wat will do u if your hubby is overly protective over his arowanas?

Question

he has a com arowanas (golden head X back aros). total of 9 pcs. they are new to our home n pretty unsteaable. anyone goes near e tank or so e arowanas will "jump" n hurt themselves n drop thie scales. my hubby will scold me or visitors if we go too near to e tank. i cant stand him!

Answer 1

Rac I am sorry for all the people giving you answers here that are totally clueless!!

For those out there saying these are just fish or stupid, please know what you are talking about before you insert foot into mouth ok. I've had both the South Americans as well as an Asian like yours. They are very smart fish actually, and this species has a blood line tracing back to the Jurassic period. Your husband happens to have some good taste ok, give him some credit for that. However, the emplacement of the tank may not be in a good location.

Arowana's are very jittery fish. They need time and stability to settle in. Fish themselves are very sensative to sound vibrations and thier first instinct may very well be to feel there is a bigger predator nearby. In nature, an Arowana would have very few natural enemies. Animals such as bears or other mammals that feed on fish maybe, or reptiles like alligators, something that would feed off the surface of the water, but outside of that...

Moving the tank I think might be the option, or possibly just simply explain to your visitors and kindly ask them to be respectful of the fish tank when visiting, and try to avoid loud noises or heavy movements near the tank. This is no more unreasonable to ask then if you had a new born who was sleeping, would you not ask your visitors to please keep the noise down?

Please keep in mind these fish did not come knocking on your door and ask you to take care of them either, and I am sure your husband spent very good money to get this particular species. Why not try to give them the best care possible and stress them less? Arowana's are surface feeders so they are natural jumpers. Their reactions to the noises and sounds in your house is quite natural, however this must be a very big tank he has to keep that many in one tank. Moving it may very well be a major task to do. If you cannot work with him about moving this, I think your only other option is to just advise incomming guests to the needs when being in your house and I don't think that's being unreasonable. If you feel the need to have constant guests and they don't wish to address your concerns when visiting, maybe try visiting them instead?

JV

Answer 2

Lets try to find a solution to your problem ......

A peaceful community tank of Arowana is something thats very difficult to achieve and 9 and 1/2 owners out of 10 trying that will tell you that the initial period will be very very stressful not only to the fishes but for the owner. The fishes will start tearing at each other in the beginning and it will be heart wrenching to see it happen not to mention the investment involved in this adventure.

If you have a tank big enough for your husband to attempt a "com tank", it'll probably be too big for you to even think about moving it, so thats out of the question.

Ask your husband to joint this forum ...... http://www.arofanatics.com/forums/index.php there are many avid Arowana keepers that have attempted "com tank". And they would probably be able to give your hubby some tips on reducing the stress on the fishes and on himself while it goes on. I read somewhere from an Arowana farm that lowering pH will keep the fish less jumpy and aggressive towards each other but I can't remember to how much. Check in that forum and maybe someone in there can help.

Using ketapang leaves in the water might help too. Get your hubby to check it out. (Search internet for "ketapang arowana")

Musking with black cloth or paper around the tank initially might help too, if the aros are jumpy due to human traffic. By masking up the tank at least you can walk comfortably around your house. There will still be splash and fights in the tank as the fishes sort themselves out but it will reduce the jumping due to your walking around the tank.

Anyway since this is the situation now, your best bet is for him to get over this phase (either he succeed or gives up) as quickly as possible, but showing that you attempt to learn about his hobby and understanding what he's going through would probably help. Do not let some fish get in between your relationship, who knows by learning about the aros you might become an Arowana fanatic yourself :)

Good Luck.

.

Answer 3

Arrowanas are a South American fish and it is part of their survival instinct to jump.They catch flying insects and small frogs,tadpoles etc, by jumping and snapping.They may be hungry and reacting to people near the tank,thinking they've come to feed them.Have your hubby try feeding them a little bit more.And include live food.Make sure the tank is securely covered because many people have lost them due to jumping out of their tank.He is wise in keeping people away,some people like to put their fingers in tanks! And arrowanas will think they are food and bite,HARD,leaving permanent scars.

Answer 4

are you from the UK? just wondering, it sounds like you are

how big's the tank? asian arows get pretty big and need alot of space nothing under 400 gallons for 9 of them i think that might be why their freaking out, also they are rather skittish by nature and ther defense mechanism in the wild is to jump out of the water.
also try toning down the lights a little, that usually helps

Answer 5

your pet fish are afraid of people?
your pet fish are straining your marriage?
you have nine of these pet fish?
your husband is obsessive about these arowana things?

Hmm.
I hope the fish calm down soon. They will get used to you soon. Especially when you feed them. They will like you better when they associate people with little particles of food dropping from above.

Thanks

Answer 6

Hubby needs to relax alittle. whilst travelers come, only have him clarify in a well mannered way that the fishes are new to the living house and that they are nevertheless adjusting and in the event that they'd please not walk close to the tank. Or he can flow the tank to a community of the living house the place there is not alot of site visitors. they are fish, only fish. not something to get overly hormonal approximately.

Answer 7

I can see why he'd be upset, because let's face it, they're expensive, but if they're dumb enough to harm themselves tell him to move the tank to a location where it will not be inundated with visitors. People are naturally drawn to tanks because they are fascinated, so it's his own fault for putting them somewhere that people will easily be able to see it. As for his reactions towards you, there is no excuse for him to scold you for going anywhere in your home, so if he doesn't like it, tell him and his fish to move out to the garage where they won't be bothered...that's just ridiculous!

Answer 8

Try putting the tank in a more private area that people don't go in. These sound like some strange fish. ...are they fish?

Answer 9

Put a sheet over the tank and tell your husband to get a life.. .They are fish...

Or put a sheet over your husband and tell the arowana to "get a life"

Answer 10

What is a hubby and a arowana?