My mother in law is an older woman who can not care for her tank. She kills every guppy given to her, and she cries over them because she feels she did something wrong... I want to find a hardy fish that can take a harsher environment with higher levels of ammonia. I am the only person who can keep the tank cleaned, but I dont live there and I can get to it maybe once every 2 and a half months. She needs something that wont die off after a month. Any suggestions other than any type of guppy? It is a 15 gallon tank, by the way.
2006-11-04 06:43:27 · 19 answers · asked by Kagome 1 in Pets ➔ Fish
2 and a half months is a long time in between water changes but I guess if it is very understocked then it can be OK. Before getting another fish read about cycling a tank. In a cycled tank there should be no ammonia or nitrite so having a fish that can handle high ammonia wouldn't matter. If she really likes the guppies then stick with them just cycle the tank first otherwise they will keep dying and any fish can die from high ammonia since it's toxic. I wouldn't recommend a goldfish since they need their water changed every week, every 2 weeks tops and even then she would only be able to have 1 in that tank.
Before you decide on a fish that you like, if you don't get more guppies, just do a little research to make sure the tank is suitable for that type of fish.
2006-11-04 07:15:36 · answer #1 · answered by Nunya Biznis 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋
All fish are sensitive to amonia and waste, some more than others. Unfortunately, with only a 15 gallon tank, there is little room for error. If you are unable to clean the tank more than once every couple of months, you options are very limited. NIX the goldfish idea, they get too big and put off too much waste. NOT the oscar either, these get HUGE and are very messy. If anything at all, I would say a beta, or maybe 3 or 4 danios. The less fish, the better. The smaller the better, as you don't want a bunch of waste accumulating before you can come syphon the tank.
Are you sure fish are even the right choice for your Mom in law?
2006-11-04 07:19:34 · answer #2 · answered by PennyPickles17 4 · 6⤊ 0⤋
Goldfish won't last long in a 15 gallon without very frequent water changes, and even then you could only keep one, so I wouldn't get one. If you set up a heater in the aquarium, you could have her keep corydoras catfish. They have a labrynth organ like the beta which allows them to get extra oxygen from the air if necessary, but they are much hardier than the beta. They are also fun, they swim all over the aquarium and love to be in groups of their own kind. I'd suggest getting 6 of one species of corydoras, maybe peppered cories or bronze cories because they are readily available and fairly inexpensive. Panda cories are cuter, and you could get up to 9 of them, but they are more expensive. Whatever you do, don't overstock the aquarium. With her previous luck with fish, I'd try to stick with 1.5 -2 gallons of water per inch of fish, and I'd make sure she knows how to feed them without over-feeding.
The best thing you could do to keep your mother-in-laws fish alive is to get a high quality hang-on filtration system and add some water plants (provided the aquarium has a light). The filter should be one that has chemical, biological, and mechanical filtration, is not undergravel, and is rated for tanks 20 gallons or larger. This will cut back on the need for frequent water changes, and the plants will absorb ammonia and nitrates and help balance the aquarium. Once an aquarium is cycled (established nitrifying bacteria), has established plant growth, and quality filtration, it can easily make it 2 1/2 months without a water change.
2006-11-04 08:21:10 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
You could try "feeder fish" such as rosey reds; they are relatively cheap to buy and do very well in pretty much any condition. Also, they are very small so they will produce less waste, and therefore you will have less ammonia. You could also try getting her to add Ammo-lock to the water once a week or perhaps adding an ammonia-reducing agent to the filter (many can be bought at your pet store). Also, make sure you're using Cycle; a live bacteria culture that you add to the water; this helps to break down waste and ammonia in the tank.
Hope this helps!
Mollies are a bad idea because they are used as "indicators" in commerical aquariums - they are very sensitive to extremes and will die off before anything else does, thus indicating that there may be something wrong with the water. Also, Mollies are completely brackish fish - they NEED salt, and slightly salty water tends to allow ammonia to increase faster (not sure why, but I've observed this in my brackish tanks).
2006-11-04 12:45:50 · answer #4 · answered by Kaili 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Honestly if a tank that size is only cleaned two and a half months, I'm not sure if anything would survive in it. Is there a neighbor kid who she could maybe pay to change the water like every two weeks? If not then maybe it would be best if she didn't have any pets. It would be a shame though, particularly if she lives alone, to not have any pets for company. :-/
2006-11-04 09:17:26 · answer #5 · answered by lickitysplit 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Two or three Paradise fish could live in this tank. They are "air breathers" like bettas. They can stand temperature extremes that would kill most fish. They can tolerate "dirty" water. And normally, they live a long time.
They are very attractive fish, but are not as popular as a lot of other fish.
They eat flake food. They get 3 to 4 inches long. The males have longer fins and tails and are more colorful.
2006-11-04 09:12:52 · answer #6 · answered by numbers57103 2 · 0⤊ 2⤋
WEll if you can only clean it that often id say get just a betta but get a heater(they are tropical) and filter for it the tank will stay clean enough for 2 and a half months
2006-11-04 07:17:57 · answer #7 · answered by Skittles 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
platies, swordtails are hardy fish, but if she kills guppies then those won't work.
Try a male betta, only one, but if you use dividers you can have more. Or female bettas (they can be in a com.)
The betta is a very hardy, and can stand very extreme environments.
2006-11-04 08:24:03 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
A couple different kinds of fish that are very hardy are Mollies and most kinds of Gouramis. The will do well under different conditions. The Mollys will even live in brackish waters. Both will mate rather fast and can produce lots of eggs under the right conditions.
2006-11-04 11:58:09 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 3⤋
Danios are very very hardy fish to start with
2006-11-07 12:18:35 · answer #10 · answered by fastracer1101 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋