Help! Tank for 5 yr old

[lisa1976]

Hi everyone. I am so new to this. My 5 year old wants his own tank and I have no idea where to begin. Do you have any recomendations for a tank or the kind of fish he (really me lol) could take care of? I want something small that he can keep in his room on a bookcase.

Or does this just have disaster written all over it?

Thank you.

 

[brian1973]

I would say keeping it in his room is a bad idea. As for fish I would probably recommend Platys, mollies or guppies they seem to be good beginner fish but if you have males and females you can easily be over ran with babies. Just do your research before you buy anything and dont rely on info from the pet store employees.

I would say get a 10 or 20gallon and set it up someplace where you can closely supervise your son, because as you noted you will be taking care of them and it will be easier to monitor.

 

[punkrockfish]

i'm having a flashback to when i was 5 and my parents got me a fish tank...which my mother ended up taking care of for the most part. I had one in my room on my dresser and it was fine. keep in mind that if you get a bigger tank you have more options for fish. 10g or 20g should be fine, and to make life easier you could go with one of those eclipse system tanks that come with a light and filter built in, you would just need a heater. read up on how to set a tank up first (cycling is key), and once you decided on a tank size, then work on fish. one way that may work for you is go to a store, right down the fish you like, and then come back and ask us what may or may not work. good luck, and welcome!

 

[iapetus]

Welcome to the Tank, lisa1976!

I think you're likely to get suggestions that you get a betta for him (maybe not here, but probably at a pet store). And, that might not be a bad idea. But, don't be misled into thinking that that betta will require less care than any other fish. They can get by in a smaller tank (I think anything less than a 5-gallon tank is a little cruel), but they still need warm water and oxygen and the like. But, bettas can be a little on the easygoing side; a betta might not be as fun for your son to watch.

If you go with anything else, I'd recommend nothing smaller than a 10-gallon tank. And, make sure that you don't overstock it. The mollies and platies and guppies that brian1973 suggested aren't a bad idea.

What I would basically suggest is that you figure out how much support and care you are willing to take to maintain the tank, as you realize that you'll be the one to have to do it. Once you've done that, I'd look through all of the stickies on this forum to get some of the basic information. Use the search feature, too. And, don't be afraid to post with follow-up questions; the sticky information can be overwhelming.

One more thing: watch out -- this hobby can be really, really addictive!

 

[iapetus]

And, another thing: goldfish are nowhere near as easy to maintain as they might seem! Most people will tell you that they need at least a 20-gallon tank for the first one (10 gallons for each additional fish).

 

[TabMorte]

I'm going to second iapetus, a betta is a GREAT choice for a first fish. The Betta I bought my daughter when she was 6 is how our whole family got into fish keeping! A little 5 gallon tank makes a good home for one and as he gets older he'll be able to do a lot more for it (my daughter at 8 almost 100% cares for her fish now herself).

That said while he's five you're still going to have to do a lot of the work. A 5G with a betta needs weekly water changes and cleaning. If that's the only fish in it it won't be too bad though. You'll need to make sure your child feeds the fish as well.

While as far as water maintenence you can slowly ease him into it but until he's considerably older (and larger) he's not going to be able to do a lot of the 'work'.

Don't fear though! If you get a betta for him you will slowly grow to love the fish and it's not hard or bad at all. They're very personable little guys. And Bettas are after all a 'gateway' fish.

 

[brooklynfish]

I also agree with iapetus. Bettas would be great for a beginner(as long as you treat them properly).

My friend had one once. He didnt like him at first, but the betta(named Strawberry) grew on him. Now their best pals!

 

[d3sc3n7]

Guess I got beat to the punch, but I was going to say get a betta also. The eclipse 5 gallon system is perfect for a betta. That is plenty of room for the fish, and a large enough tank to easily view the fish. I think thats your best bet.

 

[brian1973]

My experience with Bettas was they seemed to be a bit inactive and usually stick to a certain territory within a 10gallon tank. I would think that something more active but colorful will hold a 5 yr olds attention more there by keeping his interest level up, I know my 3 kids ranging from 3 to 11 loved the fish for about 2 weeks then they were mine period, even though my 3yr old does like to feed them but I place the food in his hand so I know how much they get.

I still say not in his room but you know your children better than we do, I know my son is a bit to rambuncious to have something breakable, let alone something breakable with lots of water in his room.

 

[d3sc3n7]

My experience with Bettas was they seemed to be a bit inactive and usually stick to a certain territory within a 10gallon tank. I would think that something more active but colorful will hold a 5 yr olds attention more there by keeping his interest level up

Well, I agree with this to! LOL. If you go with about a 10g you could get a dwarf gourami, and maybe a few male guppys. Wait for a response to make sure these guys will get along, but I'm pretty sure they will. That will give you lots of color, and alot of movement of the fish.

 

[Lone Wolff]

I think you've got some great advice here, and I will also advise to keeping the tank out of his bedroom at that age. Get something that you can enjoy/observe in a more 'public' room of your house. Let him pick out the fish from the options that you give him, let him choose as much of the decorations, plants, gravel color, etc.

Then, when he's a little older if he shows the right 'parenting' skills for the fish, it would probably be just fine to move it into his room. Everyone's different, but in my experience, 8-10 year olds have a much better grasp of responsibility than 5-6 year olds. Especially for living things.

Good Luck and keep us posted.

 

[Kissyboots]

While a betta is a good "first fish" (it was for me too) a 5 gallon might not be. If you get a 5g and a betta and you want more fish...where to put them all? I started with a 20g and ended up getting a 5g too (cuz I got fry.) 10-20g is pretty good since you can put more than one type of fish in there which will be more interesting. Petco.com has a pretty cool "compatiblity chart" and I think someone posted it in the lounge too. Check it out. Also, don't trust store employees. Not the most informed people. Do some research of your own and check with people here too. I would definitely get a larger tank than a 5g. One inch of fish per gallon isn't very much. If you get a 10 or 20g go for swordtails or mollies or something as mentioned earlier. I wouldn't necessarily get guppies since they multiply rapidly but d3sc3n7 would know all those details. Some ghost shrimp wouldn't be so bad either. They're hard to spot and are entertaining to find. Hehe. When they eat pink fish flakes you can see their stomachs. Sorry, random comment but I've got some and think they're cool. I wouldn't get tetras though because they are boring (sorry tetra lovers) and take up room. Anyway, end of wall of text...

 

[TabMorte]

A couple of guppies in a 5 G would be great too.

You'll probably end up like me with finding nemo decorations and the most god aweful colored gravel if you let him pick them out but hey it's his fish!

 

[MissFishy]

Welcome! I suggest that if you don't know anything about fish tanks you take a look and completely read through the link below in my signature. It gives some basic set up info and stocking ideas.

 

[lisa1976]

Oh wow. This is a lot more complicated than I thought! I guess long gone are the days of a goldfish in a bowl huh? *BOUNCINGS

Thank you everyone for you replies and suggestions. I am going to have to go through them all and write some stuff down.

We live in a small apartment so I can't get too big of a tank. It looks like I have some research to do.

I'll be back with more questions I'm sure *twirlysmi

 

[pwrmacG4]

something that I am learning (the hard way) is that you cannot just buy a tank throw in water and fish and call it an aquarium. if you go with tropical fish you need a heater and a filter. the tank will have to go through a cycle before it is established and no harm will come to the fish. there is alot of work getting a tank started. and I agree.. extremely addicting hobby! Good luck with whatever you do. and welcome to the tank!

 

[lisa1976]

ok, please don't think I'm dumb but what other fish are there besides tropical?

And do all tanks come with a heater and filter, or is that seperate?

 

[brian1973]

Most tanks come without heaters and filter unless you buy a starter kit, then it is usually bottom of the line stuff but good for a beginner. I personally buy everything seperate just so i can get what i want. I dont now anything about the Eclipse line of tanks though, I know they seem to be popular with some people on here.

As for the first question someone with more experience than me will have to answer the specifics of that.

 

[pwrmacG4]

if you purchase a kit.. alot of them come with a filter and a heater.. but make sure. some fish require a certain water temp. goldfish on the other hand are cold water fish. so tropical fish require a heater. I would say try to get a 20 gallon or bigger aquarium kit. there are alot of options that aren't terribly expensive

 

[lisa1976]

Thank you so much. I am such a nimwit when it comes to this kind of thing. I can already picture our first toilet funeral.