October 11-20, 2007 questions you asked Aqualand

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

Susan Spurgeon, San Francisco, CA, October 11, 2007
I just read your article on ringneck doves and it provided a lot of information to someone who is going to pick up 2 ringneck doves this weekend. I noticed the photo of the conure perched next to two doves. I also want to get a conure but wasn’t sure if they got along with doves or not. Can I assume from that photo that they get along or are basically indifferent to each other? Whoever those birds belonged to, do you know if they were all kept in the same cage or enclosure?
I have been feeding the city pigeons in San Francisco every weekday that I come in to work. I have been feeding them for about 2-3 years. I have also had the outstanding pleasure of feeding the famed “Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill” for about the last year and a half. But because of a law that was passed specifically outlawing the feeding of the cherry-headed conures in San Francisco’s parks, that very satisfying, and pleasurable activity is no more. So I grew to love the conures very much and I’m surprised at how much I truly miss those birds.
Anyway, to make a very long story short, it would make me so happy to know that there wouldn’t be bird fights between one of the smaller conures (like the one in your photo) and the two ringneck doves I’ll be picking up this weekend. Any information you can pass along would be greatly appreciated. I also have an aquarium with 2 large goldfish. Any danger to the doves or to a conure? The top of the aquarium is covered so they couldn’t fly or fall in. Would they even try? Thanks for your help.

A: Goldfish to the best of my knowledge have never attacked a dove or conure. I would not recommend mixing ringnecks and hookbills, though I've seen ringnecks mixed with parakeets. Ringnecks will not defend themselves no matter what. The doves in our picture got along with the baby conure mostly because he was a baby. LA

Melissa Brownrigg, Iowa City, IA, October 11, 2007
Hello, I'm a University of Iowa Journalism student writing a "how to" article about raising a praying mantis. In researching this subject on the
web, I stumbled upon your website. I'm interested in obtaining more
information and/or possibly interviewing you on this subject. I'm
under the assumption that you raise them. But if you don't, it would be
helpful to know if you are in contact with anyone who does. Thank you,

LA
One of Martha's bugs.

LA
Nice smile, eh?

LA
Egg cluster laid by one of her bugs.

A: I'm not raising any mantids myself this year. Martha, Aqualand's manager, currently keeps a half-dozen or so. I can probably answer your questions or you can talk to Martha. You can reach either of us at our number at the bottom of this page. LA

Amanda & Les, UK, October 12, 2007
Hi, We just wanted to say we find your Degu information great and have added a link to the page on our website we hope this is ok with you Kind Regards
www.joeychinchilla.co.uk
Member of The NCS(national chinchilla society)

A: Okay by me. LA

Dao Xiong, Wisconsin, October 12, 2007
Greetings, I checked out your site and I saw glass worms. Do you guys ship glass worms? If so please tell me the price, amount of shipping cost, and if they are live or frozen. I would much prefer the live ones. If you don't have any live ones, frozen would do just fine. Thanks,

A: Live glass worms are seasonal -- only available when our northern lakes are frozen. I'd think they would be available in your neck of the woods once Wisconsin lakes get a couple of inches of ice on them. We used to have a Minnesota connection but lost it a couple years ago. We now just sell the frozen glass worms. We don't ship, but you should be able to get these at your local fish store. LA

Shara Davis, Melbourne, FL, October 13 2007

Hi! I stumbled upon your website and I adore it. Very thorough and organized. My question is, I have 7 tetras. They're different species (by now I only remember that I have a neon and 2 zebra) and I used to count them every day or so, but stopped. I counted them this morning and there were only 5 tetras! Then after work I came home and can find only 4. There are no signs of the others at all. No bodies, no debris, nothing. Am I losing my mind? What happened? Where are they? Do/can they eat each other down to the last scale like that? I don't know what other info I'm supposed to provide because I'm half a country away, but : thank you!

A: Zebras are actually minnows, but that doesn't answer your question. The best total eaters of fish in aquaria are snails and plecostomids -- but only if the fish are dead first. They can't catch live ones. LA

Victor M. Hernandez, New Jersey, October 13, 2007
Do you have any Siberian chippies available? Chippie would be a family Christmas gift. Thanks,

A: We have one Siberian chipmunk left, but we do not ship animals. LA

Peyton Gaumer, Iowa, October 14, 2007
Dear L.A. Some vinegar accidentally got spilled in my 10 gallon tank and
the pH dropped by 1.4 in ten minutes. How can I save the fish as 2
of them aren't mine. I already tried to dilute it with high pH water,
but is this enough?

A: When you have a RUSH question, call us rather than send an email. Today we went directly from work to eat out and take in a movie. So, you're getting your RUSH answer some five hours later than you needed it. Vinegar is a weak acid (5% acetic acid), so your fish are probably fine. Depends upon how much you spilled into your water. LA

Tanner Francisco, Ames, IA, October 14, 2007
Dear Larry, I just got a figure 8 puffer on a trade-in up here in Ames and when I noticed that he leaves a lot of scraps behind I was wondering if there was some sort of scavenging fish/invert that I could safely keep with him in lightly brackish conditions. He leaves a lot of krill and bits of snail everywhere so I'd need a fish that would eat meat. Would a little Chinese algae eater eat meat? I figure I can toss an algae eater in there until it gets too big and then swap it for a little one again if it would actually work. Do you know of any little plecos/corys/loaches that would be ok with a figure 8 puffer? I got the least aggressive one there but I didn't want to toss a fish in just as food. Thanks,

A: Chinese algae eaters are speedy little guys. If he fails, you can use a four-inch net or a gravel vacuum cleaner. LA

Stuart Hillman, UK, October 15, 2007
Hi, First off I'd like to congratulate you on one of the best fish related
websites I've seen! As a matter of fact, that is exactly why I'm writing to you.
I'm in the process of writing a guide to keeping tropical freshwater fish and would like to request perhaps using some of the images from your site as illustrations. You would receive full credit under each image used and a personal thank you at the start of the book.
I need images of some fish (guppies etc) and also of plants and general
tank stuff, and I'm no good at photography so I'm looking for a source of
good images. If you could help, it would be very much appreciated. I'll also send you a free copy, if I ever get it finished!!

A: I'm pretty sure someone already wrote a book about fish; didn't they? In fact, it seems like every Tom (Giovanetti), Dick (Mills), and Jerry (Young) has written a book about fish. But fish books are like pizzas. We can always use another one. Sure, feel free to use my pictures. Speaking of guppies, I thought my guppy shots were a little weak. Anyway, use the heck out of them. And remember the words of the Beatles: "♫ I wanna be a paperback etcetera ♪." LA

Brandon, Colorado, October 16, 2007
Hello, I have a few questions concerning a certain type of fish, the Vespicula depressifrons or butterfly goby/wasp fish. I was looking at the water specifically you kept the fish in and also life expectancy in fresh and brackish water. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thank you

A: I can't give you a 100% iron-clad specific gravity to keep the little rascals in all the time. Brackish water fish live in the mouths of rivers (where they flow into the ocean). When the tide comes in, the ocean backs up the rivers. They become saltier. When the tide goes out, the people gather round and they all begin to shout ... whoops, sometimes I'm easily distracted by people beating their feet on the Mississippi mud. Anyway, when the tide goes out, the rivers put freshwater into the same area. Brackish water fish adapt to these changes. LA

Silvara Wilde, San Martin, CA, October 18, 2007
Heyla! I've been stalking your website for almost 2 years now while I save up the money for the tank I want (at least a 50 gallon I think.) I have 2 questions for you. I remember reading somewhere that it was a bad idea to use an aquarium that had previously had reptiles living in it, but I can't remember why it was a bad idea. And I haven't found where I read that either. The other question is, one of the species I eventually wish to acquire is the Bleeding Heart Platy. I've read the Platy page you have up now, but it makes no mention of this particular type. I am guessing that they need the same things regular platys need, but I've only been able to find one website that talks about them at all (and now can only find the Barred variety as shown here: http://www.mellowaquatics.com/TropicalFishForSale/BleedingHeartPlaties.htm ) Any help you can give me on these two things would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

A1: Maybe somebody wrote that because some Salmonella organisms may still lurk there. If you fear any such (or other such) organisms potentially lurking in there, bleach it. Fill it full of water and add a cup or a bunch of bleach and let it simmer a few days. Then rinse and spit. Let it air dry and treat it like a brand new tank.
A2: The picture of the bleeding heart platy in Lothar Wischnath's Atlas of Livebearers of the World © 1993 shows the same bars. But I remember what you describe several decades ago on the cover of TFH way back last millennium when Joanne Norton was working with Axelrod to "invent" new livebearers. Your best bet is to contact the American Livebearer Association and see if any of their members own that variety. LA

Julie Ugarte, Hicksville, NY, October 19, 2007
I am writing to you about your website & the information on Worms that Infest Our Cats and Dogs

You should really do more research before posting false information. You wrote "If your indoor cat gets heartworms, it will probably die" This is so untrue. I have an indoor cat who survived heartworm disease & if symptoms treated early, the cat has just as much of a chance of leading a normal life. Someone researching their pet's heartworm could read that and panic. It is very misleading.

A: As far as I know the info on that page was correct when I wrote it. Seven years have flown by since then and probably vet techniques have improved. I did have a vet proof the copy. I'm adding your report to the page. LA

Alex from KY, October19, 2007
Hi, I frequent your site often. It's a really good source of information.
Recently though I have become interested in shell dwelling cichlids,
and it would be nice if you were to add a page to your site on them.

A: I can't do it. I haven't kept enough of them long enough to say much about them. Sorry. LA

Judy Cook, Spokane, WA, October 19, 2007

Greetings- I love your website so much. I wish that you did ship because I would totally buy from you. Our local choices are either Box stores or the local pet shop with tanks that look like sewer treatment plants. Much of what we get comes from mail order.

But I very often refer to your site, especially on issues of compatibility and it's just great to read. And also the infusoria info has been a light bulb solution for us too. You're all informative and I just wanted to say Thank You for posting all the information. It's a great resource for even us non-Iowans.

I was reading the Brackish pages the other day. We got some Mudskippers and wanted to see what might be compatible with them. They do tussle with each other somewhat, but aren't too bad now. The fish don't really spend much time in the water. It's a big tank and a lot of water area too, so we were thinking about tank mates. So reading your mudskipper experience was just great. Thank you for sharing.

One bit of info I wanted to pass along to possibly add to your page and to your available stock, if you stock Brackish fish regularly for your customers to purchase. We're using these snails -- Olive Nerites or Olive Snails, Neritima reclivata.

Mature ones are dime to nickel sized and they thrive in brackish water. They are unbelievable vacuums too. I'm actually amazed myself at how well they do. They also make great (perfect) food for puffers.

We found them through mail order, but I've seen them in more places now. Many sell them as freshwater snails. We use them in freshwater tanks too, because they are the very best tank cleaning snails that do not eat plants. And in freshwater they will not breed. (They do still lay eggs, but these have never hatched.) In brackish they thrive and do multiply well if there's too much nutrients. (Or free puffer food for those with puffers.) Even though they are a brackish snail, they do live well in fresh. Any that die get snagged by a fish. (If they've come from a brackish source, they have to be acclimated to fresh. And as I see that many sources sell this species as fresh, I'm sure those would have to be gradually acclimated back to brackish.)

Anyway, wanted to pass long about the snails. They work so well in fresh (no eating plants or multiplying), but since there's such a limitation on bio agents for brackish conditions, we've really found them to be perfect.

And again, thank you very much for posting your website. We love it.

A: Thanks for the kudos and the info. I'll try to find some way to work it into the brackish pages. I've had the nerites before but their eggs never hatched. Now I know why. Thanks. LA

Kelly, October 19, 2007
Hi, I was hoping you could help me? I have a chance to get either one of these spiders. Which one would make the best pet and the easiest to look after? A Megaphobema robustum (Columbia Giant Red Leg) or Aphonopelma bicoloratum (Mexican Blood Leg )? Thanks.

A: Either one would make an excellent pet. If your checkbook is large enough, get them both. LA

Tony Messmer, Westerville, OH, October 19, 2007
I have a question about an opaline gourami that has quit eating. This happened about 3 weeks ago. He appears healthy, no signs of disease. The other gourami in the tank is eating fine and has doubled in size. The other fish in the tank also appear healthy. I have tried giving every kind of food. He rushes to the top, starts eating then spits it out. This goes on for about 5 minutes. It seems to me he can not swallow his food. Thank You in advance for your time.

A: Since I don't have an exact answer, I'd suggest putting him in a bare bottom quarantine tank with some mystery snails to clean up. If it is a disease, this would decrease its chances of spreading. Observe him for a week to see how he eats. You can see any food that hits the bottom. If he continues his picky eating, try a live food like California blackworm. Or frozen foods. Try very tiny feedings multiple times per day. LA

Segrest Farms sent me this photo. I enjoyed it. LA

Earl/Mae Busch, October 20, 2007
We have been given a Red Oscar and 2 other fish in a 35 gallon tank. Today we bought a plecostomus and a long tailed Red Betta. We don't know what the other 2 fish are, but they all get along. So, our question is: Is it safe to put this beautiful Betta in the tank with the other fish or should we keep it in its own separate fish bowl? The Oscar is very quiet and very calm all the time. Please advise as we are new to cichlids and don't want to put the Betta in there if the Oscar will kill it. Thnx for your advice.

A: I would expect the oscar (and any fish that get along with oscars) to eat your betta -- usually in one gulp. LA

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