How long have you had your aquarium fish live? Post your answer down below. ⬇ Save 10% on your Into The AM order by using my discount link: intotheam.com/tazawa
I had an angel for more than 7 years from a quarter size to larger than my hand. Started in a 3 gallon and finished his life in a 75 gallon I got specifically for him. I held him in my hand for the last 45 minutes as he was passing. He knew I wasn’t trying to hurt him but to help him stay up until the end. The journey through all the phases of his life was the best part and the reason for why I am in the hobby. I keep almost all of my fish from very young to the end, whatever condition or if my interest in them wanes. Eventually (sooner than later) my interest always returns.
I can answer your response in two ways. 1-You are wrong. The more we learn about animals and plants. The more we find out how we underestimate them. We feel better for being there for them in the end. That is a fact. 2-You are right. They do not have the capacity to understand. Thus what is happening is to comfort we, the living humans. That is no different than what a funeral is for. It is not to comfort the dead. It is to comfort the living to move on and feel like they did right to the dead. That is a fact. Either way, I win because it benefited me.
I'm glad you discussed this topic because I have been a African cichlid and South American cichlid keeper for over 20yrs and as fish get older they do have the cloudy eyes, missing scales and not as active. Which is another part of fish keeping and knowing that you did provide the best care for your fish for the years you had them.
I feel for you at the loss of your fish, probably more so than I might normally do, because my cat died on Christmas day, age ~15. Still struggling to deal with that. But it's forced to face the sad fact that you mention - that our pets don't live forever, and that we'll probably outlive them. Still struggling with that in regard to my other cat, who's now 17. Yes, I feel that my role is to provide my animals with the best life possible - and I hope that I've done that, but still. Nothing can stop it from being heartbreaking. On a happier note: I have 5 Glass Catfish who are now about 5 years old (which is supposed to be their max, from the information I've been able to find). I did lose a sixth one recently, too, and quite suddenly. Anyway, they're in an 87L community tank that I set up specifically for their benefit - low pH, strong current, lots of plants and driftwood, thick gravel substrate to help process waste, over filtration that includes a UV water treatment (to reduce the likelihood of pathogens getting a hold). And thankfully, they're still strong and healthy. And, because I give them tasty treats so frequently, they will eat out of my fingers. Which is a real treat for me, because they're known for being timid and easily frightened, with a tendency to hide. But, given their age, I'm sort of doing what you are. I have a new group of youngsters waiting in quarantine, and I'm happy to say that they're quite outgoing and energetic. Gotta love Glass catfish - they're so sweet, the way they stay close to and talk to each other with their feelers! I'd recommend them to anyone who's got experience and has done their research.
Good video. Another issue I don’t hear about much is a tank of fish with chronic illness. I have a 55 gallon filled with fish that have either TB or a virus. They are all slowly dying and there is nothing I can do. It’s heartbreaking and frustrating.
My buddy just died. He was a purple-headed, orange-white-blue-striped African cichlid. I'm so sad. Ugh, I'm feeling miserable. African cichlids are indeed the best. He was massive, living to be 14 years old. He shared my 39-gallon tank with a smaller yellow cichlid, which lived to be 13 years old. Of course, my pleco was also part of the family. My original pleco was huge, but sadly passed away earlier this year, likely around 13 years old. I think my fish would have lived longer if I hadn't had to deal with the recent tornado and power outage. Additionally, over the past five years, I had several surgeries due to a car accident and wasn't able to care for the tank as well as I should have. Today is a very sad day. A good suggestion might be to have separate tanks for older fish like my buddy, so they can avoid being bullied by the younger ones.
I'm new to the hobby so I don't have old fish yet, but I think it might be cool to have a senior tank where all the old fish could live together. Maybe species that wouldn't normally tolerate each other would live together peacefully because they'd be less active and that would make an interesting tank.
I love that idea and I’m going to try to practice that..that’s cool. I just started keeping fish last October when I brought my tiny pond goldfish inside for the winter. It sparked my interest, and now I have a variety of fish.
Awesome video ! Doesnt matter how they look when the are old i can see you are a expert in fishkeeping and take care like everybody should do. I got 4 fishtanks myself and 2 of them are around 6 years old Got 2 mbuna fishtanks 1 is 6 years old the other around 2 years and i got fish from the start that are still thriving and still are alive and looking great being active. Same with the 2 Peacock and haps tanks 1 is 6 years old bought the same time as the mbuna fishtank and the other is around 1.5 years old. Got allot of Peacocks ann haps that i bought from the start and 90% of them are still alive
Space is my weak link in the hobby so my tanks tend to be smaller hence all my fish are nano sized. 2 to 3 years is the most I expect and what I generally see. The only advantage is that I get to try new fish more frequently.
My Africans would live 3 - 4 years and I always considered this an early death. My central and South Americans typically live twice as long. I always attributed the short lives of Lake Malawi cichlids to the fact that they are so high strung and excessively inbred for colors. I still have some peacock/hap hybrids that are still beautiful and healthy at 5 years. I attribute this to the fact that hybrid fish (like dogs) are generally healthier and live longer than the inbred pure gene lines
In what instances do you euthanize your fish? I have used clove oil, but found that the fish suffer from the stress of the process. In nature they would not suffer growing old for long but would be eaten. What are your thoughts on this?
make a video about specifically identifying the gray female peacock cichlids and you'll be surprised on how many views you'd get. If you can pull that off then you'd be literally the only one that pops up when someone types in that search with a sense of hopelessness. lol. not one video pops up on youtube when i search. one thing noticed from my experience is that the gray female peacocks usually have certain characteristics that give a hint.
How long have you had your aquarium fish live? Post your answer down below. ⬇
Save 10% on your Into The AM order by using my discount link: intotheam.com/tazawa
I have several Clown loaches (Botia macracantha) which I purchased almost 23 years ago.
Malawi 8 to 10 is possible in captivity 5 to 6 on average. I will miss that old guy too, that was a good run.
I had an angel for more than 7 years from a quarter size to larger than my hand. Started in a 3 gallon and finished his life in a 75 gallon I got specifically for him. I held him in my hand for the last 45 minutes as he was passing. He knew I wasn’t trying to hurt him but to help him stay up until the end.
The journey through all the phases of his life was the best part and the reason for why I am in the hobby. I keep almost all of my fish from very young to the end, whatever condition or if my interest in them wanes. Eventually (sooner than later) my interest always returns.
A fish doesn't have the neurological capacity to "know" what you are doing, or that it's dying, or what "alive" is.
I can answer your response in two ways.
1-You are wrong. The more we learn about animals and plants. The more we find out how we underestimate them. We feel better for being there for them in the end. That is a fact.
2-You are right. They do not have the capacity to understand. Thus what is happening is to comfort we, the living humans. That is no different than what a funeral is for. It is not to comfort the dead. It is to comfort the living to move on and feel like they did right to the dead. That is a fact.
Either way, I win because it benefited me.
I'm glad you discussed this topic because I have been a African cichlid and South American cichlid keeper for over 20yrs and as fish get older they do have the cloudy eyes, missing scales and not as active. Which is another part of fish keeping and knowing that you did provide the best care for your fish for the years you had them.
Man, where have you been? LOL. I had to go back and review your old videos. Hope you and the family had a great holiday. All the best in the New Year.
Awesome on more cichlid videos that's one reason i started following
I feel for you at the loss of your fish, probably more so than I might normally do, because my cat died on Christmas day, age ~15. Still struggling to deal with that. But it's forced to face the sad fact that you mention - that our pets don't live forever, and that we'll probably outlive them. Still struggling with that in regard to my other cat, who's now 17. Yes, I feel that my role is to provide my animals with the best life possible - and I hope that I've done that, but still. Nothing can stop it from being heartbreaking.
On a happier note: I have 5 Glass Catfish who are now about 5 years old (which is supposed to be their max, from the information I've been able to find). I did lose a sixth one recently, too, and quite suddenly. Anyway, they're in an 87L community tank that I set up specifically for their benefit - low pH, strong current, lots of plants and driftwood, thick gravel substrate to help process waste, over filtration that includes a UV water treatment (to reduce the likelihood of pathogens getting a hold). And thankfully, they're still strong and healthy. And, because I give them tasty treats so frequently, they will eat out of my fingers. Which is a real treat for me, because they're known for being timid and easily frightened, with a tendency to hide. But, given their age, I'm sort of doing what you are. I have a new group of youngsters waiting in quarantine, and I'm happy to say that they're quite outgoing and energetic.
Gotta love Glass catfish - they're so sweet, the way they stay close to and talk to each other with their feelers! I'd recommend them to anyone who's got experience and has done their research.
I am sorry to read about the loss of you cat. Very sad. Congrats on the glass cats doing so well!
Good video. Another issue I don’t hear about much is a tank of fish with chronic illness. I have a 55 gallon filled with fish that have either TB or a virus. They are all slowly dying and there is nothing I can do. It’s heartbreaking and frustrating.
Thanks for this. My betta died this weekend of old age and this was reassuring. Good to see you posting and hope all is well!
It's been a while since you shared some knowledge about African cichlids...good to have you back...
My buddy just died. He was a purple-headed, orange-white-blue-striped African cichlid. I'm so sad. Ugh, I'm feeling miserable. African cichlids are indeed the best. He was massive, living to be 14 years old. He shared my 39-gallon tank with a smaller yellow cichlid, which lived to be 13 years old. Of course, my pleco was also part of the family. My original pleco was huge, but sadly passed away earlier this year, likely around 13 years old. I think my fish would have lived longer if I hadn't had to deal with the recent tornado and power outage. Additionally, over the past five years, I had several surgeries due to a car accident and wasn't able to care for the tank as well as I should have. Today is a very sad day.
A good suggestion might be to have separate tanks for older fish like my buddy, so they can avoid being bullied by the younger ones.
I am sorry to read about your loss. It sounds like you gave him great care...that is a long lifespan!
That is a beautiful story, and your fish are a testimony to your good husbandry
Happy New Year🎉. Looking forward to more videos.
Happy new year Zenzo!
I have a blind blue gourami.. I love her. Your 8 yr old fish is lovely. I really never thought about my fish dying and now that I have, it’s a bummer.
I'm new to the hobby so I don't have old fish yet, but I think it might be cool to have a senior tank where all the old fish could live together. Maybe species that wouldn't normally tolerate each other would live together peacefully because they'd be less active and that would make an interesting tank.
I love that idea and I’m going to try to practice that..that’s cool. I just started keeping fish last October when I brought my tiny pond goldfish inside for the winter. It sparked my interest, and now I have a variety of fish.
Happy New Year.
"Today I kinda want to take it back. How far back?" I halfway expected a cut to idubbbz for a content cop lol
Awesome video ! Doesnt matter how they look when the are old i can see you are a expert in fishkeeping and take care like everybody should do.
I got 4 fishtanks myself and 2 of them are around 6 years old
Got 2 mbuna fishtanks 1 is 6 years old the other around 2 years and i got fish from the start that are still thriving and still are alive and looking great being active.
Same with the 2 Peacock and haps tanks 1 is 6 years old bought the same time as the mbuna fishtank and the other is around 1.5 years old. Got allot of Peacocks ann haps that i bought from the start and 90% of them are still alive
I have a silver dollar that thing has to be 20 years old and still doing great.
Space is my weak link in the hobby so my tanks tend to be smaller hence all my fish are nano sized. 2 to 3 years is the most I expect and what I generally see. The only advantage is that I get to try new fish more frequently.
My Africans would live 3 - 4 years and I always considered this an early death. My central and South Americans typically live twice as long. I always attributed the short lives of Lake Malawi cichlids to the fact that they are so high strung and excessively inbred for colors. I still have some peacock/hap hybrids that are still beautiful and healthy at 5 years. I attribute this to the fact that hybrid fish (like dogs) are generally healthier and live longer than the inbred pure gene lines
I have fish that lived for 11 years thanks to good water changes and good feed .
How about a senior only tank? You know like a rest home for the older guys?
I had a Parrott fish that died at 13. Change water every Saturday.
In what instances do you euthanize your fish? I have used clove oil, but found that the fish suffer from the stress of the process. In nature they would not suffer growing old for long but would be eaten. What are your thoughts on this?
Hey, what kind of substrate are you using in these tanks?
I use a lot of crushed coral and coarse aragonite sand.
@@TazawaTanks Thank you it looks great
Nice
make a video about specifically identifying the gray female peacock cichlids and you'll be surprised on how many views you'd get. If you can pull that off then you'd be literally the only one that pops up when someone types in that search with a sense of hopelessness. lol. not one video pops up on youtube when i search. one thing noticed from my experience is that the gray female peacocks usually have certain characteristics that give a hint.
How can you tell the difference in cichlid fish gender ?
My friends severum lived for 17 years