I just spoke with a gentleman today who said that he’d been keeping fishes from the age of 12 till now at 79. He remembers with fondness, his kissing gourami that lived to the ripe old age of 22 years!Other elderly fishes I’ve heard about: a 10-year-old oscar, 300-year-old carp, 7-year-old Siamese fighting fish….
I wonder what others there are….
Food value of fishes
I came across a great site with nutritional facts and species information on various species of fishes:
Guidelines for euthanasia – For comment – AVMA
The AVMA Panel on Euthanasia and its Working Groups, as part of its work on a major update to the AVMA Guidelines on Euthanasia, are providing this DRAFT revision for AVMA member comment. Because the DRAFT is lengthy, it is posted for comment in three parts.
AVMA members may comment on as many sections of the DRAFT as they wish. To comment on a section click the Comment button associated with that section. Comments on each section may not exceed 5000 characters. Please be as specific as possible, including suggested language revisions.
Comments may be submitted through September 1, 2011. Thank you for taking the time to provide your Association with feedback on this critically important resource.
http://avma.org/issues/animal_welfare/euthanasia_guidelines/
Are your pond fish not eating?
If they are outdoor pond fish, try feeding them during the warmer part of the day during winter.
The weather will be warming up soon and they’ll regain their hearty appetite. Be sure that your filter will cope with the increase in feed. You can check by monitoring the ammonia and nitrite levels regularly.
The day of the flying fish…. Sashimi anyone?
Salmon, tuna and kingfish are the most commonly prepared species of fish for sashimi in Australia.
Did you know that tuna was initially not considered to be sashimi grade? I learnt this from an in-flight magazine during my monthly, 4-hour plane trip across the great island continent, to look after the fishes on the eastern side if the country. I have deviated….
Apparently, in the 1970’s, Japan was sending plane loads of photographic and electronic goods to foreign lands and their planes would return with empty hulls.
How could they take advantage of this situation? The tuna was originally considered only as a sport fish and were not part of the westerners’ diet as they do not have the ‘normal’ white flesh. In 1972, the 1st bluefin tuna was flown across to Japan in a special refrigerated container and sold at the markets.
From then on, the deep red flesh has become a staple on the sashimi menus.
Where did the killer frog fungus come from?
How did this fungus (Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis), that is decimating frog populations around the world, end up in Australia? Via importation of frogs for zoological departments? Pet trade? Illegal pet trade?
“The word on the street”/apparently, the fungus was inadvertently introduced to Australia through the trade in frogs used for pregnancy testing.
Huge Bummer!
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Now on: Twitter – Blog – Facebook – Linkedin – Flickr
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Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
BSc BVMS MPhil (Vet Path) MACVSc (Aquatics & Pathobiology) DipPM CMAVA
Veterinarian / Adjunct Lecturer Murdoch University
The Fish Vet, Perth, Western Australia. Mobile Veterinary Service for fish and other aquatic creatures.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
New treatment against killer fungus in frogs….
Check this out:
Heating for Bettas
Very often, people are sold very small aquaria to house Siamese fighting fish. And so, there is the misconception that these fish cannot live in larger tanks. They actually do well in larger tanks, as it allows them to swim about more freely. The other problem with small tanks is that they do not afford the space to install heaters and filtration. For these reasons, I would encourage owners of Siamese fighting fish to invest in a larger tank (and for aquarium retailers to promote a larger tank for such fish).
The other great thing about having a larger tank is that you can house a number of other types of fish together with your fighter. However, you’ll need to select tank mates carefully.
- Do not choose fishes that resemble the male fighter. For example, the fighting fish may mistake male guppies (with their extended finnage) as potential treats.
- Do not choose fish that nip fins or attack/disturb slow moving fishes. For example, tiger barbs are renown to be nippy fish and the Chinese sucker mouth catfishes can be very annoying to your Betta.
Choose fishes that are peaceful, occupy different levels in the water column and ones that share the same water quality parameters. Examples would include the following: small tetras, rasboras, corydoras and bristlenoses.
So, upgrade you tank this winter!
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Now on: Twitter – Blog – Facebook – Linkedin – Flickr
Now on: Twitter – Blog – Facebook – Linkedin – Flickr
—
Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
BSc BVMS MPhil (Vet Path) MACVSc (Aquatics & Pathobiology) DipPM CMAVA
Veterinarian / Adjunct Lecturer Murdoch University
The Fish Vet, Perth, Western Australia. Mobile Veterinary Service for fish and other aquatic creatures.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
Are your pond fish safe from predators?
Cormorants, pelicans, herons, cats and more can inflict serious damage to your prized pets or eat them.
What are some signs that make you suspect such is the case?
- Certain fish are missing (usually the smaller ones).
- Fish are injured on the dorsum (over their back or dorsal fin).
- Fish are not coming up to eat or are very skittish.
- Fish jump out.
What are some things you can do to remedy the situation?
- Put a cover/barrier over the pond (e.g. netting, fishing line, plank).
- Use “scare crows” (e.g. T-shirts on hangers, crocodile ornaments floating in the water, a sticker of a shadow of a bird of prey on a window).
- Use “scare birds” (herons are territorial, so a plastic model of one may deter other herons – but make sure you move the model bird daily so that other birds will not realise that it’s a fake!).
- Use “biological scare tactics” – have more human activity near the area or employ a jack russel dog!
- Colour your pond green! Research shows that birds fly over many water bodies and the colour of the pond determines whether the bird would come closer for a look. Green ponds are often avoided because the birds believe that there is likely to be an algal bloom and fishing in such a pond would be a waste of their time.
- Provide hiding spots for your fish so that they can avoid predation – have these in deep parts of the pond.
If you have any more tips, please do not hesitate to add to these.
Fish = Good.
Bird = Bad.
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Now on: Twitter – Blog – Facebook – Linkedin – Flickr
Now on: Twitter – Blog – Facebook – Linkedin – Flickr
—
Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
BSc BVMS MPhil (Vet Path) MACVSc (Aquatics & Pathobiology) DipPM CMAVA
Veterinarian / Adjunct Lecturer Murdoch University
The Fish Vet, Perth, Western Australia. Mobile Veterinary Service for fish and other aquatic creatures.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
How accurate is your water test kit?
Have you been monitoring your water quality? Water quality is one of the most common causes of fish ailments.
In the last 2 weeks, I’ve had 2 cases where the clients’ water test kits were inaccurate. Please check that your water test is current. Generally speaking, most test kits have a shelf life of 1-2 years (depending on storage conditions, the test, brand and physical properties [powder vs tablets vs liquid]).
If your test kit is >2 years old, then it’s time to invest in a new set. When purchasing a new test kit from the aquarium store, you can choose your test kit using one of two methods. The first method is by looking at the price – usually, the higher quality, more reliable kits will be more expensive (you get what you pay for). The second method I will outline is because quite often, the manufacturers do not print their date of manufacture or used by dates. So, ask the retailer whichis the most popular brand that they sell. This method of buying means that the stock is turned over more quickly and so you can be more certain that you’re getting “fresh” kits – not the ones that have been sitting on the shelves for a long time, gathering dust.
Until next time… Happy fish keeping!
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Now on: Twitter – Blog – Facebook – Linkedin – Flickr
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Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
BSc BVMS MPhil (Vet Path) MACVSc (Aquatics & Pathobiology) DipPM CMAVA
Veterinarian / Adjunct Lecturer Murdoch University
The Fish Vet, Perth, Western Australia. Mobile Veterinary Service for fish and other aquatic creatures.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383