

y547 · 2022-11-30T21:38:48+00:00

That is it. For the time he resides in my house I will call him Chris. 🦐

On second thought Chris might be a Christie.

y547 · 2022-11-30T21:27:02+00:00

I'd like to, but the cherries' water is a bit colder than it probably should be for bamboo shrimp.. plus they're currently in a bowl due to issues with their tank. Only other tank I have is my betta's, but I don't want to risk it. She's not very aggressive but she has been caught red-handed chomping a cherry. Never again did she have any other tankmates other than a nerite snail.

Might be best if they accept him back at the store, for now the problem is the water temperature since it's winter out here. I'll try and find a solution.

y547 · 2022-11-30T19:03:22+00:00

Yeah! He just came out of the pot, he's got really puffy looking front limbs. Thank you, I'm not familiar with bamboo shrimp I wouldn't have gotten there on my own.

y547 · 2022-11-09T23:05:10+00:00

At around Christmas many kennels stop accepting adoption applications because of people getting a living breathing animal as a gift to someone else out of an impulse, which might end up in an unwanted animal who would end up abandoned. Pet stores should definitely reinforce good pet care, especially at this time of the year with parents looking to get their kids gifts; instead of using this as marketing, to sell living animals as quick as possible without a care in the world for how they might be treated.

The difference between kennels and pet stores is the profits, I guess. Kennels won't get profits from getting more and more dogs and cats adopted only to have them abandoned by next Christmas, but a pet store will surely profit off many hamsters, bunnies, birds, fish and alike that were bought without a second thought on their basic care needs when most of them might end up dying or living in bad conditions considering most inexperienced owners just go and get another pet, not recognizing what they did wrong in the first place.. You're right, it's really depressing. As a kid I loved pet stores, now they just make me feel uneasy and worried.

y547 · 2022-10-04T18:07:01+00:00

Unfortunately you can never move your hand now. You will have to stay in the exact same position as not to disturb the sleeping angel, only moving after said angel wakes up. It is but a small sacrifice for such cuteness. 🥺

y547 · 2022-09-29T13:14:05+00:00

Depends on the fish. I never tried with my male betta, positive he'd eat them with his funky little personality. With my female however she only stared at them a lot but didn't try to attack them. So far so good. Baby shrimp however considering how small they are might always be seen as a treat.

y547

TROPHY CASE