emm

My mom is preschool teacher at a private school and a few weeks ago, one of the moms of one of the kids in the class brought a fish tank for the classroom ((i know, bad idea)) Unfortunately my opinion means nothing. So they had a filter in the tank and the mother brought some goldfish and a betta. I told my mom about the cycle, the overstocking issue, ect. but she didn't want to offend her student's mother. So the goldfish and the beta died and when the mother found out she went out and bought a heater and some "hot water fish" ((according to my mom)). That was last week. Anyway, today I went to check out the tank and its horrible. I guess obviously the woman didn't realize she was doing anything wrong but she should have done some research or something. Its a ten gallon with three fish, some kind of dyed tetras but im not sure which ((thought they kind of looked like silver dollars but they're small)) I remember reading somewhere that people call them "fruit loops"? So I don't really know what to do. THe tank is definately uncycled and im pretty sure no one is changing the water. There's almost no gravel in the tank and one tiny plant in the corner. And being a young teenager with no job its not like I can go out and fix up the tank; I can barely afford my own tank. Any advice? What do I do with dyed fish?

Isabella

Emm, at least we know your intentions are good and that you have a good heart - this alone means a lot I understand that you're in a difficult situation because you're still young and don't have your own money, and oftentimes adults tend not to listent to what their young children have to say. I don't yet have my own children, but when I do, I'll definitely try to listen as much as I can to what they have to say - as I don't want them to feel "un-appreciated". I think it IS very important to listen to a child. What you should do Emm, is tell your mom that "just because you're young and are dependent on your parents, doesn't mean that they should never listen to what you have to say". Do not say this in an angry manner, but in a nice loving tone. This way, your mom will be more likely to listen to you. After you've said this, tell your mom that what you know about cycling a tank is not a lie and that it is very very important. If she won't want to listen to you explaining it to her, tell her to read about it on the internet. Or ... get her to come to Fish Lore Then, we'd try and convince her!

Butterfly

Emm now that the fish ae already in the tank the only thing to do is to take good care of them. Maybe you could volunteer to do once a week water changes for your Mom. That way the fish and your Mom will benefit and you will feel better. Here is a site that tells about how fish are dyed. Maybe Mom will take a look at it with you.
http://www.deathbydyeing.org/colormedead.htm
I imagine the fish that your talking about are black skirt tetras, they are dyed in "berry" shades. blueberry, strawberry etc.
Carol