Member Spotlight - Chickadee

My experience in fishkeeping began on my birthday in 2005 when my cousin decided that I needed a small friend to keep me company. She sent me a small betta container, some freeze-dried bloodworms, some Betta Bio-gold pellets, and $5.00 to go to Walmart to buy a betta. I, in my ignorance, did just that thing.

In a few days, I decided that my baby deserved to have a bigger tank, so I went and bought an Eclipse 5 gallon Hex tank and proceeded to change the water every day to the tune of about 50 percent and let him do the cycle by himself although I had no idea that this is what he was doing.

It took me about 3 months to decide I needed some help and go to the internet to find some. I found Fishlore.com and Butterfly and Gunnie and my salvation and Azul's for sure. We both got along much better after that and I felt so much more comfortable that I bought a VASE (3 gallon) and fixed it with a Duetto filter and 25 watt filter and got another betta. So another little betta got to cycle his own "tank" and soon I decided he needed his own Eclipse tank but he only got a 3 gallon.

All this time, I was reading every betta book and magazine I could find about bettas and talking to everyone I could find who would talk to me about them. I found two vets here in town who actually liked fish but did not have time to have them but would talk to me about them. I found another friend online who liked to talk to me about them and I nearly talked their ear off. Then I found that the people at Drs. Foster and Smith would answer questions about fish health and they always had fish vet techs on duty and they always called you back. Then the people at Marineland started to send me information.

The people who supplied me with my fish were so helpful (I ordered all my fish online after the first one from Walmart as he was old when I bought him and did not live long and I could not face another early death.) I ordered from eBay stores: mikeswetpets for a couple of them and they were wonderful pets but then I found Miami Aquariums and my pet store of choice. I have ordered from them ever since and the bettas I have gotten from them have been without equal.

In the middle of all this, I became a moderator and helped to start the Betta section of Fishlore.com. The success of this section has been due to the wonderful group of owners of the bettas that we have and the addition of the new moderators that have added so much as much as mine and I am so proud of the whole section.

I now own four tanks, having graduated from 1 Eclipse Hex 5 and 1 Eclipse 3 gallon, through 3 Eclipse Hex 5 to 3 Eclipse 12 gallon and 1 Eclipse 2 25 gallon tall tank. My current fish population is (in all the tanks) 7 bettas (4 halfmoons, 1 doubletail halfmoon, 1 doubletail crowntail, 1 combtail); 14 Botia sidthimunki or Dwarf Loaches; 3 Yo-Yo Loaches; 3 Sterba's Cories; 11 Otocinclus catfish; 1 Queen Arabesque Pleco; 1 Clown Pleco; and 1 Gypsy King Tiger Pleco.

My 12 gallon tanks have the Marineland Bio-wheel filter tanks and 13 watt fluorescent 4 pin bulbs for lighting. I do not have any real plants in any of these tanks at present as I have had snail problems every time I have tried them. The above picture is one of the tanks that is at present not divided but will be soon as I will have 2 bettas in it. I have one other that is divided and another that is not. In the divided tanks, I also use sponge filters to help filter the tanks. The heaters I use are all 50 watt Marineland Stealth heaters and are set to keep them at 80 degrees F. I change 50 percent of the water once a week and do filter maintenance 2 times monthly and gravel vacuuming with every water change because that is how I remove the water.

The 15 gallon tank that is pictured right, is also filtered by a Marineland Bio-wheel filter, but also by 2 sponge filters as the divider I am using is solid Plexiglas. The heater I use is a 100 watt titanium heater and it is adequate for both sides as I positioned it by the intake to the Bio-wheel and it keeps the temperature even at 80.0 on both sides. (all my tanks are kept at 80 F) The lighting is provided by 2 18" fluorescent full spectrum bulbs and I do have a few petite nana real plants provided by Gunnie for this tank. Otherwise all the plants are artificial. The maintenance schedule is the same as for the 12 gallon tanks.

All my tanks water parameters have been running: ammonia 0; nitrite 0; nitrate below 10 for some time now. I did have some problems when I first began having tanks during the summer having high nitrates but now I use spring water during the summer to prevent this as the agricultural chemicals causes a rise in the nitrate levels in our tap water during the summer around here.

I do especially want to thank the people I have met and learned to appreciate and respect at Fishlore.com for their care and patience with me while I have been continuing to learn and progress in the care of my fish. I also appreciate the patience and love my family have shown when I cannot be there for them while the fish have needed me. I also want to thank my friend JT for the help he has provided in setting up some of the equipment and allowing me to "fishsit" his fish for him.

I want to thank many of the people (they know who they are) who have helped me to get equipment and supplies accumulated and set up. I want to thank the folks at mikeswetpets and Miami Aquariums for the lovely pets that I have enjoyed so much and Mike at Fishlore.com for this opportunity.

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