# Cats and fishtanks



## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Hi, I'm thinking of getting a tank. I've seen a 65 litre one being sold and it looks a great size for my lounge. It's on a stand.

Now........I have two cats. Is it worth the risk? Could they knock it over? That would be my worst nightmare and it's not worth the risk. 

Can anyone assure me or talk me out of it through previous experience.

Sorry if this is in the wrong place!


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## Dragonlady (Jul 5, 2010)

Welcome to the forum
I started my first 64l tank just one week ago.
Yes, you can break it but it's quite stable on a proper stand and if you buy 64l the weight of the tank would be about 70 kg. How strong somebody does need to be to move a tank from a proper cabinet
Well, cats and fish. I don't see a problem as long as you have a proper cover and are careful handling fish. Your cats'll have a lot of fun.
I'm attaching my pics.


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Thanks for the message - reassured! Yours looks amazing by the way!


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## NaomiM (Sep 22, 2012)

I have a 70l tank (on a stand) and a cat. He loves to lie on top of it and watch the fish. I had to put some insulating tape over the cable holes in the back of the hood, to make them too small for little paws, because every now and then he decides he'd enjoy a spot of fishing! And I have to shut him in a seperate room when I have the hood off for water changes, as I don't trust him not to dive in!

So long as the tank has a secure lid, you shouldn't have any problems. As Dragonlady says, the tank will weigh around 70kg once filled (64l = 64kg, plus the weight of the tank itself) so no way they'll be able to knock it over!


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## NaomiM (Sep 22, 2012)

One more thing - as I tell anyone considering getting their first tank, please research fishless cycling (it's well worth the time it takes) and don't trust what the shops tell you - research, research, research before you buy any fish!


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Thanks Naomi, that is reassurance. I'm slightly worried it will become a cat bed....


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Basically this hasn't gone to plan!


Saw the tank advertised 2nd hand, looked nice and had everything needed. I went to the shop and got the treatments for the water etc and was prepared to let the tan stand for two weeks. 

I got to the house and the tank looked great but there was a bag with two fish in. The ad had said "all you need is fish and the last thing I wanted to do was put the fish through the stress of travelling and then put them into new water  The guy said that the last guy had pulled out and I asked how long the fish had been bagged up and he was "a day or so".

So basically I took them. I left them in the bag to try and acclimatise them but they looked in a bad way. They're in the tank now and one is lying sideways on the floor. I don't hold out much hope and I feel incredibly bad.


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## NaomiM (Sep 22, 2012)

"A day or so"?!?!  The poor fishies will be dying from ammonia poisoning, not to mention lack of oxygen... Some people really don't deserve pets! 

You've clearly done the best you could under the circumstances, but things don't look too hopeful I'm afraid 

On a practical note, get hold of some Seachem Prime if you can, or if your local pet/aquatic shop doesn't have any then maybe some Ammo-Lock or another brand of ammonia binder. This will help to minimise the damage from ammonia poisoning while your tank cycles.

You're now doing a 'fish-in cycle', which means you need to test the water daily and do a water change every time the ammonia and/or nitrite levels rise over 0.25ppm. Use a good liquid drop test kit, such as the API master kit, rather than the all-in-one test strips (which are basically a waste of money as they're notoriously inaccurate). The volume of water to change each time depends on the test results, the aim being always to keep it under 0.25ppm.

Do you know how long the filter had been switched off and out of water for?

Also, what type of fish do you have?

Please feel free to keep coming back here for help and advice - we'll do our best to help you get through this and end up with a happy, healthy tank.


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Not sure. He was vague. Like I say I asked how long the fish had been in the bag and got told "a day or so". My heart sank when I saw them in the bag and I had to take them. He has given me a water test kit so think I can use that but I will need advice.

They are both swimming around at the moment, which is a relief as I though one was a gonna but I think it might have been in shock. This is NOT the way I wanted to start fish keeping, I feel so bad. At the same time I can't stop looking at it!


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## NaomiM (Sep 22, 2012)

Sorry, should have made it clear that it's not you I'm mad with, but the person you got them from. I was just a bit in shock from that comment!

It's not your fault at all and I'm sorry if it came across that way. You've done the right thing and clearly want to do your best for these fish, and myself and others on the forum are more than happy to be on hand with any advice you need.

It would help if we could identify these fish though - if you're not sure what they are, maybe you could post a pic?

Glad they're seeming a bit better now


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

I don't know what they are - which is another thing that annoys me. This is NOT how I wanted this to start!


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

No I knew that. 

I went to destination aquatics earlier and spent ages chatting to the assistant, talking fish and getting the products I needed to get the tank ready and was going to a class there Saturday. My first fish were going to be got on the 22nd!! If I had left and no bought the tank because of the fish I would have just worried about how long they would have been in the bag - That would have kept me up all night!

In other news there has been limited interest!


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## Dragonlady (Jul 5, 2010)

Oh, gosh. I'm very sorry to hear how your adventure with fish has started. Some people don't deserve to be called "humans".

Anyway, you've already got a lot of good advice. Could you additionally get from a fish keeper some used filter media (sponge or ceramic noodles) or/and some gravel etc.? If the other tank doesn't have any health problems you could transfer beneficial bacteria into your tank. As you do a fish-in cycle now you could shorten considerably the cycling time. However, you would still need to do water changes and water tests.


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## Dragonlady (Jul 5, 2010)

I saw now your pictures. I've got no clue what the black fish is. The orange one is definitely a rasbora harlequin what is good news. They are quite hardy and suggested by many shops as "starter fish" for new tanks.
They are nice and friendly community fish which likes to be kept in schools of 5-6.


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## NaomiM (Sep 22, 2012)

Dragonlady may well be right, but I was thinking the first fish could possibly be an espei rasbora (https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=e...FLambchop-Rasbora-Trigonostigma-espei;700;700) rather than a harlequin (https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=h...pictures.com%2Fharlequin-rasbora.html;420;213) - as you'll see from the links, the black shape on an espei is more of a sideways 'L' shape whereas on a harlequin it's more triangular. Hard to tell from the pic as it's not fully sideways on. Also not sure what the black one is - can you get any more pics?

Either way, I agree with Dragonlady's advice


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## Dragonlady (Jul 5, 2010)

NaomiM said:


> Dragonlady may well be right, but I was thinking the first fish could possibly be an espei rasbora (https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=e...FLambchop-Rasbora-Trigonostigma-espei;700;700) rather than a harlequin (https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=h...pictures.com%2Fharlequin-rasbora.html;420;213) - as you'll see from the links, the black shape on an espei is more of a sideways 'L' shape whereas on a harlequin it's more triangular. Hard to tell from the pic as it's not fully sideways on. Also not sure what the black one is - can you get any more pics?
> 
> Either way, I agree with Dragonlady's advice


Now, I'm no more sure and to be honest, I had no clue that espei rasbora looks almost the same. A very good point.
Rasboras are great as fish and I suppose a r. arlequin will better school with other harlequins, an espei with other espeis. However, this point will be only important when you want to buy more tank mates.


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## NaomiM (Sep 22, 2012)

I have espeis myself (great little fish), which is why I made the comment! They can be somewhat harder to find than harlequins, and tend to be sold as 'copper rasboras' or 'copper harlequins'. They're somewhat smaller and slimmer in shape than harlequins, and brighter orange, but as the OP's fish has been through a stressful experience with its previous owner and is going through a fish-in cycle, it's likely to be duller (and maybe skinnier) than normal, so in this case it may be a little harder to tell. My espeis tend to be the first fish in the tank to show a dullness in colour if anything's not quite spot on, or even during slightly stressful experiences such as a water change - I guess it's a defence mechanism as it makes them harder to spot!


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## Dragonlady (Jul 5, 2010)

Hi Simons Cat! Any update on the poor fish? I'm wondering if they pulled through. 
I've been sending positive vibes


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

One did, one didn't! The other seems very happy and is swimming happily and has been joined by some mates. I love my little tank!


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## NaomiM (Sep 22, 2012)

Think we need some pics!


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## Dragonlady (Jul 5, 2010)

Simons cats said:


> One did, one didn't! The other seems very happy and is swimming happily and has been joined by some mates. I love my little tank!


After what they had to go through I'm impressed that you've managed to save one fish. Congrats!!! You've saved one poor creature.

Which one of the fish did manage to survive the ordeal? I'm curious which one was more hardy.

Yes, I agree with Naomi. Pictures please!!!!


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Dragonlady said:


> After what they had to go through I'm impressed that you've managed to save one fish. Congrats!!! You've saved one poor creature.
> 
> Which one of the fish did manage to survive the ordeal? I'm curious which one was more hardy.
> 
> Yes, I agree with Naomi. Pictures please!!!!


The black one survived. Hold on! Let me go to fb and get pics!


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Here you go


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## NaomiM (Sep 22, 2012)

Looking good!

What are the fish in the first pic? (Sorry, can't tell from the photo!)


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## Dragonlady (Jul 5, 2010)

A great tank Your cat is enjoying it too. Thanks for the pictures.

After some time try to put some live plants as they'll help you to keep the biological balance (use ammonia and nitrates), give shelter for the fish, produce oxygen and much more.

After only one month of keeping fish tank I'll have to cut some of my plants this weekend. They're much easier to keep as I thought. No dead plants so far and everything growing nicely:001_rolleyes:
I, personally, love plants and keeping/growing water plants can potentially develop to my new hobby.


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Just to let you know, all is going well with my fishtank. The original black fish is still going strong with her new mates!

I love it!


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Awww my little black fish died yesterday! I had her four months in the end.I'm glad she pulled through the ordeal. All the other seem happy, so not sure what caused her to pass away.


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## NaomiM (Sep 22, 2012)

Aww, sorry to hear that  It may well be that her lifespan was shortened by what she went through before you got her. At least she had a good life with you.


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Well the rest of my fish are going strong. I got them a present today. It's not ready yet but.....


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## ForestWomble (May 2, 2013)

I wonder if the black one was a molly? 

I love the Egyptian picture over the new tank!


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## Simons cats (Nov 4, 2014)

Thanks


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