Aqualand Q&As May 1-10, 2007

We don't ship critters or live fish.
When writing us, include your location.
LA_Aqualand@msn.com

Michael Philip Lim, Hong Kong, May 2, 2007
Good day to you. I want to inquire about my ryukin goldfish. He is about 1 yr old. He's not been able to go to the bottom for months. He has difficulty swimming also. I don't know whether because of his size, but he is now completely lying down on the sand -- still alive. And sometimes my oranda is being upside down. Thanks and hoping for your response.

A: Many of the fancier goldfish varieties suffer these same symptoms. We give them a tablespoon of duckweed (which they love). When they eat it, it serves as a laxative and usually cures them. They often get the same symptoms again later. Repeat the duckweed. LA

Cody Edmondson, Gadsden, AL, May 2, 2007

My local pet store sells fiddler crabs in aquariums. They stay underwater the whole time and never surface. I was under the impression that they needed dry land as well. On your site it shows and tells where they are on land. Is this okay for them to stay submerged? Will it hurt them or is it normal? Sincerely,

A: Ours seem to live longer when we keep them as beach combers. Like crayfish, lobsters, and the other crabs, fiddlers quickly learn to shinny up the air line tubing that powers your filter. LA

Ben Bawden, Adelaide, SA, Australia, April 27, 2007
Hi again, I saw you were writing a page on yabbies. If you need any info from the home of yabbies, give me a call. I breed Cherax destructor the species that is available in the USA. I also catch them quite regularly. If you need info on them in the wild, I'm your man. Please let me know, I am more than happy to help. Cheers,

A: Sounds good to me. Actually, we seem to get more than the destructor over here. I would be interested in some pictures of their locale. What say I write the article and send it to you for your comments and additions? LA

Anthony Messmer, Westerville, Ohio, May 2, 2007
Dear LA, I took on the hobby about 6 months ago. I now have 9 tanks ranging from 2 1/2 gallons to 75 gallons. I couldn't do it without your site. It has been a big help since you speak from your years of experience and what you have learned from them. In my 55 gallon aquarium I have 3 Pictus catfish, 2 bala sharks, a striped Raphael catfish, a peacock eel, and 3 sun cats. The sun cats are 3,5, and 8 inches long. The two smaller sun cats were purchased at the same time both measuring 3 inches long. Even though it appeared that both of them were eating fine, one grew 2 more inches and fattened up a lot. About two weeks ago the 3 inch sun cat somehow got 3 lacerations on the top of his head and the front of one of his gills. When I discovered them, I set him up a hospital tank using a sponge filter and treating him with MelaFix. Two weeks have passed and he doesn't appear to have healed much if at all. I don't think he's eaten anything either. I've tried with bloodworms, beef heart and red wigglers. He just doesn't seem interested. My two questions are, from what I have told you was in the tank do you have any idea how he suffered the injuries, and more importantly, what should I do with him now? Should I keep him quarantined or should I put him back in the community tank and see if the competition entices him to eat. And also I have been doing frequent water changes, because obviously the aquarium has not cycled yet. Thanks for your time. I will be looking forward to hearing your advice. I was wondering if you would consider making a page about an Asian Red tail catfish. It is one of my favorite fish, but there's not a lot of information about it on the web or in books, and I believe you guys do sell them because u had pictures of them under miscellaneous catfish.

A: Keep your sun cat quarantined until he heals. A few missed meals rarely bothers fish. Most of them get overfed on a daily basis. As for the Asian red tail catfish, I've haven't seen any of them recently. However, I'll order some of the Asian red tail albino catfish tomorrow for delivery Friday. I'll start building a log on them this week. It will probably take a while to build a page. LA

Julie, May 2, 2007
Hi there. I see that you don't ship critters. Could you please tell me
what species the light gray millipede is? I've been looking for those
for months, ever since I saw one at a breeder's website, and since then
that breeder no longer carries them. Thanks a bunch. I am so enjoying your care pages!

A: Sorry to disappoint you but I have no clue as to it's name. I've never seen it or heard of the light gray millipede. You'll get more hits if you spell it "grey" instead of "gray." LA

Abby Hileman, PA, May 3, 2007
Hello, First off, I want to say that I really appreciate your site. It has a
lot of information about fish, that was spread throughout the web, and your site really summarizes it! I live in Pennsylvania, and I had a question
about the African Knifefish. I was wondering if knifefish could live in a
brackish tank with a specific gravity of around 1.005-1.010. Also could an elephant nose, if a knifefish couldn't?
I was thinking about setting up a brackish aquarium, and was looking at
some possibilities of fish. Most of the fish in the list below are fish that
could switch from some type of meaty, or live foods onto flakes or
pellets (with occasional worms etc.). I was wondering what other fish you would suggest. The tank I'm thinking of setting up will probably be a fifty-five gallon tank. These fish are just ideas, and definitely wouldn't be my final selection, until I do more research on other possibilities of fish,
and more on these ones. Could you please give some feedback?
The fish I am really thinking of are the first six on the list, the others
are ideas also.
List of fish:
    African Knifefish (if brackish) N
    Dragon (violet) goby Y
    Lined Sole ?
    African butterfly fish Y
    Chromide Y
    Mollies Y
    Elephant nose fish (if brackish, I know they don't like to be together
    with other electrical fish, like knifefish) N
    Rainbow fish Some
    Killies Some
    Indian glassfish (I have one in my fw tank, the pet store told me it was
    freshwater) Y
    Clown loach (I have one of these in my fw tank also) N
    Ropefish Y
    Spiny eel (a type of small one, possibly) N
    Waspfish (Could it be weaned off of live food like blackworms? If it
    can't, I probably wouldn't want it.) ?
    Not puffers, since they have to eat snails Y
    Half-beaks (I know they probably wouldn't get along with African     butterflies) Y
    Are there any others? Probably
    Also can you give me some information about target fish like what they     eat etc? Not picky
    Can a chameleon fish be brackish? N
Sorry, I have probably bogged you down in about 1,000,000,000,000 questions. Thanks for taking your time to read this, I really appreciate it. Thank you!!!! Sincerely,

A: Sorry about the delay in answering. My computer insists on slowing down every so often. I put the answers in boldface to save my typing finger. LA

Michael Philip Lim, Hong Kong, May 4, 2007
Thank you sir! And one thing sir, I also have a flowerhorn. What food can I give that can enhance the head growth? These fish develop the head you know, but I want to make it more bigger. Some of my friend advise me to give chinmix if you are familiar with that.

And the other thing sir, I want to have a salt fish aquarium. How do I start? Do I need the protein skimmer and what gallon tank should I start with? Again thank you very much.

A: I've never heard of chinmix, so I have no comments on it. Hikari makes a lionhead, ranchu, oranda food that supposedly encourages head growth in those fish. I have no idea if it works on flowerhorns.
If you intend to start a saltwater aquarium, invest in a couple of current books on the subject. Then discuss your plans with your local fish store staff. Then remember that each person has their own opinion. LA

Jake Holmes, Brisbane, QLD, Australia, May 5, 2007
I bought 2 pieces of driftwood to go into 2 different tanks of mine. I will use carbon once they are put in place to take out the colouring of it. But how long do I waterlog it before it will stay down? I was also thinking of washing it very good with hot water then putting it into the gravel, would this work?

A: How long does it take to waterlog a piece of wood? That depends upon the type of wood and its size. Several types will sink from day one. Most take MUCH longer. Think in terms of months. I've had pieces that took over a year. But as we say in Iowa: "What's time to a piece of wood?" LA

Tyson95, May 5, 2007
HI I AM LOOKING FOR THE SPOTTED SHOVELNOSE CATFISH THAT YOU SHOW IN ONE OF THE PICS. ON THE PAGES THE OTHER NAME FOR IT IS THE SORUBIMICHTHYS PLANICEPS. I JUST WANTED TO KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANY AND ALSO IF YOU SHIP THEM??? AND THE COST???? THANKS FOR YOUR TIME PLEASE E-MAIL ME BACK AT zzz THANKS AGAIN

A: We get them from time to time. I haven't had them for over a month. They are on the pricey side. We do not ship. LA

Joshua Loya, May 6, 2007
Hi, I just wanted to point out that the picture of the Syno near the bottom of the "Synodontis" page that has the description: Not sure what this two-inch guy is. Socoloffi cichlid (named after my honorary uncle Rolf) above.

Is actually a young Synodontis eupterus. Their pattern changes as an adult. I hope that is helpful to you. As for the other unknown just below that pic, I used to own one of those but never found out what it's called either. I stumbled onto your site to try to ID a Syno I saw in a store today, but no luck. It has a large head and mouth, gray color, some with black spots and large (seemingly disproportionate) whiskers that jut out almost like tusks. The distal half of the whisker is black. Any ideas? Anyway, great site, awesome pics. Keep it up!

A: Because my suppliers often put the wrong name on Synos, I'm not sure I feel confident identifying many of the Synos I've "collected" on film. At the last MCA EXPO I gave a talk on Synos (with pics) and still have to correct some of them before finalizing them on my website. LA
PS Look into Scot Cat for some solid Syno info.

Sponofsatan13666, Burlington, NC, May 7, 2007
Do you guys ship tarantulas? If so, I'm looking for a Mexican red knee SPIDERLING.

A: We sell Mexican red knees but do not ship. Google on "Botar." You can tell him I sent you but not if you use the same name. LA

Corrinne Sanger, Interlochen, MI, May 9, 2007
I found your website after googling "bull sharks" and I just love it. Your information is very helpful and 'fun'! Especially because I go to a boarding school where we are allowed to keep fish and of course, my roommate got an 'executive bowl' for a fish she picked up at a grocery store that turned out to be a 3 inch bull shark -- in a one gallon fresh water bowl. It died. She didn't understand until I showed her your website. Now she knows better and we have ordered a 20 gallon tank for our room to take care of some EASIER fish! She learned her lesson and I enjoyed using your site as a beginner reference! I am helping her with setting things up and making sure it gets cleaned and the fish she picks out are easy keepers and not ones that grow up to be 14 inches long. So, thank you again. You guys are a lot of fun and I have forwarded your site to a lot of my fellow pet owners (my brother breeds ball and Burmese pythons). Keep up the good work!

A: Glad it helps. LA

Teena Madden, Glasgow, Scotland, May 8, 2007

Hi, I just recently bought 2 baby blue channel fish for my 55 gallon tank. The day after I bought them, they both died an hour apart. Roughly 2 weeks later I bough 2 more blue channel fish and yet again the same thing happened. In the tank I have 2 black moors, 2 fantails, 2 goldfish and 2 comet goldfish.. I also have two baby albino frogs in with them. I don't see the problem because the tank is very spacious and all the fish are still small (all under 4"). I also understand that I will need to separate the frogs once they grow larger. Can you tell me the problem with the blue channel fish being in the same tank as I would like to purchase more of the same breed?

A: I'm assuming you mean mean channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus? Many people give their new fish a shot of ich preventive medication which often contains malachite green. On the label it cautions against using malachite on small fish, scaleless fish, and catfish. Channel catfish fit all three categories. If you didn't hit them with malachite green, I have no clue. In the meantime, I would never mix channel catfish with any type of goldfish. They will eat your goldfish faster than your clawed frogs. And, they will eat your frogs, too, LA

Bill Dougherty, Canada, May 9, 2007
Hello there! I visit your site very frequently to find out about fish, amphibians, reptiles, the works. Anyway, I decided that I had better check your site for some info on clown tree frogs, and was slightly disappointed that there is no information on them (although pictures are great too:)). I was wondering if you could either e-mail me some info on them or even do a page on them for the site (even though the home page says that you have many other unfinished pages to do). This is kind of a shot in the dark, as I realize that you must be very busy, and if you can't find the time to send me some information personally, maybe you could send me some links to sites that do have some decent info. Thanks in advance for your help.

A: You are so in luck (maybe). The July issue of Reptiles magazine contains an excellent article on housing, feeding, and breeding clown tree frogs. I said maybe because I don't know if you can get that magazine in Canada. LA

Mike Petruzzelli, Danbury, CT, May 9, 2007
Well, I haven't sent a message in a while since I haven't really had
many problems with my tank. For one, I got rid of my pink convicts and ended up setting up a tank including:
- 4 Red-Eye Tetras
- 4 Cherry Barbs
- Same 3 existing Green Corys
A week later I decided on getting more fish (since I got paid ha,ha). I
picked up 2 Peppered Corys, 4 Harlequin Rasboras, and a Crowntail betta
who's absolutely awesome looking. So everything went well, except for the
algae, which was when I decided to purchase my 2nd Plecostomus for this
tank. I bought a High-Fin Butterfly Plecostomus, and I don't know too much about Plecostomuses, but he is a gorgeous fish. I attached a photo of him to give an idea.
My problem however, is that I don't want my new Plecostomus to end up
like my old Plecostomus, dead. I drop in a couple algae flakes every night
after I turn out the lights and occasionally some green beans or zucchini
or cucumber etc. In the morning I see that they are exactly the same, so I'm
not sure if anyone in the tank is even touching it. He does, however, munch
on my driftwood for a good portion of the day, which I'm sure gives a good
amount of nutrition, but not enough. I have shrimp pellets, frozen
bloodworms, flake food, and frozen brine shrimp food wise. There is some algae on my tank and traces of where he polished off most of it. So the question is, what's the easiest way to know if my Plecostomus is eating? Thanks for the help

A: He looks to be what we call a marble sailfin pleco around here. They are very good eaters and not at all touchy. Just keep doing what you're doing but less. LA

Linda A. Murphy, May 10, 2007
I cannot find these anywhere for purchase except the UK. Can't even
find them online. Can you tell me where to purchase them? Thanks in
advance.

A: Send me a self-addressed envelope with three stamps on it -- your home address, not your Defense Information Systems Agency address. The snails can survive the regular mail but maybe not x-ray examination. LA

Ryan Flew, UK, May 10, 2007
Hi, I just felt I had to say that I love the way you house your roundtail
bettas. The tanks look stunning. Where is your shop?

A: Are you pulling my leg? We house them in leetle cups. We're in Des Moines, Iowa -- five time zones west of Greenwich. LA

Tanner Francisco, Junior in Fisheries Biology at ISU, May 10, 2007
Dear LA, Today while walking through a stream on the ISU campus I found a big female bullfrog (at least 6 inches along the body) that I think got hit by a car. Its front foot is pretty much crushed and it just dangles. The frog tucks it underneath when she sits. I placed her in a 10 gallon tank with a thin layer of gravel along the bottom and a mound on one end so the frog can lay out of the water. I also put a bubble bar in the water and some reeds in the gravel. I put fish antibiotics in the water and I sprinkled a little bit on the frog's wound. I don't know what else to do for the poor girl. I rarely see a bullfrog that large in the wild anymore and I cannot help but respect it. I want to do everything I can to save its life. Do they make frog antibiotics or do you know of any place that would be willing to amputate a frog's leg? I couldn't find much info on frog diseases or injuries online. Any advice you could give me would be great. Thanks,

A: Contact Kayla Fjeldahl. She's in the ZEW Club sponsored by the ISU College of veterinary Medicine. She should know who to refer you to. LA

Marco Landry, Canada, May 10, 2007
All your oscars look so BAD what kind of water are they in? Almost all are in very bad shape...... Hole in the Head this is SAD!

A: All our large oscars are trade ins. They come in with HITH. Not much can be done after they already have the pits. I consider the pits non-consequential. LA

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	Aqualand Q&As May 1-10, 2007

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Under Gravel Filters Sponge Filters Cloudy Water Cool Water Tanks Gravel Vacuums Preventing Disease Feeding to the Max Frozen Foods Green Water Nasty Chemicals Overfeeding Power Filters Rift Lake Salts Quarantine Tank Mini-Tank 2nd Av Bait Pet World Visit Dandelions Aquatic Plants Amazon Swords More Swords Sword Plants III Anubias Aponogetons A. boivinianus A. fenestralis A. ulvaceous Aquarium/Bog Banana Plant Bolbitis Bunch Bunch Plants II Cryptocorynes Crystalwort Dwarf Lily Grassy Grassy II Hornwort Hygrophila Lace Java Lance Fern Java Moss Moss Balls Onion Vermiculite Watersprite	We don't ship critters or live fish. When writing us, include your location. LA_Aqualand@msn.com Michael Philip Lim, Hong Kong, May 2, 2007 Good day to you. I want to inquire about my ryukin goldfish. He is about 1 yr old. He's not been able to go to the bottom for months. He has difficulty swimming also. I don't know whether because of his size, but he is now completely lying down on the sand -- still alive. And sometimes my oranda is being upside down. Thanks and hoping for your response. A: Many of the fancier goldfish varieties suffer these same symptoms. We give them a tablespoon of duckweed (which they love). When they eat it, it serves as a laxative and usually cures them. They often get the same symptoms again later. Repeat the duckweed. LA Cody Edmondson, Gadsden, AL, May 2, 2007 My local pet store sells fiddler crabs in aquariums. They stay underwater the whole time and never surface. I was under the impression that they needed dry land as well. On your site it shows and tells where they are on land. Is this okay for them to stay submerged? Will it hurt them or is it normal? Sincerely, A: Ours seem to live longer when we keep them as beach combers. Like crayfish, lobsters, and the other crabs, fiddlers quickly learn to shinny up the air line tubing that powers your filter. LA Ben Bawden, Adelaide, SA, Australia, April 27, 2007 Hi again, I saw you were writing a page on yabbies. If you need any info from the home of yabbies, give me a call. I breed Cherax destructor the species that is available in the USA. I also catch them quite regularly. If you need info on them in the wild, I'm your man. Please let me know, I am more than happy to help. Cheers, A: Sounds good to me. Actually, we seem to get more than the destructor over here. I would be interested in some pictures of their locale. What say I write the article and send it to you for your comments and additions? LA Anthony Messmer, Westerville, Ohio, May 2, 2007 Dear LA, I took on the hobby about 6 months ago. I now have 9 tanks ranging from 2 1/2 gallons to 75 gallons. I couldn't do it without your site. It has been a big help since you speak from your years of experience and what you have learned from them. In my 55 gallon aquarium I have 3 Pictus catfish, 2 bala sharks, a striped Raphael catfish, a peacock eel, and 3 sun cats. The sun cats are 3,5, and 8 inches long. The two smaller sun cats were purchased at the same time both measuring 3 inches long. Even though it appeared that both of them were eating fine, one grew 2 more inches and fattened up a lot. About two weeks ago the 3 inch sun cat somehow got 3 lacerations on the top of his head and the front of one of his gills. When I discovered them, I set him up a hospital tank using a sponge filter and treating him with MelaFix. Two weeks have passed and he doesn't appear to have healed much if at all. I don't think he's eaten anything either. I've tried with bloodworms, beef heart and red wigglers. He just doesn't seem interested. My two questions are, from what I have told you was in the tank do you have any idea how he suffered the injuries, and more importantly, what should I do with him now? Should I keep him quarantined or should I put him back in the community tank and see if the competition entices him to eat. And also I have been doing frequent water changes, because obviously the aquarium has not cycled yet. Thanks for your time. I will be looking forward to hearing your advice. I was wondering if you would consider making a page about an Asian Red tail catfish. It is one of my favorite fish, but there's not a lot of information about it on the web or in books, and I believe you guys do sell them because u had pictures of them under miscellaneous catfish. A: Keep your sun cat quarantined until he heals. A few missed meals rarely bothers fish. Most of them get overfed on a daily basis. As for the Asian red tail catfish, I've haven't seen any of them recently. However, I'll order some of the Asian red tail albino catfish tomorrow for delivery Friday. I'll start building a log on them this week. It will probably take a while to build a page. LA Julie, May 2, 2007 Hi there. I see that you don't ship critters. Could you please tell me what species the light gray millipede is? I've been looking for those for months, ever since I saw one at a breeder's website, and since then that breeder no longer carries them. Thanks a bunch. I am so enjoying your care pages! A: Sorry to disappoint you but I have no clue as to it's name. I've never seen it or heard of the light gray millipede. You'll get more hits if you spell it "grey" instead of "gray." LA Abby Hileman, PA, May 3, 2007 Hello, First off, I want to say that I really appreciate your site. It has a lot of information about fish, that was spread throughout the web, and your site really summarizes it! I live in Pennsylvania, and I had a question about the African Knifefish. I was wondering if knifefish could live in a brackish tank with a specific gravity of around 1.005-1.010. Also could an elephant nose, if a knifefish couldn't? I was thinking about setting up a brackish aquarium, and was looking at some possibilities of fish. Most of the fish in the list below are fish that could switch from some type of meaty, or live foods onto flakes or pellets (with occasional worms etc.). I was wondering what other fish you would suggest. The tank I'm thinking of setting up will probably be a fifty-five gallon tank. These fish are just ideas, and definitely wouldn't be my final selection, until I do more research on other possibilities of fish, and more on these ones. Could you please give some feedback? The fish I am really thinking of are the first six on the list, the others are ideas also. List of fish: African Knifefish (if brackish) N Dragon (violet) goby Y Lined Sole ? African butterfly fish Y Chromide Y Mollies Y Elephant nose fish (if brackish, I know they don't like to be together with other electrical fish, like knifefish) N Rainbow fish Some Killies Some Indian glassfish (I have one in my fw tank, the pet store told me it was freshwater) Y Clown loach (I have one of these in my fw tank also) N Ropefish Y Spiny eel (a type of small one, possibly) N Waspfish (Could it be weaned off of live food like blackworms? If it can't, I probably wouldn't want it.) ? Not puffers, since they have to eat snails Y Half-beaks (I know they probably wouldn't get along with African butterflies) Y Are there any others? Probably Also can you give me some information about target fish like what they eat etc? Not picky Can a chameleon fish be brackish? N Sorry, I have probably bogged you down in about 1,000,000,000,000 questions. Thanks for taking your time to read this, I really appreciate it. Thank you!!!! Sincerely, A: Sorry about the delay in answering. My computer insists on slowing down every so often. I put the answers in boldface to save my typing finger. LA Michael Philip Lim, Hong Kong, May 4, 2007 Thank you sir! And one thing sir, I also have a flowerhorn. What food can I give that can enhance the head growth? These fish develop the head you know, but I want to make it more bigger. Some of my friend advise me to give chinmix if you are familiar with that. And the other thing sir, I want to have a salt fish aquarium. How do I start? Do I need the protein skimmer and what gallon tank should I start with? Again thank you very much. A: I've never heard of chinmix, so I have no comments on it. Hikari makes a lionhead, ranchu, oranda food that supposedly encourages head growth in those fish. I have no idea if it works on flowerhorns. If you intend to start a saltwater aquarium, invest in a couple of current books on the subject. Then discuss your plans with your local fish store staff. Then remember that each person has their own opinion. LA Jake Holmes, Brisbane, QLD, Australia, May 5, 2007 I bought 2 pieces of driftwood to go into 2 different tanks of mine. I will use carbon once they are put in place to take out the colouring of it. But how long do I waterlog it before it will stay down? I was also thinking of washing it very good with hot water then putting it into the gravel, would this work? A: How long does it take to waterlog a piece of wood? That depends upon the type of wood and its size. Several types will sink from day one. Most take MUCH longer. Think in terms of months. I've had pieces that took over a year. But as we say in Iowa: "What's time to a piece of wood?" LA Tyson95, May 5, 2007 HI I AM LOOKING FOR THE SPOTTED SHOVELNOSE CATFISH THAT YOU SHOW IN ONE OF THE PICS. ON THE PAGES THE OTHER NAME FOR IT IS THE SORUBIMICHTHYS PLANICEPS. I JUST WANTED TO KNOW IF YOU HAVE ANY AND ALSO IF YOU SHIP THEM??? AND THE COST???? THANKS FOR YOUR TIME PLEASE E-MAIL ME BACK AT zzz THANKS AGAIN A: We get them from time to time. I haven't had them for over a month. They are on the pricey side. We do not ship. LA Joshua Loya, May 6, 2007 Hi, I just wanted to point out that the picture of the Syno near the bottom of the "Synodontis" page that has the description: Not sure what this two-inch guy is. Socoloffi cichlid (named after my honorary uncle Rolf) above. Is actually a young Synodontis eupterus. Their pattern changes as an adult. I hope that is helpful to you. As for the other unknown just below that pic, I used to own one of those but never found out what it's called either. I stumbled onto your site to try to ID a Syno I saw in a store today, but no luck. It has a large head and mouth, gray color, some with black spots and large (seemingly disproportionate) whiskers that jut out almost like tusks. The distal half of the whisker is black. Any ideas? Anyway, great site, awesome pics. Keep it up! A: Because my suppliers often put the wrong name on Synos, I'm not sure I feel confident identifying many of the Synos I've "collected" on film. At the last MCA EXPO I gave a talk on Synos (with pics) and still have to correct some of them before finalizing them on my website. LA PS Look into Scot Cat for some solid Syno info. Sponofsatan13666, Burlington, NC, May 7, 2007 Do you guys ship tarantulas? If so, I'm looking for a Mexican red knee SPIDERLING. A: We sell Mexican red knees but do not ship. Google on "Botar." You can tell him I sent you but not if you use the same name. LA Corrinne Sanger, Interlochen, MI, May 9, 2007 I found your website after googling "bull sharks" and I just love it. Your information is very helpful and 'fun'! Especially because I go to a boarding school where we are allowed to keep fish and of course, my roommate got an 'executive bowl' for a fish she picked up at a grocery store that turned out to be a 3 inch bull shark -- in a one gallon fresh water bowl. It died. She didn't understand until I showed her your website. Now she knows better and we have ordered a 20 gallon tank for our room to take care of some EASIER fish! She learned her lesson and I enjoyed using your site as a beginner reference! I am helping her with setting things up and making sure it gets cleaned and the fish she picks out are easy keepers and not ones that grow up to be 14 inches long. So, thank you again. You guys are a lot of fun and I have forwarded your site to a lot of my fellow pet owners (my brother breeds ball and Burmese pythons). Keep up the good work! A: Glad it helps. LA Teena Madden, Glasgow, Scotland, May 8, 2007 Hi, I just recently bought 2 baby blue channel fish for my 55 gallon tank. The day after I bought them, they both died an hour apart. Roughly 2 weeks later I bough 2 more blue channel fish and yet again the same thing happened. In the tank I have 2 black moors, 2 fantails, 2 goldfish and 2 comet goldfish.. I also have two baby albino frogs in with them. I don't see the problem because the tank is very spacious and all the fish are still small (all under 4"). I also understand that I will need to separate the frogs once they grow larger. Can you tell me the problem with the blue channel fish being in the same tank as I would like to purchase more of the same breed? A: I'm assuming you mean mean channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus? Many people give their new fish a shot of ich preventive medication which often contains malachite green. On the label it cautions against using malachite on small fish, scaleless fish, and catfish. Channel catfish fit all three categories. If you didn't hit them with malachite green, I have no clue. In the meantime, I would never mix channel catfish with any type of goldfish. They will eat your goldfish faster than your clawed frogs. And, they will eat your frogs, too, LA Bill Dougherty, Canada, May 9, 2007 Hello there! I visit your site very frequently to find out about fish, amphibians, reptiles, the works. Anyway, I decided that I had better check your site for some info on clown tree frogs, and was slightly disappointed that there is no information on them (although pictures are great too:)). I was wondering if you could either e-mail me some info on them or even do a page on them for the site (even though the home page says that you have many other unfinished pages to do). This is kind of a shot in the dark, as I realize that you must be very busy, and if you can't find the time to send me some information personally, maybe you could send me some links to sites that do have some decent info. Thanks in advance for your help. A: You are so in luck (maybe). The July issue of Reptiles magazine contains an excellent article on housing, feeding, and breeding clown tree frogs. I said maybe because I don't know if you can get that magazine in Canada. LA Mike Petruzzelli, Danbury, CT, May 9, 2007 Well, I haven't sent a message in a while since I haven't really had many problems with my tank. For one, I got rid of my pink convicts and ended up setting up a tank including: - 4 Red-Eye Tetras - 4 Cherry Barbs - Same 3 existing Green Corys A week later I decided on getting more fish (since I got paid ha,ha). I picked up 2 Peppered Corys, 4 Harlequin Rasboras, and a Crowntail betta who's absolutely awesome looking. So everything went well, except for the algae, which was when I decided to purchase my 2nd Plecostomus for this tank. I bought a High-Fin Butterfly Plecostomus, and I don't know too much about Plecostomuses, but he is a gorgeous fish. I attached a photo of him to give an idea. My problem however, is that I don't want my new Plecostomus to end up like my old Plecostomus, dead. I drop in a couple algae flakes every night after I turn out the lights and occasionally some green beans or zucchini or cucumber etc. In the morning I see that they are exactly the same, so I'm not sure if anyone in the tank is even touching it. He does, however, munch on my driftwood for a good portion of the day, which I'm sure gives a good amount of nutrition, but not enough. I have shrimp pellets, frozen bloodworms, flake food, and frozen brine shrimp food wise. There is some algae on my tank and traces of where he polished off most of it. So the question is, what's the easiest way to know if my Plecostomus is eating? Thanks for the help MP A: He looks to be what we call a marble sailfin pleco around here. They are very good eaters and not at all touchy. Just keep doing what you're doing but less. LA Linda A. Murphy, May 10, 2007 I cannot find these anywhere for purchase except the UK. Can't even find them online. Can you tell me where to purchase them? Thanks in advance. A: Send me a self-addressed envelope with three stamps on it -- your home address, not your Defense Information Systems Agency address. The snails can survive the regular mail but maybe not x-ray examination. LA Ryan Flew, UK, May 10, 2007 Hi, I just felt I had to say that I love the way you house your roundtail bettas. The tanks look stunning. Where is your shop? A: Are you pulling my leg? We house them in leetle cups. We're in Des Moines, Iowa -- five time zones west of Greenwich. LA Tanner Francisco, Junior in Fisheries Biology at ISU, May 10, 2007 Dear LA, Today while walking through a stream on the ISU campus I found a big female bullfrog (at least 6 inches along the body) that I think got hit by a car. Its front foot is pretty much crushed and it just dangles. The frog tucks it underneath when she sits. I placed her in a 10 gallon tank with a thin layer of gravel along the bottom and a mound on one end so the frog can lay out of the water. I also put a bubble bar in the water and some reeds in the gravel. I put fish antibiotics in the water and I sprinkled a little bit on the frog's wound. I don't know what else to do for the poor girl. I rarely see a bullfrog that large in the wild anymore and I cannot help but respect it. I want to do everything I can to save its life. Do they make frog antibiotics or do you know of any place that would be willing to amputate a frog's leg? I couldn't find much info on frog diseases or injuries online. Any advice you could give me would be great. Thanks, A: Contact Kayla Fjeldahl. She's in the ZEW Club sponsored by the ISU College of veterinary Medicine. She should know who to refer you to. LA Marco Landry, Canada, May 10, 2007 All your oscars look so BAD what kind of water are they in? Almost all are in very bad shape...... Hole in the Head this is SAD! A: All our large oscars are trade ins. They come in with HITH. Not much can be done after they already have the pits. I consider the pits non-consequential. 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