A Path Of Good Intentions Leads To Hell :(
One of the problems with sharing with family and loved ones your passion for a specific species is that they will, at some point, decide to surprise you with one. I had told my partner how I love Mandarin Gobys and how hard they are to keep alive in an LFS. I explained how they are usually wild-caught, making the purchase cost cheaper, but that they are not trained to eat artificial foods and thus the Mandys tend to die before anyone can buy them or soon after purchase.
My partner decided, 2 weeks ago to visit the LFS without supervision and saw some Target Mandarins wasting away in one of their tanks. He picked the smallest, thinnest, weakest looking one because that was the one he felt sorry for and thought that I would also choose that one to rescue. I was touched that he thought I was that caring but my heart also sank. The poor fish was barely keeping body and soul in the same dimension :(
Still, my tank was swarming with copepods so I was confident he would have enough to eat for a week or so at least - until I could train him to eat brineshrimp and then frozen foods, anyway.
He seemed stunned by his new home and sat quietly for an hour or so but then began tentatively picking at the rocks. Then next day he was humming about the tank like a wind-up bath toy, scoffing pods left right and centre. He did this for several days and was slowly putting on weight - he was still painfully thin but was developing a layer of meat over his bones and was extremely interested in the goings on around him. I liked to watch him hovering over a piece of LR, for all the world like a hawk in a hay field. My partner insisted we call him "Mikhail"....as in...Mikhail Goby-Chov. I nicknamed him Mikky and he seemed to be slowly but surely improving.
Until yesterday *sigh*
I had bought a small torch coral from the LFS and put it in the tank on Friday. That night everyone seemed happy so I put the lights out and went to bed. I went to work the next morning and came home 11am Saturday to find Mikky sitting on the sand and gasping.
I watched him for a bit and decided something was badly wrong. I thought he might be needing oxygen so I caught him in a small net and put him up near the surface in the pump flow. He couldn't sit upright and I decided the water must be the problem.
I made up some ASW and put it in a clean bucket with an air bubbler, caught Mikky and put him in then tested the tank water for Nitrates, Nitrites and Ammonia.
All three were through the roof which told me something had died - turned out later it was the Mulberry Snail. I should have chucked him out, like I had intended to a couple of weeks ago :(
Meanwhile, Mikky was still breathing but heavily so I decided to do a 3/4 water change on the tank. I fished out the LR and my two corals and put them with Mikky. He was beginning to do death spirals which wasn't a good sign. But then, I've had a damsel do that and after a water change, was astounded to see it back to normal the next morning. I was hoping Mikky would pull through but given his poor physical condition and recent stressors, I didn't delude myself.
I kept Mikky in the bucket for a few hours and held him in my hand for ages, near the bubbler, hoping he would be able to pass the toxins before they killed him.
Unfortunately, after 3 hours, he died.
I was pretty depressed at this because I felt really guilty. My partner was upset as well and decided that corals are to blame and are evil *sigh*
I don't think I will be getting anymore fish any time soon.
My partner decided, 2 weeks ago to visit the LFS without supervision and saw some Target Mandarins wasting away in one of their tanks. He picked the smallest, thinnest, weakest looking one because that was the one he felt sorry for and thought that I would also choose that one to rescue. I was touched that he thought I was that caring but my heart also sank. The poor fish was barely keeping body and soul in the same dimension :(
Still, my tank was swarming with copepods so I was confident he would have enough to eat for a week or so at least - until I could train him to eat brineshrimp and then frozen foods, anyway.
He seemed stunned by his new home and sat quietly for an hour or so but then began tentatively picking at the rocks. Then next day he was humming about the tank like a wind-up bath toy, scoffing pods left right and centre. He did this for several days and was slowly putting on weight - he was still painfully thin but was developing a layer of meat over his bones and was extremely interested in the goings on around him. I liked to watch him hovering over a piece of LR, for all the world like a hawk in a hay field. My partner insisted we call him "Mikhail"....as in...Mikhail Goby-Chov. I nicknamed him Mikky and he seemed to be slowly but surely improving.
Until yesterday *sigh*
I had bought a small torch coral from the LFS and put it in the tank on Friday. That night everyone seemed happy so I put the lights out and went to bed. I went to work the next morning and came home 11am Saturday to find Mikky sitting on the sand and gasping.
I watched him for a bit and decided something was badly wrong. I thought he might be needing oxygen so I caught him in a small net and put him up near the surface in the pump flow. He couldn't sit upright and I decided the water must be the problem.
I made up some ASW and put it in a clean bucket with an air bubbler, caught Mikky and put him in then tested the tank water for Nitrates, Nitrites and Ammonia.
All three were through the roof which told me something had died - turned out later it was the Mulberry Snail. I should have chucked him out, like I had intended to a couple of weeks ago :(
Meanwhile, Mikky was still breathing but heavily so I decided to do a 3/4 water change on the tank. I fished out the LR and my two corals and put them with Mikky. He was beginning to do death spirals which wasn't a good sign. But then, I've had a damsel do that and after a water change, was astounded to see it back to normal the next morning. I was hoping Mikky would pull through but given his poor physical condition and recent stressors, I didn't delude myself.
I kept Mikky in the bucket for a few hours and held him in my hand for ages, near the bubbler, hoping he would be able to pass the toxins before they killed him.
Unfortunately, after 3 hours, he died.
I was pretty depressed at this because I felt really guilty. My partner was upset as well and decided that corals are to blame and are evil *sigh*
I don't think I will be getting anymore fish any time soon.
I would be devastated at the loss too.
