Tony G.

Hey guys, I'm back with problems.

Well here's how it goes.

I went away on vacation on december 16th. I did what i thought was right so bear with me.

35g:

Fed the kids as usual, did a gravel vac before i left. Dominant convict who looked like a female now looks like a male, who also suddenly became very agressive towards the other convict, preventing her from eating so i might have to rehome one of them. I put the glass lid on tight so it can keep all the evaporated water in so there wont be such difference in the water level for when i got back and , to prevent the water from getting lower and cracking the heater. All is well with that tank. The kids went a week without eating, ate like pigs, then went without eating for another week (my parents came to visit me in another state.) So i got home and fed them. The little female didnt come out, so i hope she's alright.

10g:

Same thing from the other tank, filled the tank, put on the glass lid. I got home to about 8 inches of water, filter somehow slid down the glass so there was no problem with it (its internal and is on suction cups). The heater miraculously didnt break as the minimum amount of water required for it not to crack was not reached. I will do a gravel vac tomorrow.

5g:

Well, i came home to about 6 inches of water, heater somehow came off the suction cups and was tipped to the side. The water was brown and some sort of mucus was all over the tank. Gravel, deco, everything. Then, there was gas bubbles trapped under mucus on the very bottom with the gravel. So that was the tank i emptied tonight. I Did a gravel vac and found that my parents had fed and empty tank, that became fungus which covered everything.

Now, here's when it gets confusing.

Before i left i transfered my female betta to a breeder net in the 10g with my male betta, as it has a lid and her 5g doesnt. So she is safe. Although i think i might've thrown both of them into breeding mode, as ive only seen such vibrant marked vertical stripes on karen's girls on her breeding pics and she is also full of eggs, and clayton had half of the 10g covered in bubbles LOL

The girl has also grown as big as clayton which is increadible as i bought her at less than an inch, clayton is about 2 1/2 without the fins, so she grew ALOT.

Before i left i also transfered the ELITE hush 5 to the 10g to keep the cycle, as i assumed i would get home and just transfer fish, filter to the original tank with no problem.

Well, while i was away i got a call from my angry mother, who was complainging about the "little blue filter" i panicked, as this filter is called "hush"for a reason. I asked her a few questions. It turns out that the filter had been running on NO water for at least 4 days, as the water level had lowered. I was not happy. I thought the filter's motor was probably dead. Surprinsingly i turned it on and no weird noises are coming from it and its working perfectly.

Amazing huh? How things can go downhill so fast. My birthday is tomorrow, i might've lost my job (as i saw a post online from my boss that he was looking for an employee), i have to give one of my most precious fish a new home. Ive got fungus all over an empty tank, and i've got 2 bettas in love, who will be heart broken in a few days. I have to clean all of the tanks tomorrow. Joy LOL

Besides I'm also going through some family problems, as i have not talked to my parents for at least 2 weeks, as we have some differences and believe i should be treated poorly.

What to do what to do. I am at a point of confusion. Where is my life going? What am i gonna do with myself. I dont even know what career i will choose... Most of you might think its just typical teenage drama, but its not that easy to go through.

Shed some light on me please. I am not gonna get anymore tanks. With work, school, and my parents i wont be able to look after so many. I am struggling with 3 already...

Please giv eme advise. I just dont know what to do. My brain has officially burnt out. I know what to do, but i just dont know how to motivate myself to do so.

Thank you, and sorry for the long post. I wish you all happy holidays and a happy new year.

Meenu

I'm sorry things are lousy for you. *hugs*

Tony G.

thanks, its just stuff i want to get off my chest. I also am gonna get a puppy soon, but my parents are telling me its either fish or dog...

Meenu

I don't mean to sound harsh, and you are the first friend I made on FL, but I gotta say that at 17, you don't get to call the shots. You live with your parents, you gotta respect them and their rules.

Don't be mad at me!!

(By the way, you know I prosecute juveniles, right? )

edit: Oh, and I vote fish over dogs.

Tony G.

LOL its ok I live by their rules. they just never take me seriously. Whenever i say something that im serious about they make fun of me and ignore me. its annoying how they only hear what they want to.

I love my fish, but i want a companion that will go with me wherever i go. I plan on moving out as soon as i can afford it (after i turn 18)...

Meenu

Not cool...

Tony G.

tell me about it. I have hope though. Both of my parents are dog lovers, but my mom only likes small barking dogs, and i want a welsh pembroke corgi, which doesnt go with that profile at all, but we'll see

redlessi

Hi Tony, glad to see you back, I missed you. Sorry it under these circumstances.

As far as a dog goes, since you plan on moving out, I think you should just wait until then to get one. That way you can focus on yourself and your fish for right now.

I know it can be hard as a teenager, but hang in there. Most parents only want whats best for their children.

Tony G.

thanks reds.

Lucy

Welcome back Tony.
I'm glad to hear all fishies are alive and well!

Those darn mountains come and go so quickly sometimes, don't they?

You're a very smart young man, you will make the right decisions for you and compromise with your parents.
It all seems over whelming because of everything happening at once.

Breath!

hooxeii

Life's full of times like these. You've got a lot of life left to make things better, though. Trust me, I'm only a little older than you, but things do get better.

As for parents; being a teenager always involves some disagreement with them. It's natural. Everybody disagrees at some point or another. Regardless, no one should accuse you of being overly dramatic about your teenage experiences. To quote one of my fave movies, "Little Miss Sunshine", "high school...those are your prime suffering years." We've all been there--me recently--and know what it's like. Guess what? There's drama all through life too

I didn't know what career I wanted to do for sure until I came to visit the college I now attend. The average number of times a college kid changes their major is 6. Life changes, and sometimes you have to change with it, but sometimes you get lucky and things go your way for a change.

Glad to hear the fish are ok for the most part. I hate when incidents snowball like that.

callichma

Glad to see you back on FL Tony. I was wondering where you were. Glad you're OK. I think it's always hardest the first few days back from vacation. When I was working, I used to vow not to ever go on vacation again the first day back. But I always got over it, and you will too.


I have a Pembroke Welsh Corgi named Maggie (she has a longer name). She is quite a character, and we love her. She is very hard headed and strong willed--if you get one, you'll have to have to learn how to be the alpha dog. Your mom should like a corgi because they are small and will bark a lot if allowed to.

I know everything will work out for you. Glad you are back.

Tigerfishy

Good to see you back Tony. Sorry to hear your probs, but remember we're all here for you, rant all you need to!

For your fish, do the best you can as you have ALWAYS done. If you think getting rid of a fish (even though a favourite) is the right thing to do, it prob is - you are very strong to see that and in the long run, it prob is best for the remaining babies. Nothing has happened to any fish so far, and that's good considering everything, right?? See the positives here.

I agree with above posters and would wait for a dog, it could get worse if you have a lot to do and also a dog running about. You don't want to make your current situation any worse either. IF, and only if you lose your job, surely your manager should have said something before now..., then apply everywhere. See it as a chance to learn something new. Heck, i got my university degree in Zoology and right now i'm working full time in a call centre helping people with policies they own with my company, hardly an animal related job haha! I don't know what to do and I'm out here in the big bad world, come join me lol, we can be clueless together !!

OK my post is getting too long and thinking of helpful things makes my little head hurt. I'm rubbish with helping people out, but i gave you all i thought about when i read your post. *hugs*

click

Hi Toni, I hope things will work out for you. I agree with the above posters that it would be better to put the dog plan on hold for a while. A dog is a lot of work. As you probably know already, they have to be walked daily or else they will become over-energetic and chew up your stuff. Plus it would not be fair for a dog to be ignored because you are too busy with school and work. That's the main reason I have put my plan of getting a dog on hold. I wanted one since I was a teenager, and this year I'm turning 30 and I still don't think it's the right time to get one since I'm away from home almost 11 hrs/day and I don't even have a yard.

A puppy also needs some medical attention since in the first year there's quite a few vaccinations that have to get done and they are not always cheap. And God forbid it gets sick, you would need some cash handy for treatments. And you also have to train the puppy since you don't want a dog that doesn't obey you as a master. Dogs are cute but require a lot of work. Plan well before you get one.

Red1313

<hugs>
Welcome Back Tony! I was wondering where you went.
I hope everything works out for you. As for parent drama... even moving out doesn't change that. Love them and know that one day you'll be the parent and then you'll know what they meant.

bolivianbaby

Tony, glad to see you back!

I'm so sorry you're going through this, but I'm glad the fish are okay.

My best advice would be to wait on the dog, don't stress about the job unless your boss actually tells you he's letting you go, don't change who you are, and hang in there with the parents. It will get better. This is all natural.

We're here for you if you need us.

Tony G.

thanks everyone!

I guess i will wait on the dog. Im dreading the fact of emptying the 5g... its not much work, but im very tired still... haha