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Freshwater Aquarium/Questions Answered by Expert Crystal

SubjectDate Asked
Beginner Fish12/24/2007
  Q: The problem is I do not know which kind to get. What kind of fish do you recommend I should get and ...
  A: i would suggest getting a livedbearer like a platy. platys are very colourfull and fun to have. some ...
conditions with mickey mouse platy11/29/2007
  Q: My husband & I bought my daughter a 5 gallon tank for her bedroom. When we went to the pet store ...
  A: you probubly have one male and one female the fatter one the female. They males will always stick ...
Terrible water quality, rotting fin, nitrites11/29/2007
  Q: My poor fish are suffering. I have a 20 gallon tank (I believe) but introduced 3 fish way too early ...
  A: dont change the tank water as offten becuase it containes good bacteria that you want for cycling. ...
Platy having babies11/24/2007
  Q: First I need to tell you that I am fairly new at this. I started this wonderful hobby about 3 ...
  A: by insides being out of place i mean. that some times the organs wont be where they are suposed to ...
Platy having babies11/23/2007
  Q: First I need to tell you that I am fairly new at this. I started this wonderful hobby about 3 ...
  A: when you get platys from petstores they are usualy young and this is probuble its first pragnantcy. ...
Types of freshwater fish and compatibility11/22/2007
  Q: I have an opinion question. I recently got a new aquarium for my birthday, a 42Gal aquarium with an ...
  A: any other small nonaggresive fish would be great some platys, mollies, many thing realy. i love the ...
Dwarf Gourami11/20/2007
  Q: First of all, are the Dwarf Gouramis generally very slow and lazy fish? I put them in the tank, one ...
  A: they are not requiered. THey are optional. They are good for the dwarfs but it will not hurt them if ...
Danios11/20/2007
  Q: I have a 20 gal. aquarium with Zebra Danios, tetras, and mollies. Come feeding time, the Danios eat ...
  A: try feeding them more. The danios will eat there full and than they will alow the other fish to get ...
Dwarf Gourami11/19/2007
  Q: First of all, are the Dwarf Gouramis generally very slow and lazy fish? I put them in the tank, one ...
  A: yes they are lazy. Because you just put them in the tank they will just sit in the corner for a ...
Black Mystery Snail11/16/2007
  Q: i have had a Columbian apple snail(I'm not sure if that is what it is called) for about a year now ...
  A: there is no real was of getting a snail to stop laying her eggs. How many snails do you want??? if ...
sick jack dempsey11/16/2007
  Q: I've had this Jack Dempsey for about a year now. He is full grown and over 8 inches long. He has ...
  A: the white tube like this could be a parisite that has infected the jack. Go tou your nearest pet ...
Green Spotted Puffer fish compatibility10/5/2007
  Q: I have three green spotted puffer fish. One of them is constantly attacking the other two. Their ...
  A: i would seperate them. it could be a taritorical problem or just not enough room in the tank. if the ...
goldfish10/4/2007
  Q: my sister won a feeder goldfish at a fair at the beginning of the summer i was only epecting him to ...
  A: if well cared for they can live for up to 20 YEARS!!! but the average household goldfish ...
betta crowntail fish10/4/2007
  Q: I have a small plastic child's aquarium containing one betta crowntail and 2 snails. I noticed small ...
  A: they are called "daphnia" they are not harmful and are actualy great for your aquarium. they will ...
Breeding Platys10/2/2007
  Q: I live in Canada and i am 14 years old, i have 3 platys (2 females, 1 male) and one of the female ...
  A: they usualy arive within a month. they may have been born but eaten by all the other fish durring ...
follow up10/1/2007
  Q: I tested my water this morning Nitrate 20/40 in between Nitrite 0 total hardness 250 ...
  A: the clichlid will be down becuase of the death. but will perk up in a few days once it fergets ...
filtration and strong water current9/27/2007
  Q: I am just setting up a 29g tank for tropical fish. Haven't bought fish yet. Set up an undergravel ...
  A: it depens on your fish type. fish like tetras and danios will love the current. fish like slow ...
snails9/26/2007
  Q: i had two snails one blue one ivory well the ivory just died but i was changing the tank and took ...
  A: they are prob eggs but not freile. the eggs could be fertile and that could creat a problem of 100's ...
my spotted platy9/25/2007
  Q: well i have a spotted platy fish and it is bothering all of our other fish... at first we thought it ...
  A: that could be the problem you tell male from female by a long skinny stick like thing that is ...
new fisher9/23/2007
  Q: I'm 12 years old and new to having fish. i just got 2 dalmation mollies, 2 pearl mollies and 2 ...
  A: seperate it from the other fish and let it rest. it should be good by tomorrow but get one more ...
African Dwarf Frogs?9/22/2007
  Q: i currently have 2 goldfish, 1 calico telescope and 1 black moor. they live together in a 10 gallon ...
  A: i think that the spot is nothing to wory about and it could just be a scratch. the green water could ...
Beta compatibility9/22/2007
  Q: I have a beta fish in a 2-3 gal. bowl. I would like to know what type of fish could survive and do ...
  A: i it seems that aggresive i would leave it alone. if you want to to get more fish get a nother tank ...
size of tank9/22/2007
  Q: I have a 10 gal and am thinking of upgrading to a 25-30. What kind of filter do you like? I'm told ...
  A: hey!!! i9 live in ontario Thunder Bay!!! well i would use a aquaclear 50. there good for tanks 20 ...
my balck skirt tetras are acting weird, they started to just tay at the top of the tank!9/20/2007
  Q: i have 3 black skirt tetras and 2 guppies. my female guppy gave birth to babies yesterday and they ...
  A: the tetra behavior is normal for the stress of the female guppy. the female guppy may still be ...
Small snails - large problem9/17/2007
  Q: I have a 20 gal tank. I had it now for 6 month. I never bought small snails. However, I got some ...
  A: if the snail you want to keep and the shrimp larger than the loaches mouth than getting a loach ...
puffers9/17/2007
  Q: do you know anything about green spotted freshwater puffer fish? i need some help
  A: First off, green spotted puffers are brackish fish. Even though many pet stores sell them as ...
how can i make my tank better?9/17/2007
  Q: I am from Egypt and here this hobby is very uncommon. I have an 11 gallon tank for almost a year, I ...
  A: the temp=75-80 F air pump is not nessistry light= 12 hours a day the gravel should be 1 inch deep ...
clean up crews for my aquarium9/16/2007
  Q: im wondering if i need a shrimp or crawfish or something to help keep my aquarium clean. its still ...
  A: shrimp and crawfish wont help much and your tank is to small for all the frogs. you need atleast a 3 ...
apple snails9/16/2007
  Q: i have had an apple snail but it dyed a few weeks after i brought it i think they are fascinating i ...
  A: they can eat vegies sutch as apples, carrots,etc. they will also eat fish food pelots.THey will eat ...
anglefish, possible egg laying9/13/2007
  Q: How can you tell if an angelfish is laying eggs?
  A: If an Angelfish suddenly displays a bulging belly and a more aggressive behaviour, it is probably a ...
High Nitrites and Ick9/12/2007
  Q: .recently set up a 29 Gallon with the help of my boyfriend whom has his own 30 Gallon and is very ...
  A: yes higher the temperature but not to 90 like you said in the first mesage. the Nitirites will go up ...
High Nitrites and Ick9/12/2007
  Q: .recently set up a 29 Gallon with the help of my boyfriend whom has his own 30 Gallon and is very ...
  A: first i would remove the sick fish and the quick cure can make the nitrate go up. keep the ...
Betta9/12/2007
  Q: Can I put a male betta and a couple of females in a 55 gal tank with filstar rena filter. ANSWER: ...
  A: sorry for not making myself clear. it means that the male and females will have fry so you need to ...
My 20 Gal aquarium is cloudy8/30/2007
  Q: It was going on 10 day to change the h2o in my tank so I removed about 1/2 the h2o and added a ...
  A: i would sugest making sure your ph ir right and make sure you conditioning the water every time you ...
Greedy fish8/29/2007
  Q: We have recently bought 2 goldfish for our daughter. I was advised to feed them 3 pellets each ...
  A: if the tank is large enough i would put a screen between them for an hour each day durring feeding ...
Just starting out-freshwater aquarium-guppies8/29/2007
  Q: I am jus starting out a freshwater aquarium, that I bought from a friend. It came complete with 8 ...
  A: for the fry(baby fish) i would get some food for them that is smaller they can not eat normal fish ...

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Freshwater Aquarium

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Crystal

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Expertise

I can answer a large rang of question on this topic. I know about feeding, behavior, habitat, and compatibility. I can answer questions on most types of fish also, including platys, danios, tetras, etc. I do not know as much on cichlids and other larger fish. I also have lots of knowledge on invertebrates (snails, crayfish).

Experience

My experience in this area is that I have studied these fish in there natural habitat mostly in South America. I also recently have 4 55 gallon tanks containing a variety of fish. I have 3 20 gallon breeding tanks.

Organizations
I do not belong to any groups any more because of my location but back when I was in South America I was part of a small communal group that each day studied the natural behavior of many species of fish.

Publications
My work has been published many times in the news paper in the town I went to in South America. The town was small though so my articles barley hit 300 eyes.

Education/Credentials
I do not have much education because my family did not have enough money for me to go. I have studied in a local pet store were I worked for most of my junior. When I got the money I went to studied in South Amarica.

Awards and Honors
I don’t think this is much but in my small group I won the most improved and most dedicated awards.

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