CatladyDane

I've heard of pet rescue groups, and I'm not one, but, excepting fish, all my critters have been unwanted and/or abandoned when they came to me. I call it the "feline underground railroad" (dogs welcome, too). So, this jerk, an old acquaintance, moved into a duplex on my block. Somewhere within him is the spark of kindness, as he brought with him a fish abandoned at the previous apartment by a former roommate. He hadn't the heart to leave it to die. It was living in half a tank of green water, no frills. He has the 10g tank with gravel, but no equipment. Not wanting to put forth the effort to take care of this creature, he has offered it all to me. Assuming it survives, (it has for some time now and he says it appears to be healthy), I expect to receive it any day now. I told him to save me the gravel (because of the established bacteria) and some of the fish water. So when I get the tank, gravel, & fish, I shall take my list to PetSmart for hood, filter, aeration, live plants, etc. I expect that I shall acclimate this fish to good water through addition of good water & daily partial water changes and clean things up a bit at a time. I fear that if I dump him in a perfect tank the shock may do more harm than good. I'm told that (s)he's an African Cichlid (species unknown), blue, and about 3 inches long. If anyone has an experience or thoughts on restoring refugee fish to happy, healthy, civilized living conditions, I'd love to know your thoughts on how to accomplish this as gently and effectively as possible.

COBettaCouple

I'd recommend using Prime to treat the tap water for this cichlid. Your plan sounds good.

steveangela1

sounds like a good plan, honestly there should be a fish rescue out there for unwanted fish... I guess I would take all the african cichlids that no one wanted.

Allie

We have a group of people who rescue fish around here. A part of our local aquarium club.
Use Melafix to treat the cichlid seem to work the best on africans.

steveangela1

Hey, that would give me a "something good to do" and a way to help fish!! we don't have anything like that here! I have a lot of spare time on my hands and I don't have the means to do a rescue for dogs/cats or want to but fish.. now thats a different story! I am sure I could get my fav fish store involved as a public service/pulblicity sort of deal.

COBettaCouple

Fish 911!

How is your rescue cichlid doing?

CatladyDane

(S)he's lovely. The aquarium is 20g, not 10. I received fish & tank last night, picked up all the necessary stuff at PetSmart, and set up. "Rocky" (named because after all he's survived he's a fighter) seems shy but very curious. He hides in or behind a big decoration and comes out cautiously to look around. He was previously in barely 8" of water; now he has a full tank with Penquin filter, bubbler, etc. A couple of times I walked into the room where the tanks are and he has been out investigating then darts behind something when he sees me. Then he pokes his head out & comes out slowly to see what's going on. I did use Prime, and will test water daily & do partial changes as needed. I have one concern, which I must research when I get home from work this evening. On a fin on his underside, towards the back, there appears to be about 4 tiny white spots that remind me of barnacles (or spots of paint, but I don't think he's been in contact with paint). The rest of him appears clean. He was very pale baby blue when he arrived - almost ghostly - but appears to be slowly getting more color. The PetSmart associate said the color suppression might be a stress reaction to the move. Hopefully all will progress satisfactorily, but there are no guarantees; we just do the best we can.

COBettaCouple

All things considered, sounds like he's doing great.

Those little spots might be ich (especially if the water was cold that he was in) or fungus. Either condition could be treated safely with Rid-Fungus (and heat for the ich). I'd just watch for changes and have the Rid-Fungus handy if you see any. With what the little guy's been through, harsh meds wouldn't be good, so keeping his water clean and if necessary, using Rid-Fungus will hopefully negate any need for meds.

CatladyDane

I found them! Those spots! If you go to "Tropical Fish and Aquarium Forum > Freshwater Aquarium Fish > Freshwater Fish - Species Specific > Cichlids > African Cichlids > African Cichlid Photos
Different Malawi cichlid species
Different Malawi cichlid species " and look at the thumbnails on Allie's post of December 1, 2007, enlarge the bottom left photo. My Rocky resembles, but is not as bright as the Labidochromis Hongi, Male. (S)he's so far a lighter shade of blue, but has the same striping pattern. Both of the fish in Allie's picture have those spots, and on the same lower fin, as mine. Are they common?

Ill probably be doing a lot of partial water changes, and vacuuming gravel bit by bit (so I don't take out all the good bacteria) for a long time. I plan to change the gravel in small stages anyway; I don't like the light color. But Rocky seems to be happy in his spacious, improved environment. (Love the Mag-Float - it even takes water lines off!)

Swordtails are wonderful - you can tell the boys from the girls by the tail. I wish I knew if this cichlid was a Rocky or a Roxie.

COBettaCouple

Great to hear that those spots are definitely not anything that could be a problem!

CatladyDane

(S)he seems to be happy in his new home, even though I'm not finished with it. Rocky is doing his own "housekeeping". This morning when I turned on the light I noticed that I could see the glass bottom under one point of his shelter. (This "rock" resembles a 3 legged table, resting on the gravel on 3 feet, providing multiple ways in & out.) I knew I had been careful to not disturb the gravel excessively while adding water. Then I spotted him picking up a piece of gravel, taking it outside his nest, and spitting it out. When any critter starts nesting, it is obviously making a home.

CatladyDane

Here he is! Pardon my very beginner level photography. Pets are the hardest to photograph. When I push the button on my little digital camera (HP Photosmart E217) it makes a tiny wheeze just before the flash & shutter operate, at which time the dog perks up his ears, the cat lifts his head, or the fish darts. The first photo shows those spots that I was concerned about. He does have the striping, but it's very faint and doesn't show up in these photos. Any idea what species of African Cichlid he is? Or is he a she? (By the way, he's about 3 inches long.)

Thanks again for all your responses.

Attached Images

	Rocky 4.JPG (416.4 KB, 3 views)
	Rocky 1.JPG (418.2 KB, 0 views)
	Rocky 2.JPG (360.8 KB, 1 views)
	Rocky 3.JPG (334.0 KB, 0 views)

COBettaCouple

Hmm.. I'm not sure, but am new to cichlids. You might find pictures that match at cichlid-forum.com 's profiles. Looks like you're doing really well with the rescue.

steveangela1

I had to check in, hows the cichlid doing??

CatladyDane

She seems to be doing good. Apparently there was enough good stuff in her dirty old gravel that it prevented the need for a new cycle. I've added more (fake) plants, and am changing the ugly old gravel for black, section by section, as I do weekly water changes. In the African Cichlid Photos Forum I posted her picture and I think the Malawi Mbuna Cobalt Blue Zebra, young female, may be her identity. My friend wanted to call her "Jefferson". (Theme song from the old situation comedy "The Jeffersons" had a line "movin' on up...to a deluxe apartment..." and he thought that fit her situation), so now I call her "Weezie". She eats well, and seems to know me. (I'm glad fish can't meow; this place is like a zoo at feeding time!) She likes tropical flakes, spirulina flakes, and I give her small floating Cichlid pellets, but she doesn't usually eat them until they soften and sink. She seems to be quite curious about what's going on outside her tank, and is getting braver about coming out in company. I did give her a couple of shrimp pellets that I have for my Cory (who lives in the other tank), and she seemed to like them. Hopefully, she is a happy healthy fish and will thrive. I figured that if we made it through the first few days we'd probably do okay. I hope I'm right. So far I've no indication otherwise. Thanks for inquiring.

COBettaCouple

Great to hear that she's doing good and love the name! Shrimp pellets are definitely a good idea and we just got some Omega One shrimp pellets today for our cichlids. Our Angel is too picky for them, but the julies love them. If you'd like, some Hikari frozen foods would be a good addition to her diet (or soaking her food in garlic juice). It would increase the moisture in her diet and help her digestive system.

steveangela1

Sounds like she really is a Jefferson! You should get some more mbunas you sound like you are doing great w/ her! Im glad to hear that this is going great!

Allie

It does look like our female cobalt zebra. They are very common but popular.