Pros of fishkeeping-

They are entertaining

Fish have surprising amounts of personality. My minnows are shy and indifferent, my danios are lively and a bit boisterous , my betta is curious and always has an air of royal annoyance. My danios and minnows swim around, investigating their environment, chasing each other, displaying, they nose at the gravel and around my marimo seeking fallen items of food. They start shoaling around the food hatch at feeding times, and when I put in crushed peas I put it in the water by dipping my fingers in and they’ll eat right off my fingers. My betta skulks around his kingdom all day, making sure it’s ok. He watches me when I’m in the room, and follows my movements. He has a special ‘dance’ he does when I come close to the tank, in order to beg for food. He’s always hungry that one. I catch him staring up at the place where food appears, quietly waiting. He builds bubble nests and i have caught him just once, curled up on his betta hammock. He won’t play with me, but occasionally he will follow my fingers if I slowly move them across the side of the tank, and it’s nice to know he knows I’m alive, that I am there. (Even if all he wants is food! 🙄)

They are beautiful and interesting

Basically.

They are relaxing

I could watch my fish swim around for hours. As someone with an anxiety disorder, I find there’s something very therapeutic about watching fish. It instantly makes me feel a bit calmer, a bit more in control of my racing thoughts.

They aren’t demanding

You can miss feeding periods, you can go on holiday, you don’t need to exercise them, groom them or play with them. They don’t care when you leave in the morning or when you come back.

They are cheap

Many fish are between £5-£10 for a small group. My betta was £6. Their food is under a tenner. I can feed my minnows and danios peas and spinach as a treat, which is something I have in the freezer anyway. I can catch little flies and throw them into my Bettas tank, which again, cheap and easy and makes him very happy. (I err…Have lots of plants, which is where the tiny flies come from. They are harmless to my plants so there’s not much I can or want to do (using pesticides indoors is bad) so yeah, they aren’t garbage flies and there’s not swarms of them!!)

Cons of fishkeeping –

They require expensive equipment

The fish and their food is cheap, but the initial set up is hellishly expensive. A proper sized tank, filter, air pump (optional), heater (optional), substrate , decorations, plants (real and/or fake), water testing equipment, tank cleaning equipment (gravel cleaners, siphons, buckets, algae scrapers, sponges), thermometers…It quickly adds up to a frightening amount of money. This leads nicely on to:

They don’t have great emotional needs, but they have intense environmental requirements

I read an article which said that keeping fish is not about learning to keep fish, but learning to keep water. Ain’t that the truth. Your fish will only be non demanding and cheap if you invest time and money into setting up a decent sized tank (tank size dependent on what fish and how many!) and then take the time to maintain it properly. I do water changes every one-two weeks dependent on the tank and circumstances (my betta tank is too small for two weekly changes, and my big tank needs weekly water changes for a bit after I go on holiday as algae can build up from the food blocks I use, and waste build up too probably) I test the water monthly. I keep my Bettas tank heated. I have appropriate hiding places and foliage in both tanks. I have a baffle on my Bettas filter to still the water as fast water flow stresses him out. In contrast, I have an air pump for the big tank as my danios and minnows really like it. My danios in particular like to swim through the bubbles.

You don’t need to play with them or groom them, but you must watch over their environment carefully. I have thankfully not really witnessed the side effects of poor water quality or inappropriate environment (apart from my betta before I put the baffle on his filter), but I’m always aware of what stresses my fish and how to create and maintain the best environment for their needs.

I am not allowed to move, ever

I am not sure how I would go about moving a 120L tank… They are also impossible to catch. 😐 this is slightly problematic when you are living in a rental and are in the early stages of your career.

They have limited lifespans, and are prone to suddenly dying

You a) can’t get too attached because b) they are going to die, sooner rather than later and c) you are likely going to have to deal with the remains, if they don’t just mysteriously disappear. Dead fish aren’t any easier to catch than live fish. And without a garden to bury them I have no choice but to chuck them in the bin, which feels terribly heartless. :(

They are hard to keep track of

I don’t know how many fish I have. They swim too fast for a headcount, and they hide. My minnows especially love to tuck themselves behind ornaments or within the plants. I think I have 16 fish in my big tank…Maybe?

I got new fish!

I went home this weekend to see the cat and spend some time with the family too. (In that order ;) ) Then on Sunday my dad drove me back and drove me to the pet shop to get my new pets.

I bought 5 five danios- two zebra, three leopard. And I bought a betta fish! (Otherwise known as a Siamese Fighting Fish.)

My dad helped me get them into the tank. My danios were going into my 120L with my minnows, but my Betta was going into my old 19L, recently refurbished with new gravel, a heater, thermometer and new ornaments. I also got a plant on Sunday to finish it off!

My minnows were very curious about the new inhabitants, and not nervous or shy at all! As soon as my danios were out the bag they were happily swimming together. My Betta was a surprise. He is a restless and curious little fish- he loves to swim into odd places- the space between the glass and heater, between glass and filter, curled around the heater. I was worried by this at first, scared he didn’t like his tank, but he doesn’t seem scared. He just seems to like to explore and I suppose watch over his territory. He’s a little playful and he notices a lot more than my minnows- come too close to the tank and he retreats away, when my other fish swim about near his tank , he follows them and almost tries to chase them- but it’s more like a cat following a flicking string. Head to one side, then to the other. Its too adorable. Its been a delight getting to know him- I never knew fish could be so expressive! (I swear he gives me the saddest look when I stop feeding him.) And have such a feisty personality. Then again, my danios are fairly feisty compared to my minnows…well, a lot bolder. My minnows like to hide amongst the plants in the back, but my danios love being at the top of the tank, in open water and even swimming amongst the bubbles from my air stone. When I changed the water they were happily darting in and out of the waterfall of water.

This makes feeding a problem- as they tend to get to the food first and nom it all before my minnows can get any! I’m putting more food in and sprinkling it in different areas which is helping. My Betta is a fussy fish who would not eat the others food but I bought some new food for him that the pet shop recommended and he eventually started eating. He comes right to the top of the tank so you just sprinkle the food in front of him and he gobbles it up! He’s just too cute. And so very pretty (and I think he knows it!)

I’m so happy with all my fish. They make me happy. :) And I tested the water and both tanks are stable, as well as well filtrated, aerated and planted, so hopefully the fish are happy too!