Can I add any new fish yet?

[sassymomma]

I got my tank cycled and all my levels are stable now and have been for about a week. I'm still checking them daily just in case. Can I add more fish yet or should I wait longer? I don't want to lose any more fish. Also where so I go to get my fish? I have a couple Pet stores around and also Wal-mart.

 

[Rush07]

If your Ammonia and Nitrate are at "0" and your Nitrates are below, say, 20ppm, you should be OK adding more fish. I do not know the size of your tank or how many fish you have in it now, but add fish slowly so you will not overwhelm your biological filtration.

If you have a local fish store, that is probably your best bet. On one hand I would like to tell you to avoid Walmart as the vast majority that I have seen to not care for their fish properly. On the other hand, you would most likely be saving a fish from poor conditions and giving the fish a better opportunity for a long life. Depends on your perspective.

 

[sassymomma]

Everytime we go to Wal-Mart my son always want to look at the fish. I always see dead fish in their tanks. Is it even safe to buy fish from tanks where others are already dead? I've not felt comfortable to buy any from there as of yet.

 

[RexyTexel]

I wouldn't buy fish from Wal-Mart period. The less people buy from them the more likely they are to shut down their fish section. They had 15 oscars in a 20 gallon tank. Ridiculous! Don't bother "saving" a fish from them because all you'd be doing is adding to the cycle. Once that fish is gone you've made room for another batch to come in. I would just go to one of the actual pet stores you have in your area. You'll probably have better luck.

I don't blame you for feeling weary of buying fish from a tank that has dead fish in it but sometimes fish just die. It's not always that they're sick. At my job when the fish come in there's always at least 1 dead in a tank after we float and open all the bags. The stress of shipping gets to them. It's not that they're sick or anything.

Wal-Mart is Petsmarts competitor though..so I'm bias.

 

[MissFishy]

I would not buy from WalMart, it is well known that they take horrible care of their fish and are borderline cruel. If you want healthy fish, go to a local fish store (not a chain), they usually have the healthiest stock.

 

[Rush07]

Point well taken. I agree that if demand is cut off Walmart may get out of the fish business and that would be the best thing. Though i have, on two occasions picked up fish from there as a "rescue". One was a Clown Knife that I was able to get back to good health after a few touch and go days. The other was a Red Tail Cat that I was unfortunately unable to get healthy.

I would not buy any fish from a tank that has dead fish floating around in it. Your best bet would be to find a local fish store to give your business to.

 

[ValRasbora]

At the walmart where I live they (thankfully) shut down the fish section. I heard it was partially because their fish kept dying!

 

[D'Cecilia]

The petco's(2) and Petsmart's(2) were i live at have
really nice and healthy fish, thats were i have gotten
all my fish and they havent died or gotten sick at all.

So i would say go check those out if you have some
at your location, avoid waltmart, they have really
crappy fish, ahaha and like they have said, there is
always alot of them dead.

Local fish stores are really kool, but sometimes they
are a bit more expensive, they do carry more fish
than petco or pestmart though.

 

[RexyTexel]

It really depends on the Petsmart/Petco in your area. Some take better care than others and some have more knowledgeable people than others. The store I work for has one of the lowest animal losses in the district. I go to Petsmart and to another small fish store(non chain) though they're more pricey and have no return policy at all. You have to watch out for that with some of those small owned pet stores.

 

[sassymomma]

I have both Petco and Petsmart local as well as a small pet shop about 30 mins away that offer a variety of fish. I just found that out by searching online. Maybe I'll go fish shopping this weekend and at least look and compare prices. I only want to get a couple of fish at a time.

 

[RexyTexel]

Comparing prices is always a good idea. Plus not only will you see who has better deals but you'll see who offers what. The LFS near me offers completely different fish from the Petsmart I work at. And the other Petsmart right down the road(they're literally 30 mins away from eachother) offers different fish than the one I work at.

I hope you find some fish that spark your interest. Good luck!

 

[janis]

about whether you can put in your fish already, if your water is stable already, then i think you can slowly put in your fish but not all of them at the same time...oh, btw, how many do you have? what kind of fish do you have? you may want to start with hardy ones. for more info, you can check this minicourse.

 

[sassymomma]

I only want to get two or three fish at a time. I don't want to stress the fish or overstock my tank. Thanks for the link.*thumbsups

 

[sassymomma]

I went to petco and got 5 neon tetras and an angel fish. A week later I got a male and femal beta. In a couple weeks I would like to add 2 more Cory cats and some more tetras.

 

[vahluree]

Can angels and male bettas coexist??!

 

[Violet]

I'm not sure about the bettas and the angel, for that matter, I'm not sure about the angel with the other fish either, how big is the angel? It may pick on the neons and guppies (maybe the red eye's if they are small?). How big do angels get? I'm not sure, so I shouldn't comment on the tank size and angel, with or without the other fish. However the tetras need more than two as do cories.... I believe you said you want more of each, but possibly add the same type together at the same time?