# The Fosters Diary



## Olivia27

Hello! I'm Olivia. If you're reading this, chances are I'm temporarily looking after your almost-home Bettas. I'm starting to feel guilty bumping up a Marketplace thread all the time, and sending photos through PM requires me to upload said photos to Photobucket first. This is not always doable due to my lack of internet access  so yeah! From now on, instead of cluttering up your inbox, I'm going to create a one-stop place for all my adopters to check on their new babies. If I'm not fostering for you, and you're reading this anyway, you might find this journal very boring. I don't write any journal to attract audiences. BUT! Since I already have a foster house on my study desk, I do plan to continue fostering. Close to the date when my short-term fosters leave, I will put up pics of some fishes on my local Petco. Some may be able to leave right away, but if for any reason they can't, they're very welcome to stay with me in the mean time. I don't do rescues. I didn't get any of my fosters for free. But sometimes, very occasionally, I may pick up a fish that is visibly sick without anyone confirming to be their permanent home beforehand. This is the case with Merah, the one who started it all. I will introduce him to you all later  oh and another thing: I won't name my adopters here. That is unless they step forward themselves  well that's it for the intro post. Today's updates on my three fosters will be up later in the afternoon x


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## Olivia27

*Foster Profile*

As promised, I will start with Merah (mare-uh; Indonesian for "red", temporary nickname) 

Gender: M
Color: red Cambo
Tail: ? (Supposedly RT)
Intake date: 12/26/2015
Leaving on: ?
Leaving for: California

Merah started out fearful. He freaks out if anything, anything at all, gets close to his tank walls. He hides most of the time, or rests on top of the heater's suction cup. Today, he's one of those social ones that approaches fingers as they run across the tank wall. Feeding time with this boy is smooth-sailing. He darts upwards at the sight of tweezers or human hand, and finishes his food right away. Still, he's a very mellow boy that prefers to sit in a hiding spot all day. He barely flares (granted I wouldn't know if he is anyway), and is super easy to take pictures of. Merah has his own six-page thread on the Marketplace section full of his road to recovery from day one to yesterday. In that thread people helped me design a medication schedule for him so he'd get his tail back ASAP. Right now he's on IAL 100% of the time, with Methylene Blue + 1tsp AQ bath for 30 minutes every other day. He gets a 100% water change each time he goes for a bath. Since he's very skinny, Merah is also on special feeding schedule. He gets 3 pellets instead of 2, and I will start dropping one more several times during the day. On blood worms day he's the only one that gets more worms than everyone else. I can't wait to see him fully recovered!


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## Olivia27

*Foster Profile*

And now, my first ever experience with King Bettas: Karmac 

Gender: M
Color: MG
Tail: HMPK (sold as so)
Intake date: 12/31/2015
Leaving on: 01/05/2016 or 01/06/2016
Leaving for: Texas

Karmac is the only one living in a half-gal ATM. Everyone else lives in a 0.75 critter keeper. I tried to make up for it by adding live plants into the tank, but today it looks like Karmac really has had enough of the cramped space. So I'm going to grab him the same critter keeper as everyone else as soon as I get back. Either that or I will switch him with EE, my other foster. We'll see. 

Karmac has lived in Petco for a while before a forum member decided to adopt him (long story). So the night I heard that he's finally had a home, I was so excited I couldn't sleep. I rushed to Petco the following morning at 9 AM, and apparently they haven't finished restocking at that hour. I couldn't find a critter keeper, so a half-gal it is. Karmac came across tough and feisty at a glance. He took a chunk off my Pennywort on his first day, and just today he body-slammed my thermometer (XD). That's when I decided that this boy can't spend another day on a half-gal. On the other hand though, Karmac is also pretty shy with human hands. He warmed up to tweezers carrying food pretty quickly, but still a little apprehensive at the sight of fingers on the tank wall. Although barely visible Karmac also needs some fattening up. I will work out a special feeding schedule for him soon. That being said Karmac is the healthiest out of all three fosters. The only reason why he's held back is because I can't ship without heat packs, and shipping takes time. I'm sure he will love his new home in warm sunny Texas


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## Olivia27

*Foster Profile*

This boy is yet to be named, so for now his nickname is EE. 

Gender: M
Color: multi (almost Salamander, but his dorsal and caudal are missing the white butterfly band)
Tail: PK
Intake date: last night, 01/01/2016
Leaving on: 01/05/2016 or 01/06/2016
Leaving for: Pennsylvania 

EE is a very special boy. His caudal isn't working properly, and so he's mostly a bottom dweller. Going up for air is a bit of a challenge for him, so his water line needs to be kept low. Right now there's a bit of a situation with EE having two adopters, but I have informed the one that is (ATM) more likely to take him about his special needs. EE loves to explore. He's the most social out of the three and loves to approach fingers stuck on the tank wall. But since he struggles with swimming upwards, he prefers to drag himself across the tank floor catfish style. And so, his tank needs to be either bare bottom or of fine substrates. He also only takes sinking pellets. So far, at least. But other than that, EE is your regular Betta at heart. You just gotta get used to the sight of him laying on the tank floor instead of darting about 

EE has no special diet schedule. He's actually in healthy weight and has no need for medications. So despite being the only handicapped fish in the house, EE is actually my least demanding foster. I just switched him with Karmac so he has Karmac's half-gal, and Karmac has his critter keeper. Karmac was a grand pain to move. He kept thrashing about even when the cup hasn't touched the water yet. On the other hand, EE swam right in to his cup, no questions asked XD 

I do think it's too early to judge EE's personality, but I feel like he's gonna be one of those Bettas that constantly smile despite of anything. Really, it's no wonder how so many people lined up for this guy. He's a joy to have around.

Oh and of course, both boys got Stress Coat after the move. Both tanks also got a 100% wc before the new residents moved in.


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## Olivia27

*Permanent Residents*

Just thought I should do one for my own Bettas as well. So this is Seren

Gender: F
Color: metallic turquoise oddball (not a marble, not a multi)
Tail: roundtail 
Adoption date on signature 

Seren is my little hyperactive dancing pig. She's constantly on the move, either inspecting plants or just begging for food. She comes when called, gives kisses on a good day, and is just so, so sweet. She's my third try in the fish-keeping world but the first one from a breeder. Her social behavior is what I'm aiming for when working with shy fosters. She has an odd preference towards microswords... which makes me feel guilty since my swords don't thrive the way my other plants do. Each night she sleeps inside her microswords bush, and whenever I can't find her that's where I go looking. Seren only gets one pellet per feeding time. She's not bloated, but at the same time she's not the slimmest girl on Earth either. In fact I can easily tell she has grown a lot within the past month that I've spent with her. So yeah. I also try to reduce the frequency of blood worms day for this girl. She can get brine shrimps, but I'm afraid blood worms can be too fatty for this fatty. Don't tell her I said that.

Now for Volga
Gender: M
Color: multi (copper devil? Hasn't seen him in person but he's listed as copper and he definitely has some red on all his fins)
Tail: CT

Volga came from one of the awesomest sellers in the internet world. He's going to be shipped off on Monday, but since the shipping details on eBay only says "priority" I don't know if he's gonna be here Wednesday or Thursday. I have prepared his tank since about a month ago, and although I'm having issues with the nitrites level refusing to go down (nitrates at 10-20), it's pretty much cycling just fine. At first I was thinking about keeping his tank unfiltered, but after running a media-less filter in his 2.5gal for so long I think I'm gonna keep it that way. The day Volga arrives I may not post updates at all. I'm already pretty meticulous with acclimation to begin with, and this boy traveled all the way from Florida! But don't worry, I give equal attention to everyone in the house both the guests and the residents. This won't change even on the day Volga arrives.

He's going to inhabit a crypt jungle with one odd wisteria, one baby Anubias minima and a boat load of Salvinia. I'm also planning to put a cave for him  hope he likes his new home x


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## Olivia27

*What Happened Today?*

I already noted that Karmac and EE swaps tanks. So now EE lives in the middle, and Karmac gets the more "spacious" 0.75gal. I know I said moving him was a grand pain early today, and that he thrashed about, but right now he's all happy and calm. He also gallantly refused the hiding spot I made by tilting the flat heater (that the other two uses a lot). No hiding needed for King Karmac the Great. Got it XD in the other hand, EE is loving the smaller distance between different corners in his new room. Traveling is a huge pain for this boy. He doesn't even seem to think floating pellets are worth the energy. Oh and of course, since he lives smack dab in the middle, he became neighbors with Merah. Both Merah and EE are on the calmer side of the spectrum, so... Believe it or not... I don't need a barrier between them. Granted, Merah hides under his "cave" most of the time anyway, and EE only swims up for air every once in a while. So these boys probably won't even realize they have a neighbor. There's still a barrier up between EE and Karmac's tank though. Speaking of EE, his adopter situation is now all sorted. He's going home with someone who has experience with handicapped fish. Last night when I made a question thread about his handicap I was readying myself to set up a third tank if EE ended up without an adopter. But luck seem to stick to EE like a shadow. Of all people on Earth, I found one who not only tolerates his special needs, but also has experience with it AND also lives in the Midwest. What are the odds?

Not much happened with Merah today. Bath days are always so stressful for both me and him, so during non bath days I try my best to not mess with him at all. Merah has now learned that tweezers/fingers on the water = food. Although not yet as social as Seren or EE, he'd dart to the surface if he thinks there's a human hand waiting on top. Feeding time with this boy, like I already mentioned, is a real breeze. Karmac is getting there too, but he needs to work on his fingers-acceptance skill a little more. I mean, *I* need to work on that. Well that's it for now. I should have a bunch of pictures uploaded tomorrow  for now, it's dinner time!


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## feistygirl

Thank you so much for fostering Karmac for me, Olivia! I really appreciate it. I am rest assured that he is in excellent hands, being provided with superb care. This journal is such a great idea. All your fosters (and your own fish too) are all so sweet and lovely! Looking forward to future updates :-D


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## Olivia27

*What Happened Today?*

Thanks Niki  

So! I know this is only lunchtime, but I'm pretty much all done with the boys' daily maintenance already so I thought I'd put up an update. I have lotsa pics too, but I forgot that phone only allows me to upload 1 at a time =\ they'll be up later when I get to my laptop.

Anyway. It's 100% wc day for Karmac, bath day for Merah and frozen food day for everyone. I'm debating whether or not to do a 100% for EE as well. He just had one yesterday, and he doesn't get as much food as the other boys. I think I will wait until tomorrow. We'll see though, sometimes it bugs me to no end when I *can* do a wc but still doesn't do it for some reason. Speaking of wc, Karmac is still a huge pain to cup. I thought he just hates the cup, but then once he's in it, he doesn't want to go out either! I can't leave him there swimming atop his own poop though, so he still gets cupped nonetheless. Sorry big boy, I don't need to deal with ammonia poisoning =\ I don't know if this is just a first-few-days thing, but if this continues, say one day he fell ill Karmac would probably appreciate to stay in his main tank unless he really really REALLY has to go to a hospital. Just not the kinda fish that tolerates being moved, I suppose. Merah, on the other hand, never needs a net or a cup. Just a good ol' hand. He never thrashes, splashes or kicks around. Granted he's been here the longest, so he probably has developed some trust while the others are still in that "who are you?!" mode. I do think some fishes are a lot more tolerant in nature than others though. 

Now, feeding time stories. Today is bloodworms day, which I imagine is kinda like Valentines Day for Bettas. Treats, treats everywhere. This is usually the day when everyone suddenly becomes very easy to feed, but apparently not really. EE is my darling problem child in this case. Not that he doesn't want the worms, but he requires it to be pushed around back and forth until it floats at juuust the right spot. Then he'll inspect it very carefully from all sides, and finally gulps it down. So yeah. Merah has always been a breeze. Karmac, though, would gladly dart upwards before he even sees the food. I'll see if I can get him to do that 100% of the time. 

Tomorrow I'm going to the post office to pick up the package I missed. I should have my styrofoam cushion and live fish-specific plastic bags in that package. The heat packs - last I checked - are already in Michigan. In that case starting from Monday EE and Karmac will be fasted for travel. I'll put up pics of the boys in their boxes before shipment so you guys can see


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## Olivia27

*Gallery*

As promised, here are some (not-so-good) pics of the boys. Let's start with EE. Because I never start with EE for some reason 

This is how EE mostly looks like when he's swimming up. He relies on his pectorals.



This is his other typical pose.



EE loves to hide



But he will go up to greet you too 



Second in line: Karmac

My phone always takes a very long time to focus =\ so I get blurry pics a lot



Note: this is before his water change 



Grumpy face <3 



Love that black butterfly band! 



Lastly, Photogenic Merah. This boy actually holds his pose for the camera.



"Get my good side!"



Love seeing his fin growth  he almost got his entire dorsal back


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## Panacea

Wow, all of the bettas you're fostering look so lovely. Merah seems to have that adorable face my one fish Cosmos has. They both seem to have a similar personality as well. Cosmos loves pictures as well, granted he isn't always so still at times.

Karmac is adorable as well. He has gorgeous colors. His future owner, feistygirl, is fortunate to be getting such a lovely king betta with his colorful personality. 

And Parallax (EE as you call him) is such a sweetie. It brings tears to my eyes to see how similar he is to Nebula (S.I.P.) right down to the poses, face, and mannerisms. Nebula was always tricky to feed like that as well and let his food sink, too. He'd take up to an hour to finish everything at times. :-? 

Anyway, I can't wait for him to arrive. :lol:


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## Olivia27

Aw gee what are the odds, right? I'm glad you and Parallax (loving that name) found each other x

So! As I have told @Panacea and @feistygirl via PM, my shipping supplies are all waiting at the post office already. Tomorrow morning - first thing in the morning - I'll go grab them and get the shipping boxes ready. And then I will print the shipping labels (pro tip: online prepaid shipping fee is always cheaper by a *lot*) and take a cab to the post office. Reason being: tomorrow is unfortunately gonna be the coldest day of the week. There's no way I'm carrying these two boys on foot to the bus stop, where I would probably have to wait for some 15 minutes for the bus to arrive. Nope. No way. Let's keep our tropical fishes warm. Oh and like I said above I'll make sure I put up pics of the boys in their boxes before I seal it close and ship them all off. 

After the boys take off on their journeys, this baby is moving in:



He doesn't have a name yet, but that's only appropriate because he's still in Petco as we speak. I'm pretty confident he'd still be in the shelf tomorrow though. Stay tuned.


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## StellaBetta

Merah is looking so much better than when you first got him! You're really doing such a great job with all the fosters!! Im really excited to see his fin regrowth it makes me happy to know he's getting better and is so outgoing. I cant wait till he's well enough to travel


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## Olivia27

I can't wait either! Today is his bath day again. I always feel like I'm hitting a fast-forward button whenever I do that XD 

A little notice: I did say I'm gonna snap pics of fishes in my local Petco on the intro post, but after the cello marble above moves in I can't take another until he leaves. Both he and Merah are gonna need frequent baths, and I don't have enough tanks for both the boys on their bath days *and* a third foster.


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## Olivia27

Well. Karmac and Parallax have both been shipped off. I forgot to take pictures - because of course I do - but they have. I messaged their adopters the tracking numbers, and now I'm sitting here freaking out. At the post office the clerk tilted Karmac's box a little bit, and I had to fight with everything in me not to scream "AAAHH!! DOOON'T!" ._. either ways they both should reach their owners' homes by tomorrow afternoon. Fingers crossed all goes well. If anything happened to those boys... Gosh don't even ask me to imagine. 

Today has been a crazy long day. I woke up at 7:45 and started the day by feeding Seren. Two pellets for her, three for Merah. Nothing for the traveling boys as they need to be fasted. Technically they shouldn't eat breakfast yesterday morning either, but nobody expected the heat packs to get to me one day early. Don't you just love USPS? Anyway. I went to the post office, picked up my stuff, printed the labels, went home, prepared the boxes, and - here's where it gets interesting - bagged the boys up. Karmac, Mr. Catch Me If You Can, behaved the exact way I expected him to. We played a not-fun version of tag for a good few minutes before I finally cupped him, and in to the bag he goes. I added 1.5 mL of Stress Coat right away. Just in case. I took my sweet, sweet time fitting his bag into a second bag. I tried my best to do it without flipping the first bag, but in the end I had to flip it anyway or else it (obviously) won't fit. Tied the bag, bagged his Wisteria, fitted everything in the box, and sealed the shipping label up top. Good. One down, one more to go. 

Sweet, sweet Parallax was a little easier. Not much, because no fish enjoys being bagged, but still easier. Perhaps that's only because he's not very mobile. But whatever it is I'm glad everything goes a lot smoother with him. I still added 1 mL of Stress Coat into his bag though. Tied the bag, fitted everything in the box, sealed the shipping label up top. There. All done. 

I stopped at Petco on my way home to pick up the marble boy from my previous post. He's still there, but he also looks very different. In my post above you can clearly see he has SBD. Today I saw a single massive poop on the bottom of his cup, and a perfectly normal fish. Welp. Saved me my Epsom stock LOL

Poor boy still has some curled rays though. That, and a few nicks here and there along the anal. Nothing a clean warm water alone can't heal.



Curly dorsal



He looks a bit like Merah!



He hasn't been named yet, so for now his temporary nickname is "Marble". I'll do a formal foster profile later after I hear back from his adopter  Marble has been in his 0.75 critter keeper for about an hour now, and he has not stopped exploring yet. He's a little Energizer bunny with a ton of curiosity. Sometimes he'd stop to pose (looks like another photogenic boy) but mostly he'd swim up and down and left and right. Sweet little dude


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## Olivia27

*Gallery*

Let's start with Merah. Look at that dorsal OMG when he first arrived he only has 50% of the entire thing. Now he has, like, 80% :-D



Blurry one but shows the dorsal better



This is the closest Merah ever gets to flaring



LOL Marble has a hilarious face



Happy to see he's in healthy weight 



So! Ladies and gents, Marble is now available for adoption. Things came up and his adopter would rather be on stand-by. Meaning, if nobody takes him until next week, Marble would still go to them  so this is not so much of an emergency, but if you have space in your home and heart for a little energetic addition, do let me know. Tomorrow he's going up in the Marketplace thread with another boy I met on Petco. Stay tuned x


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## BettaStarter24

Really wish I could, and I'm tempted to say yes because I'm pretty sure I'm gonna lose one of my boys soon but I don't have a set up for him until that boy does pass.


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## Olivia27

Oh no  I'm sorry. 

There is no rush by the way all my fosters can stay with me for as long as they (or their adopters) like unless there's an emergency of some sort.


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## Tealight03

I really enjoy following your fishies and fosters. Marble is gorgeous! Hope he finds a good home soon.


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## Olivia27

*What Happened Today?*

@Tealight03: Yaay thank you 

So! This is Marble's first morning here and Merah's bath day again. Both boys got 100% wc and fed pellets morning and night. Marble seem to pass on his food just fine, so I suppose I'm leaning towards saying: "his SBD is gone for good". He scared me this morning by floating motionless near the top of the tank, but now that it's all nice and dark he's happy again. His tank doesn't get direct sunlight, mind you. I have blinds up that lets in just enough light to let me know it's morning already. But I suppose some fishies are more sensitive than others. Is it because he's a cello? Well, for now anyway. I'm kind of sort of sure he'd marble up to the point he's all blue in the near future. Merah is still his sweet, happy self. I'm starting to see specks of some dark coloring on his body so I don't know if he's gonna stay a Cambo forever either. 

Anyway. I went to Petco again today. Partly because I need another critter keeper (I've tossed the half gal), but also partly because I'm looking to check on a red DT boy I met the day I picked up Marble. He's still there. Because of course he is. Luckily I don't see black rims on the edges of his chewed-up fins, but still. If I do take him in, he's gonna be another long-term foster like Merah. I don't mind that. What I fear is that school and work would limit my ability to take care of all these guys properly. They're pretty undemanding pets if you compare them to dogs or cats, of course, but I'm so afraid I'd _forget. _I forgot a lot of stuff, you see. Academically, I have a very strong memory. But I suppose it takes away from my ability to remember day-to-day stuff. I'll be honest with you guys: I never remember when is the last time I did a water change on Seren's 5.5. I just do it whenever I'm home and bored. As a result, I change her water every 2-3 days. Because right after that new water starts pouring in, *that* is when I realize it has just been 2-3 days. I have two to-do lists on my fridge - one for school stuff and one for pets maintenance - but still sometimes I forgot to write on them ._.

Whoa wait. How did I end up here? I was about to talk about my trip to Petco! Okay okay, so... I went to Petco, right? And "red DT boy" is still there, right? And then I picked up a critter keeper, and did my usual rounds. You see, after reporting the store and seeing a lot of people got fired, I thought this place has gotten better. I'm starting to see zero poop-ful cups and more active fishes. I still see some that "slipped past" like Merah and Marble, but I'm not too mad about that TBH. I mean, come on. Imagine you're a manager in a chain store location that is only one of very many. You have ~100 cups of Bettas to sell, goodness knows how many freshwater and saltwater tanks on display to look after, a reptiles section and a live plants-specific aquarium. Even if you spot one sick fish, what can you do? Use the store's stock to medicate? Yeah right. And so I don't mind picking up Merah and Marble. Karmac and Parallax... They're not emergencies. They've just been there for too long of a time, and thus I highlighted them. Today's trip, however, made me realize that there is actually very little improvement in my Petco. What I found today include:

1) Three fishes with either fin rot or excessive tail-biting, that nobody noticed. The worst of all three is "red DT". Second worst is a male DS, and finally a marble male VT

2) A dead Black Orchid CT girl, with the signature white fungus fuzz all over her body. I was about to carry her home, but then I noticed that she's long gone. The clerk's reaction: "aw, no! That's too bad!". It _is _too bad indeed. Maybe if you guys start at least *noticing* that some of your stock are sick... *sigh*

So yeah. On one hand, I just want to bring ALL of them home. But on the other, I'm just a college student working in a cafeteria. I live in a small one bedroom apartment, and my rent doesn't include electricity. There's only so much I can do. Most especially since anyone can go to their own local Petco and see the same sight as I saw in mine today. It's actually amazing how I managed to find homes for any of these guys at all. Yet here they are anyway, with a permanent home all lined up. I just hope I continue to be this lucky. 

Footnote: Karmac has arrived safely. Parallax - according to the tracking website anyway - is still in transit. I just hope everything goes well.

- end of massive long post -


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## OUOhYeah2016

Good to know the shipping process went well for your first one! I'm so torn because I want to rescue from the awful pet stores near my college when I get back to school, but Marble is adorable and in good health. &#55357;&#56869;


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## Olivia27

Ya know, what made me the happiest about fostering Karmac and Parallax is the sheer joy I see (well, read) from their adopters when they found those boys. Seems like us humans just know when we find an animal that "clicks". So just pick one that you're more attached to  whichever one. Doesn't have to be healthy or sick.

If you're looking to foster like I do by the way, I can probably send you all my critter keepers and flat heaters by the end of spring. Sadly I won't be doing this for a very long time. For summer I have to fly back to my home country, and then next year I'll be living with my brother who would never tolerate this  if I ever end up with a foster that never found a home though, I can put him/her with a pet sitter along with Seren and Volga through summer holiday, and keep 'em around when I come back. But I can't take in any more


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## OUOhYeah2016

You know what? I think I'll probably take you up on that. I graduate at the end of this semester from my undergrad but I'll be there for another year and a half after that doing graduate school. I will actuallg be moving to a slightly larger apartment at the end of this coming summer where I may actually have a room I can devote to fish.


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## Olivia27

Yaaaaay!  fostering is fun! Oh oh and you can have the thermometers too. Almost forgot about those little guys.


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## OUOhYeah2016

I'm totally in! I shall continue your rescue mission when you're ready to pass it on!


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## Olivia27

Yay!!  

And now, for the updates! First of all, Parallax has *just* been sent out for delivery this morning. I'm not happy at all  I sure hope he has reached his new home by now because Volga, who's sent on the same kinda mail on the same day, has reached me just now. Poor boy looks so pale and miserable. I do think the seller used a little too many newspapers which blocks the heat pack from warming up the fish bag. When I held his box my first thought was "oh no it's cold". It has never even touched 32F on this part of the world lately  

Vol seem to be one tough little fighter though! Right after I poured him into an acclimation cup he flared at my finger. Twice. And then thrice. Little flaring monster, he is! Luckily after adding some warm water into his cup he looked a lot better than he appears in this picture now. He's still pale, but at least his head is up on the surface. _Edit: that blue color is just Methylene Blue, to avoid infection during delivery I suppose. Just to put it out there._



Vol couldn't pick any better day to arrive. All I have to do today is change Seren's water by some 25%, and of course feed the gang. It's blood worms day, too, so everyone eats in lightning speed. None of the fosters get water change today, and Merah has already had his bath yesterday. So I can spend aaall day playing the acclimation game. Not only with Volga, but with my up and coming new foster: "the red DT". After a series of lucky events, I can now proudly announce that he's most definitely coming home with me. I might even be able to afford adopting him out for free! Like I said: lucky events  

In another news, Marble is still not having any luck finding an adopter. But then again it's only been a day since his thread is up, and I already see some people saying "I wish". We'll see if anyone decided to switch off their impulse control. As for "red DT"... Gee, I honestly wonder if I'll ever find him a home at all. I should probably start spreading the word a little farther. We'll see, we'll see. I've been lucky so far. No reason to believe I won't continue to be. Right? 

Stay tuned for close up pics of "the red DT"... and probably a whole bunch of Volga as well XD feel free to PM me if you're looking to reserve "red DT"!


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## Olivia27

Well, ladies and gents, "red DT" boy is now home with me. I was about to just call him DT in the mean time, but then I decided on "Fiery" instead. Here he is, acclimating in his cup:





And here he is after being released into the tank:





I know the pictures don't show, but Fiery is actually not doing too hot right now :-( he's pretty lethargic. In fact for a moment there he's half laying on his side just now. I'm a bit worried this boy won't make it, so I won't put him up for adoption just yet. We'll see though. Maybe he's just stressed. If I see that he's doing alright in a couple hours, I'll start his MB +AQ bath tonight. Maybe even before I go to bed. Just in case he's more comfortable in the dark. 

Speaking of stress, Volga is still not coloring up :-( he's a lot more copper than these pictures below already, but I can't see his red wash just yet. Unfortunately this means he has a great camouflage so I can't take a decent picture =\ hopefully I'll be able to come up with a great "he's all good now" pic by tomorrow. I'm so worried :-(







So. Another trip to Petco warrants another angry paragraph-long rant. I found yet another dead fish today. This time a royal blue male VT. The Dragon Scale I mentioned yesterday was still there. So is the marble VT... and I found another one with a deteriorating fin - this time an RT. Oh and of course, a couple dragons with diamond eye. 

It's never ending. It truly is. But the worst part of this all is _choosing _which one needs more help. I don't wanna choose. If I have an actual fish room I'd bring them all home right away. But I don't. I only have one spot open, and so I had to go with the "sickest" one. Fiery it is. Even with Fiery I'm already taking chances on whether or not anyone will step up as an adopter.

I carried both the dead VT and Fiery to the cashier table. One associate behind the cashier - whom received the dead CT girl I found yesterday - said: "oh my gosh! You keep finding all the dead ones!". Yep. Yep, I do. Don't you guys feel like you should do something about that? The cashier, whom I know is in charge of the fish section, looks mortified. She assured me that she has just checked on the Bettas an hour ago, and that they all "looked happy and healthy" back then. I didn't comment on that, but if that is true, then I wonder how much she really knows about fish. If she checks on the Bettas every couple hours during the day, how can she not notice something is not right with Fiery? He shouldn't still be up on that shelf in this condition. What if nobody ever picks him up? Is he gonna still sit there on that cold little cup until death do us apart? Isn't there something - _anything - _a Petco employee can do? Anything at all? Do they really have to wait until an impulsive teen with a lot of tanks pick up their sick stock? :-( *sigh*

Still going off my rant, I found a royal blue VT female hanging on to dear life. I don't know what's up with her. There's no bloating or shredded fins, but she's as clamped as she can be. She couldn't even swim any more. She just hangs her little face on the surface. I thought she's long gone, but then I touched the cup - throwing her off her current spot - and she swam back into position. Oh gee. 

See, I have another tank coming my way. It's a 2.65 glass tank, intended for my future second female. I bought the tank now because somebody sells it for only $14 on eBay (it's used, but it comes with lighting and filter) and I don't know if I'd ever find another one with the same price. My plan is to just keep it tucked away in my storage wardrobe until the time comes for me to use it, but guess what came up in my mind just now. I really am impulsive aren't I?

The tank will be here Friday. Then I can move Marble - the only healthy one - into it so I won't have to do 100% wc every other day for him. Marble's current hospital tank can hold the VT girl. That works, doesn't it? Well, in theory. In reality, I probably shouldn't take in any more until both Marble and Fiery has a confirmed permanent home. Plus, this is a VT I'm looking to take in. People... just never really look for them, I suppose. She'd probably be a royal pain to find a home for. It's not like I can keep her either. Not for now, at least. Oh gee.


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## BettaStarter24

The problem is many people sadly pass by the females. I now have a very soft spot for females. I still love my males and will still get males but I adore my 3 females just as much. One is a VT that I absolutely could not pass by. She's a MG. 

I do have to say I admire you for saving who you are able to. I wish I could run a foster but I have so many fish right now that are mine permanently. I do have one that's technically a "foster" and started out as a foster but she's found her permanent home with my roommate. 

I hope you find homes for Marble and that Fiery gets better and can find a new home. 

I'm pretty sure Volga is just stressed from the shipping and how cold the bag was. Just let him sit with the light off for a bit and let him relax. Hopefully he bounces back.


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## StellaBetta

O my goodness marble is so cute! I would totally take him if I knew I would have the space for him but right now at my dorm I'm already going to be maxed out on tanks with the 10 gallon coming in :-( I love seeing your updates about Merah he really looks so much better than when he first came home with you. I am very excited about him I keep telling my mom and boyfriend about him and discussing tank deco schemes and trying to convert him lol. He really is such a pretty boy and I'm glad someone was able to see past his deformities and give him the love that he needs. So many times I see people turn down gorgeous fish just because they have a little fin nipping problem or their form isnt perfect and it makes me sad all fish are beautiful in their own way so it really makes me happy that someone like you is out there taking in these fish that others would scoff at and turning them into beautiful little butterflys with new homes


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## Olivia27

Aha. The "with new homes" part is the problem ATM... Thanks a lot you both


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## OUOhYeah2016

I'm sharing your frustrations with pet stores/PetCo so much right now. I'm only home for the next couple days but I went back to the PetCo we got my moms baby betta at (he's doing great by the way!) for the second time since we got him because I needed a gravel vac and to look at a couple heater options for my new tank that is waiting for me at my apartment. Anyway, when we got the baby he was with about 8 others all of which seemed pretty healthy and they looked like they'd all just gotten there in a huge shipment. We went back a week and a half later and there were 6 cups with baby bettas still, 4 of which were dead or so close to it that they were beyond help. Of course I complained to the company and heard from corporate, but that's all. 

So I go today (after going to every other pet store in the area and not finding what I needed) when I'd been hoping to avoid the sad reality of the bettas, especially the babies. Now the Pet Supplies Plus had bettas that looked ill but at least they were in slightly larger vases. The PetSmart had no bettas at all which I found odd and also discouraging. When I finally got to PetCo there were no baby bettas...I can only assume they all died, but there were probably about 15 adults. Over half had some severity of swim bladder issues. One was a gorgeous red dragon scale and all I wanted to do was take him home and fix him, but I can't. My mom only keeps one betta at a time and she has her little one and I can't take him on a plane with me nor do I have the supplies to ship him to myself. He was just floating there and i thought he was dead until I touched his cup. It was like you said about Marble, he couldn't dive at all really and moving at all was a struggle... It killed me so much to leave him. 

We're all bleeding hearts on this forum lol I'm sure everyone you foster will find a good home soon enough.


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## Olivia27

*Gallery*

Okay, this is a lot of updates in one day. But if I want to find homes for Marble and Fiery, I need lots of pictures!

So! Lo and behold, Marble!







Fiery under his IAL



Excuse the air bubbles. Really, if he has complete fins, this boy is gonna be a looker.



And Merah. I made a hiding spot for him by tilting the heater :-D 



But if I press my face to the tank wall, he goes up to greet me 



You no longer have to squint to see his clear regrowth films now



And now if you guys would excuse me, I have to go back to Petco to buy another heater. I just noticed Fiery's heater quits. It can only hold the temp steady at 76. Probably why he's so lethargic =\ not that 76 is bad, but if I want him to heal up quick, I need an 80-82!


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## Olivia27

OUOhYeah2016 said:


> I'm sharing your frustrations with pet stores/PetCo so much right now. I'm only home for the next couple days but I went back to the PetCo we got my moms baby betta at (he's doing great by the way!) for the second time since we got him because I needed a gravel vac and to look at a couple heater options for my new tank that is waiting for me at my apartment. Anyway, when we got the baby he was with about 8 others all of which seemed pretty healthy and they looked like they'd all just gotten there in a huge shipment. We went back a week and a half later and there were 6 cups with baby bettas still, 4 of which were dead or so close to it that they were beyond help. Of course I complained to the company and heard from corporate, but that's all.
> 
> So I go today (after going to every other pet store in the area and not finding what I needed) when I'd been hoping to avoid the sad reality of the bettas, especially the babies. Now the Pet Supplies Plus had bettas that looked ill but at least they were in slightly larger vases. The PetSmart had no bettas at all which I found odd and also discouraging. When I finally got to PetCo there were no baby bettas...I can only assume they all died, but there were probably about 15 adults. Over half had some severity of swim bladder issues. One was a gorgeous red dragon scale and all I wanted to do was take him home and fix him, but I can't. My mom only keeps one betta at a time and she has her little one and I can't take him on a plane with me nor do I have the supplies to ship him to myself. He was just floating there and i thought he was dead until I touched his cup. It was like you said about Marble, he couldn't dive at all really and moving at all was a struggle... It killed me so much to leave him.
> 
> We're all bleeding hearts on this forum lol I'm sure everyone you foster will find a good home soon enough.


Somehow I didn't read this until just now. Wow. That is just... :-( see, it hurts more when the sick one is cheap. Like a DS, they're only ten bucks. Or like a VT girl... which is the cheapest in the list. I know I *can* afford to bring her home financially, but in other aspects I can't. 

On a (sorta) positive note though, that widespread of SBD is probably - 90% chance - caused by the horrible food they're fed in the store. Once somebody brought them home, put them in a warm tank, and switched them to a better food, they'd most likely perk up xx


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## OUOhYeah2016

I know... but I also hate it because it looks like they're dead and anyone that doesn't know anything about fish and is just looking for a pretty one is going to take the chance on one floating at the top :/ but I guess that's why there's people like us.


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## Olivia27

More of a curse than a blessing, I'm telling ya  say I never took in any of these boys I would be able to afford a ton of really nice Calvin Klein dresses XD But then again dresses don't brighten up a gloomy day the way Bettas do x

Just as a note for all, by the way, I keep hearing people wanting to start rescues here and there. What most people don't realize is that *if* nobody uses the word "rescue", nobody would wanna do rescue work. The only "pay" anyone got by doing this is that little feeling when you think "oh gosh people say I'm a good person". And to those outside the animal welfare world, that sounds like a massive pay. But I'm telling ya, that's the wrong reason to jump into this world. I have been working with animal welfare for a long time now (previously focusing on dogs). The spotlight is never at the people. It's at the animals. Those that compliment you on how well-trained your dog is doesn't see how many household items he has chewed to shreds. They don't wake up in the middle of the night to clean poops and pee puddles. They don't get dragged across the street because said dog has zero leash training. They praise you for "rescuing" your animals. And you stand there smiling, biting your tongue before you say: "actually, there's absolutely nothing glorious about what I do". 

What I do, people, and what anyone else in the animal welfare world do, is cleaning poops on the (tank) floor and running back and forth between pet shops - pouring a big wad of cash into the cash register each time. What we do is stay up late just to watch the thermometer, or feed the puppies left without a mother. What we do is lugging buckets of water so many times each day, and wiping down the kitchen counters - AGAIN - because they never seem to stay dry from all the water changes. What we do is watch in frustration as our animals refuse their food, because it's not like there's much you can do if so. What we do is called "bringing home a sick animal nobody wants not because we're rich but because we're too soft". The word "rescue" made all these sound like the work of a saint. As if I'm flying around Michigan in a red cape to immediately warm all the Bettas kept in cold cups through my laser eyes. But that's not what I do. That's not what anyone does. If you have something to offer to animals in need, and you have that one string in your heart that always gets tugged when you see those Bettas in the cup, then go bring them home. Go heal them up and find them good homes. But don't bring them home as part of your fulfillment of community service work commitment. It's not about the people. It's about the animals.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Seren27 said:


> More of a curse than a blessing, I'm telling ya  say I never took in any of these boys I would be able to afford a ton of really nice Calvin Klein dresses XD But then again dresses don't brighten up a gloomy day the way Bettas do x
> 
> Just as a note for all, by the way, I keep hearing people wanting to start rescues here and there. What most people don't realize is that *if* nobody uses the word "rescue", nobody would wanna do rescue work. The only "pay" anyone got by doing this is that little feeling when you think "oh gosh people say I'm a good person". And to those outside the animal welfare world, that sounds like a massive pay. But I'm telling ya, that's the wrong reason to jump into this world. I have been working with animal welfare for a long time now (previously focusing on dogs). The spotlight is never at the people. It's at the animals. Those that compliment you on how well-trained your dog is doesn't see how many household items he has chewed to shreds. They don't wake up in the middle of the night to clean poops and pee puddles. They don't get dragged across the street because said dog has zero leash training. They praise you for "rescuing" your animals. And you stand there smiling, biting your tongue before you say: "actually, there's absolutely nothing glorious about what I do".
> 
> What I do, people, and what anyone else in the animal welfare world do, is cleaning poops on the (tank) floor and running back and forth between pet shops - pouring a big wad of cash into the cash register each time. What we do is stay up late just to watch the thermometer, or feed the puppies left without a mother. What we do is lugging buckets of water so many times each day, and wiping down the kitchen counters - AGAIN - because they never seem to stay dry from all the water changes. What we do is watch in frustration as our animals refuse their food, because it's not like there's much you can do if so. What we do is called "bringing home a sick animal nobody wants not because we're rich but because we're too soft". The word "rescue" made all these sound like the work of a saint. As if I'm flying around Michigan in a red cape to immediately warm all the Bettas kept in cold cups through my laser eyes. But that's not what I do. That's not what anyone does. If you have something to offer to animals in need, and you have that one string in your heart that always gets tugged when you see those Bettas in the cup, then go bring them home. Go heal them up and find them good homes. But don't bring them home as part of your fulfillment of community service work commitment. It's not about the people. It's about the animals.


Couldn't have said it better myself. I want to do it because the fish deserve people who care about them, whether that's me or someone else.


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## Olivia27

*What Happened Today?*

Welp. This day starts very early apparently. And it seems like this is how it's always gonna be with Fiery in the house. One too many things happened yesterday. First off I took in two boys at once, and both their heaters acted funny all at the same time. You've all heard about Fiery's heater quitting the very moment he arrived. Volga's adjustable has been reliable for the past few weeks when his tank is still cycling. Now that he's here, it suddenly won't shut off. At first it holds steady at 83-84 but then it rises to 86. I plugged off the heater and made a note on my head to wake up in the middle of the night to plug it back in. Before I do, though, I just have this funny feeling and left the room to check on Fiery. His new heater - that heated up just fine early today - lets the temp slip all the way down to a 72. To say that I freaked out was an understatement.

I cupped his little beat up body and floated him in Marble's tank. Only because his is a step closer. Immediately, though, I noticed it's not a great idea. Marble wasn't happy, and Fiery was too hapless. So I pulled him out, and tried Merah. Merah was interested at first, but a short "Merah, leave him alone!" helps tremendously. Sweet, sweet Merah just pretended he can't see Fiery's cup. He kept pecking at the surface with his mouth open though, that little weasel. But since he's been such a sweetheart, I caved in and dropped a pellet. @StellaBetta, you may not need a divider for your 10gal. I know you're looking to start a community (stalked your journal  ). I can almost guarantee Merah would tolerate tank mates absolutely well. That is, except for the nippy ones because he's (gonna be) a Rose Tail. You have the world's sweetest boy.

Back to Fiery. He was pretty much hanging on to dear life last night. I started a question thread on the diseases & emergency section, but then again it was very late and that section is always crowded anyway. So I plugged Fiery's heater in a different power outlet, watched the two red boys for the next hour, and went to bed. Notice how I didn't check Volga's thermometer beforehand.

I woke up at 5:30, screaming in my head how I really really don't want to start my day just yet. I'm glad I did though, since I woke up to Volga's thermometer reading 72. Oh gee.

I plugged it back in, watched as the red bar slowly climbs to 74, and went out to check on the fosters. I caught Merah staring at Fiery as if he's a museum exhibit, and Marble dancing his "feed me" dance. I told Marble to wait, and checked the heater in Fiery's original tank. It reads 80.

So Fiery goes back "home", and I went to the forum to see if anyone replied to my thread. Three people did (THANK YOU!) and all said the same thing: SBD. Sure. Of course. Difficulty swimming, being a DT, carrying his fins in a funny way... I feel stupid I didn't notice beforehand. I was looking for that typical "swimming like a piece of paper" behavior and Fiery doesn't have that. He's swimming funny in a different way. Oh well. Lesson learned. 

And so, at 6 in the morning, I prepared an Epsom bath. I think I did say in my question thread that I'm gonna wait but I didn't in the end. This boy needs all the help he could get. So. I did half a tsp on a half gal container, for 20-25 minutes. In the mean time I did my usual rounds. Pellets for Seren, Volga and Marble, 100% wc on all the fosters tanks, and - after Fiery goes back to his original tank - Merah goes for his MB+AQ bath. I haven't fed him yet after his bath time. But I will after I hit "submit post". 

With a finally functioning heater and Epsom bath, Fiery looks a little better already. He's still swimming funny, but at least he's swimming. Last night he was completely motionless I was so sure he's gonna pass on before morning. But then people assured me that it happens sometimes, and surely enough he's a little more alert now. Due to his heater needing a certain amount of water to actually work, Fiery is in a cup to give him easy access to the surface. I thought that was a great idea, but then I saw Fiery pushing on the cup walls in frustration. Whoops. What do I do then? :-? 

There's also this thing about his fins. I know I've been running around saying he's just tail-biting, but then somebody pointed out that he has a broken ray instead of a torn webbing. Can he really bit off _a ray_? But if it's fin rot, why don't I see black edges? :| gee gosh, there's so much to learn about these guys. Whenever I feel like I know a little more than most people there's always something new that proved I know nothing. I just hope I know enough to help Fiery recover. He's more work than Merah, that's for sure. For now I'm gonna leave his fins alone. I have IAL in his tank, but that's all. He's already on an ES bath schedule. I don't want to bombard him with too many chemicals by putting him on MB+AQ bath schedule as well. One at a time. No rush. He's not going anywhere anytime soon anyway.

EDIT: I just gotta share this. Have any of you noticed how similar Merah and Fiery look? I know Merah is a red Cambo and Fiery is just red, but they're both badly beat up, skinny red fishes. See, I always sit in front of the bath bucket when the boys are on their baths because, well, it doesn't have a lid. During Merah's bath I randomly looked into the bucket and saw him wriggling around. My head went: "OMG Fiery youre - oh wait..." XD I need caffeine, people. Coffee donations welcome. Preferably latte.


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## Olivia27

*Gallery*

OK picture updates of the day and then I'm going back to sleep. Gotta wake up soon though. I need to pick up daphnia for Fiery. 

Here he is in his cup 



Merah, the only one who got bloodworms this morning. Thank goodness he tolerates Fiery's cup in his tank last night or else I wouldn't know what to do.



Marble, who's refusing to give me a nice side view pose today. I think he saw how Merah got bloodworms and he didn't LOL I know the pic don't show because he's technically a cello, but his dorsal isn't curly anymore  



Volga, finally all colored up





It's been too long since I took a pic of Seren. I actually feel bad XD but she's so hard to take pics of so I have a legit excuse. I'll put some up next time. Maybe.


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## Olivia27

*Gallery And Today's Updates*

Decided to mash two posts into one as I really gotta go pick up meds on my LFS soon. Anyway. Let's start with good news:

Firstly: Marble found a home. Nuff said :-D:-D he's leaving for Illinois *tomorrow*! So, in celebration of that, he's gonna be first in line in today's gallery. Meet Marble! _Note: @OUOhYeah, tell your sister she's totally free to change his name. "Marble" is just a lazy nickname._



I had a brain dead moment this morning and did my usual water change rounds when I just did the same thing yesterday ._. Marble hates being cupped, so this is his face now 



But he still looks lovely even when grumpy! Watch those straight fins. No funky curls anymore  I mean... well, there are still some bent rays, but it's not something I can exactly cure. Flaring sessions would help though.



And now, Merah. My brain dead moment continues and I bathed him today *facepalm*. So now both boys are not happy with me.



Finally, Fiery. My oh my, poor dear Fiery. He's everything that can go wrong with a Betta all mixed into one. Mild fin rot, check. Tail biting, check. Ripped fins (don't know what happened there), big check. Constipation... well, since his Epsom bath yesterday obviously helped, I would say check. Bacterial infection, possible check. He's a fighter, I'm telling ya. This is him after his first ever MB-AQ bath (again, brain dead moment. I'm not supposed to bathe anyone until tomorrow ). He's still a bit shocked after being moved about in this pic, but he's fine now. 



See how that dorsal and anal is folded, though? That never happened yesterday. So now that he has more control over his fins, he's been swimming a little more (thank the heavens). I still find him hanging on the surface motionless, but now all I need to make him move is stare at him :shock: until he feels uncomfortable and turns around XD yesterday, I had to dip my finger in and touched his dorsal. Even then he only pushed forward by an inch. He has also stopped sinking. Yesterday he sunk like a tattered red Titanic. Today, like I said, he has more control over where he wants to go. Not much, but progress is progress  I have a feeling that once he gets all healed up, people would happily stand in line to adopt him. He's a stunner. Just needs some patching up is all.

Today my shopping list includes Kanaplex (juuust in case) and daphnia, should Fiery needs it. Maybe Furan too, if budget allows. I'm pretty sure I am super close to getting "reward dollars" in my LFS by now so if I get my reward today I'm going home with Furan-2 as well. I also really want a new heater for my new tank so I can house four Bettas at once instead of just three, but: a) I can't afford it, and b) I need to first make sure that work and school won't hinder me from giving the best care to all my Bettas guests and permanents alike. But of course even if I can, there's still problem (a). I just simply can't afford it ATM =\ maybe I will soon, once my paycheck accumulates and pays back all my spending, but "soon" is not "now". 

Anyway. After Marble leaves, next intake is potentially that royal blue female VT I just can't shut up about. I say "potentially" because I haven't been to Petco since I picked up Fiery. Sure hope she's still alive :-( stay tuned!


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## OUOhYeah2016

I'm so happy it worked out that Marble is going to a home where he'll be the center of attention! And I get to be a little selfish and keep tabs on him lol! Anyway, also is it just me or did his dorsal fin get more blue? He's deserving of being named Marble alright, but either my sister will make an account and let you know how he's doing or I will!


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## Olivia27

I didn't notice his dorsal being more blue since it's always had the largest splotch of blue from the get-go, but do expect him to turn a little red. That anal is developing a faint red wash :0 oh and I don't know if it's as apparent from the pics, but he actually has some red on his head too. So it really is a gamble what he will look like in the future. Perhaps even a multi.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Oh! I see the red! He's a cutie! Can't wait to see how he turns out


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## Tealight03

Glad Marble found a home! He definitely tempted me. Hope Fiery makes a speedy recovery!


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## fisharefriends1

Hey! I'm the one who will be adopting Marble, my friend OUOhYeah2016 was the one who referred/ordered him for me. I'm so excited to be seeing my little buddy soon!!


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## Olivia27

Yaaay! Hi there! Welcome to the Betta world  any questions just shout out x


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## StellaBetta

Seren27 said:


> I cupped his little beat up body and floated him in Marble's tank. Only because his is a step closer. Immediately, though, I noticed it's not a great idea. Marble wasn't happy, and Fiery was too hapless. So I pulled him out, and tried Merah. Merah was interested at first, but a short "Merah, leave him alone!" helps tremendously. Sweet, sweet Merah just pretended he can't see Fiery's cup. He kept pecking at the surface with his mouth open though, that little weasel. But since he's been such a sweetheart, I caved in and dropped a pellet. @StellaBetta, you may not need a divider for your 10gal. I know you're looking to start a community (stalked your journal  ). I can almost guarantee Merah would tolerate tank mates absolutely well. That is, except for the nippy ones because he's (gonna be) a Rose Tail. You have the world's sweetest boy.


Oh thats great to hear! I didnt know how he would be around other tankmates and didnt want to take chances. But as of now I dont think I can even do a community my mom doesnt want me to get anymore fish after Merah :-( So I guess lucky for him hes going to have a 10 gallon all to himself! Maybe eventually I'll get an apple snail and some cherry shrimp but its a no go for more fishes at the moment. But its good to know he wouldnt have issues with it if I ever did decide to make it a community anyway. 

Is he really a rose tail? I cant really tell at the moment obviously since his tail is gone lol That makes me even more excited for him. I fell in love with rose tails after I first saw one in Petco and thought they were just gorgeous so of course I went home and looked at more pictures of some and wanted to get one so bad but they are just so expensive in my Petco that I thought I would never be able to get one. Im so glad now I can finally have one and to top it off its one that really needs a loving home  Its like a beautiful love story lol excuse my dramaticness


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## Olivia27

Welp actually I did a ray count on him once.. But I forgot my result =\ I'll count again when it's properly morning. I can't guarantee he'd be an actual rose tail, but he's at least HM. I know I ended up with more than 4 last time I counted but to be a rose tail, he's gonna need something like >16 rays. Perhaps even more. But then again, there's no guarantee he won't grow more rays. We can never tell how big his tail is supposed to be after all. So yeah it's just all a waiting game


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## torileeann11

Beautiful fish Seren! You're a kind soul.


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## Olivia27

*What Happened Today?*

Thanks Tori you are, too 

So! Marble has just been shipped off today. I can't wait to see update pics from his new home :-D before I went to ship Marble, I visited my LFS - again - to finally pick up that daphnia I've been rambling about for a couple days now. They're so hard to find :-? and today, apparently, their shipment finally arrives. My plan was to go in and out in a snap, but their Betta shelf tempted me. I do know they just did water change yesterday on all their cups so I went to look around. Among all the healthy, feisty fishes... there was this boy that just doesn't look right. He can dive just fine if he wants to, but he'd always come back to the surface where he stayed motionless with all his fins clamped. I don't know what's up with him exactly (shouldn't he have more difficulty swimming if it's SBD?) but something's definitely up. 

And so. 



Nuff said. Picture says it all, no? Meet "Naga", my new intake. Naga, pronounced "nah-gah" (both "A" sounds like the "A" in "Charlie"), is Indonesian for "dragon". Obviously this is because he's a dragon scale. A DeT BF DS, actually. It's hard to see his butterfly pattern because his fins are all clamped, but he's a red BF with black outlining. The "DeT" part I'm not so sure of, but for now I'll settle with that.

Speaking of. If anyone wants to throw pies at my face, please do. I'm a *bleep*ing idiot. Naga is a prime example of impulsive purchase. He was $20, just like Merah, and I don't even know yet if he's really sick or just needs some warm water. My head told me I *do* need to bring him home because: a) I only go to this LFS when I really really have to, which comes down to twice a month or something like that. I can go to Petco every day or twice daily if I want to. b) The cups were cleaned yesterday yet nobody put this guy on their hospital. Does this mean he needs to wait in line to be treated? Oh and lastly, c) he looks like the kinda guy that I won't have any trouble finding a new home for. And off to the cashier I went. 

Now, I realize that taking in Naga is probably not a good idea. First off, who on Earth would want to pay a $20 adoption fee? I must either reduce it or give him away for free. But in order to afford that, I'm gonna have to promise myself to not - under any circumstances - buy any more fish stuff until my next two, three or even FOUR pay checks arrive. I really don't know if I can do that. What if an emergency comes up? I have three sickly boys now. Anything can happen :-( 

Second off, again, I'm not sure what's up with him. My bets are on SBD... but he swims just fine if he wants to. He just kept on going back to one corner of the tank, motionless. The only reason why I suspected SBD is because he acts a little like Fiery, and Fiery definitely has SBD. I've started him on Epsom, though. I'm not sure if he needs MB too. But I'd definitely try him on daphnia tonight. Him and Fiery, that is. If he still doesn't improve my Plan B is to move on to Kanaplex. I can soak his food on the Kanaplex solution in case he has any sort of bacterial infection. But then again I don't know at this point. 

TBH I really felt like I took more than I can chew :-( hopefully people won't mind me bugging them on the Diseases&Emergency section. Again. How can I leave him behind looking like that though? =\

Oh and of course, because I'm just dumb like that, I'm visiting Petco after this meeting at work today. If royal blue VT girl is still alive, she's coming home with me too. She can have my 2.65. I have a heater for it now. I found a Cobalt Mini Therm for no more than $17. Just hope it works okay.


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## Olivia27

Oh! Forgot to mention: Merah's ray count result was 12-14 (he moved too much!). So perhaps he's just a HM instead of an RT but we'll see.


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## StellaBetta

Either way whatever he turns out to be I will be happy it doesnt really matter to me. I just got excited that he could be one


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## Olivia27

Well it still could be anything 

So. Naga is blind. He's unresponsive to fingers, and seem to panic on every little thing. Just now for unknown reasons he did this mad dash around the tank flaring here and there. Not sure what spooked him yet but I feel bad for the guy  I've decided. Naga and Fiery are going for free. It's not fair to ask for their purchase price back when nobody asked me to bring them home at the first place. Plus it looks like I already have all I need anyway. I should do just fine without touching my paychecks for the next 2 months. Soooo, if you would love a gorgeous new addition, let me know!

Meanwhile, Fiery is still not very active. He's a lot more responsive but still I often find him just floating. Motionless. These boys made Merah look hyper =\ oh gee. 

Also: I can't go to Petco today. The weather is disgusting outside. I'll try tomorrow.


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## Tealight03

I heard banana plants or dried banana leaves can help with blindness. Something about it makes the scales be not as thick. Poor Naga. I have a few I don't mind donating.


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## Olivia27

Thanks a lot for your kindness x Can you PM me how much shipping would be? 

His eye looks normal colored at a glance so I don't know what makes him blind exactly. But just now I turned the lights off and shone a flashlight on him. What do you know, there's a coppery irid color over half his eyes. It's diamond eye indeed. Just not as apparent. 

In another news Fiery ate like a champ tonight. Naga ate a few daphnias that hit him in the face, but the rest he didn't hunt for. I also noticed that Naga still has a fake ovipositor. It hurts more to know he's only a baby  he's such a sweetheart too. I never have a fish that lets me pet them. Not even Seren.


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## OUOhYeah2016

That's so sweet and so sad at the same time.. He's a pretty one though. I've only had one fish that let me pet it and that was my one female Years ago.


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## BettaStarter24

Naga is stunning! I'm so tempted but alas I can't right now. I don't have the proper set up ready for another guy. Really hope you find a good home for him!


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## feistygirl

What size tank does Naga need?


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## feistygirl

Additionally, since Naga is blind, what type of care is required for his special needs? Does he require a special diet? Should his tank be lightly planted or densely planted? Would it be safe for him to add ornaments to his tank? Is it okay to have substrate in his tank? 

Does he need additional water changes?


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## BettaStarter24

I have a blind betta right now. He's in a 2.5g tank with plants. I'd recommend putting food in the same spot every single time you feed a blind betta like Naga, or my boy Braveheart. Generally pick a place they like to hang out by, it'll be easier for them to find it. You can have substrate in the tank, I'd go lighter plants, but not bare. Less for them to run into. And once they're in their forever tank and acclimated to where things are, I personally wouldn't change things, or add much because of the risk of them hurting themselves on anything new that they can't see. Braveheart only has 3 silk plants in his 2.5g tank and thats it. He's used to it now so i won't add anything to his tank.


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## Olivia27

Welp the good news is: Naga has diamond eye. With banana leaves he should, all fingers crossed, be able to see again. Keep him in your thoughts folks he's on emergency AQ bath ATM. I woke up in the middle of the night and he's laying on the bottom of his tank. Guess what - nitrite reads 0.25 =\ keep in mind that after Marble leaves I did a 100% wc before Naga moves in! Who says tiny tanks can't cycle again?? Tell them I sure hope so!


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## Olivia27

*What Happened Today?*

Good morning, all you lovely people! I'm going back to work today already  wooo hooo! Here's to earning back all that doollaaaars~

Anyway. Let's start with my newest boy.

Like I wrote on my post above ^^^ Naga had a bit of a critical moment last night. He was laying on the bottom of the tank, motionless :-( For some reason nitrite reads 0.25 in his four-day old, 0.75 critter keeper (ammonia zero!). I scooped him out, put him in an AQ bath and did a 100% wc to get rid of the nitrite. And then I cupped him in his AQ bath water and floated the cup on the tank overnight. Thank the good heavens he pulled through. This morning I released him back to the tank. I see him swimming a little more, but he still hangs on the surface gulping for air every so often. I don't know what to do at this point. I don't want to just wait and see anymore :-(

See, what I thought was a fake ovipositor yesterday came out to be a white stringy poo. I think it's the Epsom and daphnia at work because he totally didn't have that when he first came in. It took a while for the hair-thin poo to fall off and when it finally did, it turned yellow. I'm suspecting internal parasites, but then I read on the internet world that it's only common when a fish also has external parasites like velvet or ich. Naga doesn't have either, nor does he show signs of those. And then I read again, and found that sometimes white stringy poo can also indicate constipation. But to match this diagnosis the fish would have to be bloated, which Naga is not. And then somebody else suggested bacterial infection, but I doubt it really. Even if it is, white stringy poo should be the least popular symptom. What do I do now?  

I'm planning a call to the LFS once they open. But then again, say this requires me to get ParaGuard or General Cure or whatever, they don't do deliveries (unless maybe if I beg for it). Reaching that place = $14 taxi money. That is, _if_ they can figure out what's up with him. I sure hope they - or somebody, _any_body - can =\ 

For now, since the Epsom did help him pass that poo, I did another 3/4 tsp. It's brine shrimps for dinner tonight so hopefully that should help say he has constipation. I'm crossing my fingers he only has constipation. Here's Naga today:

A little less clamped



Here he is swimming normally (this lasts about ten seconds before he goes back to the pose above ^^ )



And here he is on close-up



In another news, it's bath day again today. Merah is actually getting so active it's a bit hard to snap pics of him now. His tail looks funny. It's so full of regrowth tissue it looks like a duck's foot with all those webbing in between the toes. Fiery is s-l-o-w-l-y getting better. He's still not zooming around the tank like Merah, but at least he's mobile. I still keep his water line low. After daphnia last night I found what I believe to be his poop on the tank floor today. It's charcoal black and the size of a grain of rice :| nasty stuff. Whatever it is though it looks like there's still more inside him, as he still has minor difficulties swimming. Don't worry though. Like I said, it's brine shrimps on the menu tonight. Fiery went on another MB-AQ bath today, right after Merah gets out. He's always so shocked after the bath :-? But luckily perks back up rather quickly. I sure hope he'd be a completely different fish this time next week. That's how long Merah took to come out of his shell and finally let his personality shine. 

I'll add more pics of Merah and Fiery later. For now, enjoy some Volga:


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## feistygirl

BettaStarter24 said:


> I have a blind betta right now. He's in a 2.5g tank with plants. I'd recommend putting food in the same spot every single time you feed a blind betta like Naga, or my boy Braveheart. Generally pick a place they like to hang out by, it'll be easier for them to find it. You can have substrate in the tank, I'd go lighter plants, but not bare. Less for them to run into. And once they're in their forever tank and acclimated to where things are, I personally wouldn't change things, or add much because of the risk of them hurting themselves on anything new that they can't see. Braveheart only has 3 silk plants in his 2.5g tank and thats it. He's used to it now so i won't add anything to his tank.


Thanks BettaStarter! 

What size tank & special need requirements are needed for a betta that has diamond eye or has recently recovered from diamond eye? Also, what is the best place to order banana leaves from?


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## Olivia27

feistygirl said:


> Thanks BettaStarter!
> 
> What size tank & special need requirements are needed for a betta that has diamond eye or has recently recovered from diamond eye? Also, what is the best place to order banana leaves from?


Once they recover from diamond eye, they're just your regular Betta and has no special needs. Except that they'd really really be just your regular Betta. They won't be dragon scale anymore.

Banana leaves... I paid a painstaking seven bucks for only one leaf before @Tealight03 donated some to me ( <3 ). All I did was Google "banana leaf for sale". I'm cancelling my order so I'd get that seven bucks back.

EDIT: Naga is a King just like Karmac so his minimum is 5 gal

EDIT 2: he's not a red butterfly either. I must be seeing things yesterday. He's either a tricolor or just multi. Harder to look when he keeps his dorsal and anal folded =\


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## Tealight03

I'd assume internal parasites with white poop. I suppose it could be bacterial, but I'd treat for parasites first. Poor Naga.


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## Olivia27

Tealight03 said:


> I'd assume internal parasites with white poop. I suppose it could be bacterial, but I'd treat for parasites first. Poor Naga.


LFS employee agrees with you (I just called)  The other possibility is blockage - instead of constipation mind ya - so I'm gonna carry on with the Epsom and daphnia/brine shrimps. 

So LFS employee suggests to not jump into medicines yet and try soaking his food in garlic. Apparently garlic has anti-parasitic properties instead of just making food more palatable. Either that, or feed him pellets that already has processed garlic in it. This, I can totally do. My Petco carries Omega One Garlic Marine Pellets and they're only 10 minutes walk away from me. And yea it's intended for saltwater fishies... but I don't suppose it would hurt, would it?


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## Tealight03

I'm not sure. Look at the ingredients. Bettas can't digest plant matter, which is why you should feed daphnia instead of peas for constipation.

Do you have garlic cloves? You could juice a clove and soak his pellets in that.


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## Olivia27

Actually, I'm more afraid this one has too many meats. Squid is one of the funky ones I don't know how I feel about. First few ingredients (before it turns into some funny chemical names I never heard of):

Whole Herring, Whole Salmon, Halibut, Black Cod, Seafood Mix (Including Krill, Rockfish, Shrimp, Squid, Clams, Salmon Eggs, and Octopus), Wheat Flour, Wheat Gluten, Fresh Kelp, Spirulina, Garlic,

Clams? Octopus? Ew ><


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## Tealight03

Yeah I wouldn't want to give them that either.


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## Olivia27

Yea I decided against it in the end =\ I'm really cutting close to budget ATM but I decided to dig into my other savings account - meant for my dog really - for the smallest bottle of Seachem Garlic Guard. Thank goodness for Amazon Student. One of the few good things about being in college LOL

Now. I did say I'm cutting close to budget, and I have already done what I promised myself to never ever do, but... ugh, you've guessed it. I have a new intake. Somebody should ban me from Petco.

Meet "New Guy" <- I ran out of lazy nicknames. Feel free to suggest one.



I have no idea what he is. He's a veil tail, that's for sure. Other than that I have zero clue. Pastel? I don't know, do think the fin colors are too dark for that. Grizzle? Ha! Yeah right. Purple? Pink? Lavender? ... Liver?? 

Well, whatever he is, this is why I brought him home



No, they're not adorable puppy dog eyes. I mean, they are, but they're also pop eye. I've started him on 1.5 tsp of ES (in a half full 2.6 gal). Within this week I should get a hold of Tetracycline, which should help even more. He also has minor fin damage, some curling, and I don't know if there's some fin melt on his vents or not but it looks funny. Either ways, I actually expect "New Guy" to recover much faster than Fiery and Naga, so... who wants to make room for a funny-colored veil tail flare monster in their home and heart?  

In another news, I decided to have some fun with Merah today by attempting tricks training. I held his brine shrimp - I offered it to him one by one - a little above the surface. He jumped up immediately. At first anyway. And then as the hunger dissipates he gets less and less interested. Meh, fishes. They're just the same with dogs LOL food-driven to the max. Here's my precious first foster:



Fiery is improving a lot. No, he's not active still. But yes, he eats like a champ and moves around so so much more. Here he is with his itty bitty bubble nest



I have no pictures of Naga from tonight... simply because he's been stealing the limelight since yesterday XD but I assure you he's doing just fine. He ate a little bit of brine shrimp and swam around a little more than yesterday. He still goes back to gulping air with all his fins clamped every now and then, but we'll take care of that soon. His Garlic Guard should get here Wednesday. I can't wait to start treatment!

EDIT: forgot to mention two things: 1) I... don't know how to juice a garlic clove. I don't have a blender. Best I could do is probably smash em all up, but I don't think that's how it works ._. 2) I do realize I mentioned that I'm getting that royal blue VT female. She wasn't there anymore. I just hope she went home with someone who knows what they're doing instead of dying there in her cup.


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## BettaStarter24

I have a lazy nickname for new guy. You could call him Popeye. Fits with his pop eye lol


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## Olivia27

BettaStarter24 said:


> I have a lazy nickname for new guy. You could call him Popeye. Fits with his pop eye lol


That's mean though XD when I first picked up Merah I was ready to just call him "boy" LOL but then there's this voice in my head that went: "no no that's mean" so Merah it is LOL

So after a long list of art technique names, it's now between "Mosaic" and "Axis". I like "Grisailles" (gris-eye) too but I don't want to explain how to pronounce his name a thousand times over. Plus, these nicknames are designed so that the adopter would feel free to change them, so there's no need to pick a complicated one really. As for "Mosaic", I think it would be really cute to call him "Mo" for short XD Lil' Mo.... Aaaww <3


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## OUOhYeah2016

"New Guy" could be called Sailor, as in Popeye the Sailor Man? lol its a reference to it without being mean.


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## Tealight03

For juicing garlic, cut a slit in it and microwave for like 30 seconds. A little juice will come out. But garlic guard is good too!

Ah the new guy is adorable. I love vts.


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## Olivia27

*bangs head on desk*. That Garlic Guard was $10! Next time I'll do that >< thanks for the tip xx as for now I think I'm gonna roll with the garlic guard after all. Takes too long to return it and get refund. Plus the only supermarket around here that sells things like garlic cloves is pretty far so I can't exactly go anytime I want. Nice to hear my microwave does the job though!

Aha, I feel bad but New Guy actually looks really adorable with pop eye XD he looks like he has those massive anime eyes. Maybe I should call him Puppy Dog after all LOL

Edit: oh gosh, why are all the name suggestions pop eye-related? We're all mean XD


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## OUOhYeah2016

lol you could call him Puppy. My friend has always wanted to get a teacup pig and name it puppy :lol:


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## Tealight03

Juicing garlic would get exhausting anyway. I kinda like Sailor for him. It's not too mean.


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## Olivia27

Hmmm okay but I'm spelling it Saylor  yaay! 

I'm back to school today so probably won't post updates. But then again all I need to do today is feed the gang. So there won't be too many interesting things to note anyway.


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## Olivia27

OK one update before I disappear until tomorrow afternoon. Let's start with:

1) Naga

I'm starting to get used to Naga's funny behavior. It's not exactly funny as in it's hilarious, but it's a little out of the box indeed. Maybe it's just because I've never had a blind pet before. There sure is a learning curve to anything, don't you think? Anyway. Naga actually has partial vision. Last night, after refusing food for so long (the brine shrimps yesterday apparently got spat out after I turned around), Naga ate Omega One like a champ. He even hunted for the pellets. At one point there's this one pellet about fifteen degrees left of his face, and he made just enough turn to grab it. At another point he swam towards me. I put a finger on the tank wall and he jolted backwards. That being said, Naga still can't function normally like my other boys. When he knows there's not much going on - like when I'm in class or asleep - he holds either his typical "gulping for air at the corner of the tank" pose or lay on the bottom of the tank. And then when I call him he'd start flapping his pectorals, wriggle a bit, and after a gentle stroke on the spine he'd swim around like normal. I don't know if this means his "looking sick" behavior is just his way of resting (can't bump his face on anything that way), but when he's on his "normal" mode - which lasts longer and longer as each day goes by - he really truly is normal. Except that he refused pellets again this morning. So, well, I don't know. I can't wait for that banana leaves to arrive.

2) Saylor

Going down the tank order here. Naga lives at the farthest end of the table, and so it's his neighbor's turn now. Saylor made a massive bubble nest this morning. The swelling hasn't gone down one bit, but then again he's only been here for so long. I suppose ES takes longer time to work with pop eye than they do with SBD. There's not much improvements in terms of fin damage on this boy either. But I'm glad to report that I don't see any _additional _damage. Since most of his damage is from tail biting, I assume this means he feels secure enough to not snack on his own fins. Saylor arrived a massive flaring monster. I'm not gonna say that's a bad thing, but he's a tad friendlier now - which is definitely a good thing. I'm looking to message my old friend about this guy. He looks like he's gonna recover the fastest, yet he's the only one without even a stand-by adopter. My friend has always loved freshwater fishes. She seem to always have room for _yet another_ 55 gal. Heck, last I heard she has a 125. But she's never had a Betta before. She's more of a loaches person herself, but we'll see if I can convert her to the dark side. Who can say "no" to those puppy dog eyes anyway?

3) Fiery

It makes me smile to see how this boy improves more and more each day. His SBD, as far as I can see anyway, has completely cleared up. He has been pooping normally for two days now, and as a result he also swims normally and eats normally. He's free of the crustaceans diet and got introduced to dry pellets. Not that frozen food < dry food, but you get the idea. Unfortunately he's still timid, but I'm sure he'll improve on that area as well. Today is Fiery's third MB-AQ bath. The move shocked him a little less this morning, so I hope he'd get easier and easier to move in the future. Because right now his nickname is Little PINTA.

4) Merah

I almost believe this boy shouldn't even be here anymore. He's active, friendly, social, eats like a pig and is just so, so sweet. The "clear" regrowth tissue on his tail has started to turn red, blending with the rest of the webbing. I have lost count how many times he's gone for MB-AQ bath now. I'm starting to wonder if he's gonna need it constantly until his tail returns 100%, or if the tail can grow back on its own as time goes by without being aided by the MB. Regrowth will definitely take time. At this level of severity, it might even take more time than I can provide. But from the recovery point of view, Merah is almost 100% if not there already.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Good to know everyone's doing at least somewhat better!


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## Olivia27

Spoke too soon. Naga isn't showing obvious improvement since the last time I noted that he swam around a little more. He's back to not eating too, but tonight I'm gonna try him on Garlic Guard so we'll see if it changes. Out of all four boys he's the only one stuck on rock bottom. It's frustrating. 

About his blindness, there's no visible scaling over his eyes. So the idea that he's not actually blind was raised. Perhaps he's just so stressed, he acted blind. Who knows? It's not like I can ask him. The answers to my question thread also noted cloudiness over his eye. Cloudy eye, I heard, goes away on its own with clean water. Either ways, this is Naga's fourth day here and he still gasps for air on the surface. I don't know what to think. He's certainly not bloated. But I'm still gonna carry on with the Garlic Guard anyway. I've stopped the ES doses. Instead, he gets a fifth to a quarter tsp of AQ directly in the tank since yesterday. I don't know if I mentioned this already but I double-dose on Prime, too. I also try to give him daily water change instead of every other day, but then I realize that's probably making things worse. Not much else I can do. 

His banana leaves are coming in two days. I know the possibility of him having diamond eye has been reduced after I read the responses on my question thread, but I'll see if it helps anyway. Along with the banana leaves are Tetracycline, which I can't wait to get a hold of since Saylor's eyes are still swollen. It doesn't seem to bother him one bit, though. I wonder if fish with pop eye act any differently.

In another news Fiery has been officially adopted. Naga's adoption status is still in some sort of a limbo state, but he'd have somewhere to go either ways. I "advertised" Saylor on my Facebook aquarium group, but I doubt I'd get any hits TBH since most people there don't really care for Bettas. So, again, as I wrote on my Marketplace thread, don't be shy to spread the word. I really don't have a lot of places to go when it comes down to "advertising" my boys, so please do help me. I trust you guys, so I trust the people you recommend too! 

Speaking of the boys, there's been a bubble nest contest over here. Merah made his first one this morning. Saylor has been maintaining his since yesterday. Fiery has yet to join the game, but then again he still got a lot of recovering to do. Volga hasn't built any either. Not that bubble nests indicate contentment or good health, but it's still fun to watch  that's all from me now. I started my day at 6:30 AM yesterday and went to sleep at 2 AM after my night shift. So now that I'm done textbook-shopping - as much as I prefer to lurk on the forum - I really need to get some beauty sleep. Have a great day folks.


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## themamaj

Just read your journal. Thank you for all you do for the fish and the future adoptive homes. I have seen and treated so many similar situations. As you mentioned there is a lot of time, money and concern over each of these. I have a very similar soft heart and desire to help and heal when find one in dire need. Most of mine have become my own, but I do place fish from time to time. When I can, it opens a spot for another. I am happy to hear about fish getting a second chance at a healthy life but most important finding a permanent home where it can be loved and cared about for a long happy life. Look forward to reading more. Also would like to hear how you do your salt baths. I do a lot of blue baths but haven't tried the other. Always great to learn more things to help.


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## StellaBetta

Im so happy to hear that you feel Merah is almost fully healed up! With the new tank arriving this weekend it works great. I will be starting a cycle as soon as I open the tank with some pure ammonia and bottled bacteria and Im gonna take the gravel from Kratos tank to seed in the new tank and use the filter media from Stellas filter on the new tank as well so it should cycle very quickly and in just enough time for whenever he does arrive  so far new names are a toss up my boyfriend has suggested Monty or Python from his love of that whole movie and play franchise and my mom has suggested Chompy Kibble and Tidbit cause she thinks its rather funny to have his name match his loss of his tail poor guy


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## themamaj

StellaBetta said:


> Im so happy to hear that you feel Merah is almost fully healed up! With the new tank arriving this weekend it works great. I will be starting a cycle as soon as I open the tank with some pure ammonia and bottled bacteria and Im gonna take the gravel from Kratos tank to seed in the new tank and use the filter media from Stellas filter on the new tank as well so it should cycle very quickly and in just enough time for whenever he does arrive  so far new names are a toss up my boyfriend has suggested Monty or Python from his love of that whole movie and play franchise and my mom has suggested Chompy Kibble and Tidbit cause she thinks its rather funny to have his name match his loss of his tail poor guy



Monty is a cute name. So glad you are getting him. What a great fish!!


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## Olivia27

I like Monty too! I think it sounds adorable  and yeah, if I find out that Merah's fins can grow back without further assistance from medicines he's all good to go. Whatever lethargic behavior he had at first is completely gone now, and he's starting to gain weight too  now only if Fiery can hurry up and follow his steps that'll be awesome.

@themamaj, thank you for your kind words  I sometimes wish I could trade my bleeding heart with a more rational head. This whole project has completely destroyed my personal shopping list LOL when's the last time I bought something for myself? August? XD 

Aaanyway. 

I decided to send Saylor off. He found an adopter all the way in sunny Florida. I know I said he has pop eye, but the more I look at him the more I doubt it. Are his eye sockets swollen looking? Yep. Do they look different than all the other boys' eyes? Yep. But is there a cloudy layer on top? Nope. Is he acting lethargic or anything else that indicates poor health? Definitely definitely not. I think it's funny to assume a fish that flares like an Angry Bird, eats like a pig and swims around like a shark to be ridden with bacterial infection. He definitely won't be this active if he's sick, no? And there's little other cause to pop eye beside bad bacteria. Can a fish have pop eye but not be bothered by it at all? ._. Perhaps Saylor's eyes are just funny like that. The way Volga's lips are pushed upwards, resembling a duck's bill. I'll attach some pics for you guys to decide. I'm leaning towards "that's just how he is" though.

In another news Naga's banana leaves have arrived. Both the one donated by @Tealight03 and the one I paid for .___. Because apparently you can't cancel orders. *siiigh*. Oh well. Anyway. Naga still doesn't want to eat. I put brine shrimps right in front of his face and he brushed past it. I put his tank under the table now. Perhaps more darkness helps. I'm crossing my fingers and toes the banana leaves work. Because at this point I really don't know anymore what to do with Naga. The notion that he has internal parasites was later doubted by an expert. And I must agree, he doesn't have the physical signs for it. No bloating, for example. So yeah. Can anyone speak fish?


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## Olivia27

Excuse the lack of pictures of all the other boys. The spotlight's on Saylor tonight as he just got adopted and is leaving soon. Here he is. His eyes are funny, that's for sure. But do you think they're actually pop eye?





One from top view


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## Tealight03

Glad everything arrived. Hope they help! I had a fish who was pooping white stringy poop. He wasn't bloated. I treated with Prazipro and it cleared up. Maybe he has them but just isn't bloated? 

Wow Saylor's eyes are big. I'm not sure about the bacteria. I mean he was probably in terrible conditions at the store so he could possibly have it but is doing better being in better conditions. His eye sockets look red in places. Is that natural coloring or inflammation? I wish fish could talk.


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## Olivia27

Yup they arrived today  Thanks for sharing your experience. I think I'm leaning more and more towards the medicine way right now. Dark, warm, clean water with a tinge of AQ is not taking him anywhere. I'll see what Kanaplex can do. EDIT: or not!! OMG I can't believe I got it mixed up. Kanaplex is not for parasites! ><

And Saylor's eyes. Odd, aren't they? ._. It's either abnormal or just unique. Oh and if you're talking about the splotches of red, that's just his color. For some reason his red is scattered like knife cuts. I thought they were injuries at first but after a closer look they're just color. Odd fish. 

Another news: looks like Saylor isn't going anywhere after all. The adopter just checked with her landlord and apparently another fish is a no go  He still has a stand-by, but if he's going to his stand-by adopter's place then he's gonna wait a couple months as the tank slowly cycles and gets set up. Oh well, no matter. I do enjoy having four pairs of googly eyes watching me as I study on my desk XD


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## themamaj

I'm sorry things didn't work out for Saylor. I don't think that is popeye. I have limited experience treating it, but the one I had and others I have seen the clear covering over the eye itself was significantly bubbled out. One I saw looked like the eye even had damage. In Saylor's case, it looks like larger than normal pupils and how his eyes are set, but again just my opinion. I am still learning as well. One of my females has eyes that are set out more like that. I think Saylor's are really unique. I wonder if the reds will come out more in him as he matures. Definitely a fun boy to watch develop. 

By the way, if there is something you need like leaves, or specific meds, etc for fish send me a pm. Sometimes I get extras of supplies so happy to share if have it.


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## Olivia27

Thanks for voting "no pop eye"! Yay!  I'm gonna stop his ES doses then. So now all he needs to recover from is damage from tail biting. But I can't do that in his current bare, boring 2.6 =\ he'd surely bite again in no time if left here for too long. I feel bad  

And since you offered, do you have any extra Prazipro or Seachem MetroPlex? <3 they're not very popular. My LFS don't carry them


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## themamaj

Actually yes I do have a bottle of PraziPro. Be happy to send it if you want to pm me your snail mail address.


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## Tealight03

Yay Saylor! Very interesting about his eyes. He is one unique guy!


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## BettaStarter24

That's not popeye. I have a fish with pop eye currently and it looks way different. Braveheart's eye literally looks like it could burst at any second.


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## Olivia27

Thanks for the opinion. Learning curve, huh?

I feel bad saying this but Saylor needs to go. He has very little reasons to be hospitalized now. I hate seeing him in my bare hospital tank when he could be so much happier in somebody else's fully setup tank. So here's a shoutout: YO PEOPLE! Do you have space for an odd-colored veil tail boy with puppy dog eyes?? 

In another news, Naga started his Prazipro treatment. Thank goodness they're only $4.99/bottle! I also got an adjustable heater for my 2.6 - which is currently Saylor's room. It's a Marina, but let's not judge and see how it works. Unfortunately - and this is odd - the Cobalt Mini Therm I got last week quits. It can't heat up above 74, and so I had to return it. During my trip to return said heater, which was in Naga's tank, I had to find a tank I can float Naga's cup in. Saylor is a no go. Volga... Maybe, but I'd rather not try. Seren is out of the question. So I tried Merah. He was super accepting of Fiery's cup last time, but I suppose now that he's healthier and more confident, the typical aggression kicks in. He circled around normally at first, but then the beard comes out. For the first time ever. Aw, Merah.

So Fiery it is. He's still shy enough, I suppose. Plus he may or may not remember being equally hapless back then. Naga is not doing too good  he used the banana leaves as a hammock and laid there all night, all day long. He's been refusing food for 5 days now. Fingers crossed the Prazipro helps.


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## Olivia27

*Gallery*

When's the last time I did a gallery? Here are the boys:

Saylor, showing very little fin curling now





Naga, my sweet little headache. Those banana leaves sank yesterday but luckily today they (somehow) float again so he can use it as a hammock. Today is his second day on Prazipro treatment. I can't measure 1/20 tsp, so I give him one drop.



Merah, getting more and more shiny as each day goes by 





Fiery in his MB-AQ bath. This boy is getting more and more active. I don't think he'd still be here about two weeks from now TBH.


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## themamaj

Looking great. Saylor is working those puppy eyes! Color coming in nicely. Love Merah's colors.I saw a potential rescue yesterday Im thinking on. He reminds me a lot of Merah with maybe more potential red hues. Which are still looking for homes?


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## OUOhYeah2016

Everyone's looking a lot better! I'm sure they're more than ready to be headed off to their forever homes when they finish healing up


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## Olivia27

Just Saylor  Merah was adopted the first night he arrived. Fiery is going to Montana (wooo!) and Naga has a stand-by in Texas. I'm inclined to think he's gonna end up with his stand-by ATM but right now his health issue is more important. Little Saylor needs to work harder to draw more attention me thinks!

And yeah, isn't it odd how most of the "sick" ones look similar?  he wasn't there anymore when I go back but there's this really beat up red boy I was seriously considering to bring home. The cup says he's a Dragon but upon further inspection he just have a lot of iridescent that makes his scales appear protruded. Oh and there's also a double tail with a very visible injury on his body - who is also gone when I checked back yesterday. It's never ending =\


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## themamaj

I agree. I probably saw at least 3 in serious need yesterday and a number of others that were ok for now but you could tell if not adopted soon they would decline already being significantly clamped with compromised water. It is a hard choice to pick who is in greatest need. I always feel like letting others down when have to walk away but hope someone will see the potential for a great fish as I do.


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## themamaj

Another encouragement for potential adopters: as one who has rescued and adopted a number of fish, I will tell you some of the ones that have had the most struggles initially or looked pretty ragged at first have turned into my most beautiful fish with the best personality. Maybe having to work with them one on one for treatment gives them opportunity to become more social. I think they also appreciate what you have brought them through. Saylor is going to make a very special new friend for someone. I sure hope he gets a home soon. Beautiful lavender coming out.


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## Olivia27

Thank you @themamaj  and I literally *just* saw that you had an extra Prazipro bottle. Now I looked like I ignored you! D: thanks a lot for your offer, really. I checked my LFS again when returning the Cobalt heater and they were like "actually, we DO have Prazipro!" so things work out. I'm just hoping it helps...


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## themamaj

No problem. Glad you got some. Feel free to pm me anytime. Hope Naga feels better soon.


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## StellaBetta

Everytime I see updated pictures of Merah/Monty he looks more and more gorgeous  He is looking like a new fish I'm so glad someone like you saw potential in him. Just a quick question about his treatment..I dont currently have any MB and there is none in any stores near me. Would he still have to get MB baths when he is shipped do you think? Right now I have stress coat and IAL but its only a really small amount so I have to pick more up when they go on sale at my LFS. I just want to know ahead of time if I would have to get some MB


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## Olivia27

I really don't believe so. MB is technically an antiseptic. Once the rot is completely gone I doubt it would do much. The fish don't have to be sick for the owner to drop an IAL though. No bad things can come outta it.

So we've decided on "Monty" then? I gotta stop calling him Merah at some point XD


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## StellaBetta

Haha yup Monty it is! I kinda figured I wouldnt need the MB I just wanted to be sure since I've never had to treat any fin rot issues or even use MB


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## themamaj

Any new pictures of the boys today?


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## Olivia27

*Gallery - OMG*

Eeeek I almost forgot!! O_O it's been a crazy long day. I went home at about 2:30 AM from work, and then decided to do maintenance instead of going to bed because I know I won't be willing to leave my blanket once in it. So after three 100% wc, one 50% for the 2.6 tank, two MB-AQ baths, temperature check and feeding, I finally fell asleep at 4 AM. I woke up sporadically during the day - which is probably evident from my random comments here and there in the forum, but *now* is the only time when I'm actually wide awake ._. Anyway. Enough about me. Let's meet the boys! Yay!

Let's start with Fiery. Fiery is so red, his eyes are red too!



"I don't like photos..."



And the other red boy; "Merah". Now officially Monty  



The light blue irid is spreading to the base of his anal too



Now, this is exciting. "Saylor" has j-u-s-t been adopted and officially renamed. So, meet Kirov!



Blowing more bubbles...



That caudal still got some healing to do. 



And finally, Naga. I cupped him so he'd get easier access to the surface. The banana leaves sank again. This is his... uh, fourth or fifth day on Prazipro treatment. He's still getting nowhere. I don't know if I should switch to MetroPlex (treats more parasites) or start treating for bacterial infection. In fact, I don't know what to do at all at this point TBH. He's no longer clamped. I never see him clamped anymore. But he's laying diagonally on the cup, tail flat on the bottom and head up to gulp air. Progress? Regress? _Edit: Ha I sound stupid. Naga isn't actually clamped in this pic. He has his fins all spread out, just doesn't seem so because he's not swimming. Notice how the dorsal isn't rolled up like a newspaper_


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## themamaj

Haha Fiery cracked me up. It is that camera again out to get me...head for the woods. Too cute! Monty looks great. Has he taken up coffee drinking??? I can tell his colors are coming in more on fins. He will definitely be a beauty. Oh and Kirov  Those expressive eyes remind me of little googly eyes we use with our preschoolers. I bet his fins will heal right up. Some pictures he looks red and some pink/lavender. What color do you think he will be? Looks like he is doing really well blowing his bubbles. Always a good sign. Naga, poor guy, I wonder what is up with him. I would think you would be seeing some improvement with the prazipro by now. Boy sometimes I wish these guys could talk and tell us what is wrong. I had one rescue, Caleb, that was one of those hard cases and so frustrating trying everything I knew to try. Have you seen any visible poop from Naga? Belly swollen? Does sound much better that fins are no longer clamped. How is he eating? I wonder if adding some additional hides to hospital tank might help him feel more secure. You sound like you have crazy schedule. What do you do? Great pictures!!! I love seeing how everyone is doing. You do a great job with them.


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## Olivia27

Technically, Kirov is not anything. He doesn't fit into any color group. But in real life, he looks like a very dark pink. Almost salmon, but not as pale. He also has these funny splotches of "super red" color that would easily make anyone believe he has injuries or inflamed body parts. He really is one unique fish, that's for sure.

Naga only pooped out that white stringy poop once, when he was still on ES. Now that he doesn't eat anything, he doesn't poop out anything either  I'm gonna give my LFS another call tomorrow or so. Depending on schedule. I'm your regular college student, working at a cafeteria that stays open until midnight. Last night we were heavily understaffed, and so all the cleaning took way longer than ever. Usually I'm already home by 1:30 AM (not that it's any better). Tuesday I'm scheduled for another closing shift, so I really can't promise to do much with the tanks except for standard maintenance. Wednesday is my shortest day though. If there's no project due I can spend all day researching and making calls. I really do want Naga to pull through. He's *gorgeous*, and I know he'd be a wonderful companion if all healed up.

EDIT: and I sure hope I've been pronouncing "Kirov" right XD I took the time to ask my ex - an Eastern European - and apparently it's very close to how my Asian tongue would say it. Kee-RRRov, is it? With that hard "RRR".


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## xStatic

It's nice to see an update of Fiery! Glad he's healing up well for you  I was going to ask what food you are feeding him so I can be prepared with the same thing here. 

I normally feed Omega One and supplement with frozen bloodworms as treats. Gotta make sure I'm ready to fatten him up!


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## Olivia27

I rotate between Omega One, NLS, brine shrimps and blood worms. Tonight should be brine shrimps day again. I thawed too many blood worms last time so it should be a while before it's blood worms day again. I started Fiery on daphnia at first though.


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## Olivia27

*Gallery*

Decided to snap some shots before I leave for my last class of the day

Monty, under the shadows. The sunlight shows how bent those caudal rays are. I'm sure it won't affect him but I also wonder if it can ever be straightened.



He loves the camera :lol:



Oh, Naga, what do I do with you? :-( he's still on Prazipro



Kirov, tending another bubble nest (behind him)





Fiery has a hilarious guilty face 



Fin healing is not yet obvious unfortunately


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## OUOhYeah2016

Poor Naga... I wish it was easier to know what's going on with our finned friends. :| I hope he pulls through. You're doing the best you can. Without you he probably wouldn't have made it out of the store.


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## Olivia27

Update!

I was just about to dump out Naga's cup water, which is where he gets his 30-minute daily Prazipro bath. I found these long, clear, stringy things. The pic shows one, but there are many in the cup! Can I say he definitely has parasites then??


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## Tealight03

I would say so. Could they be worms? I'm sure you could tell if he had worms on him. I still vote parasites but you never know.


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## Olivia27

Actually, how do I know if a fish has worms in them? If they're worms though they're definitely dead. No movements at all. At the same time, if they're worms, that's one hell of a worm colony in such a small fish O_O


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## themamaj

Looks like parasites. Might need another round Prazipro or you could do other med. Good sign if passing them. Better out than in  Yes way pronouncing is correct. Love pictures


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## BettaStarter24

I've had luck with API General Cure and Epsom salt to help with Parasites. my Chihiro had parasites when I got her, took two treatments but it's cleared up now (I hope/think sometimes she likes to freak me out)


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## Tealight03

I think with worms you'll see them on the fish or in the tank. I'm not entirely sure. Whatever it is, it's dead. And like mamaj said, better out then in.


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## themamaj

What are you majoring in? Though, it may or may not be nice to work late, it is nice for students that they have an option to get to a cafeteria late. I was always studying very late and then of course you get hungry.


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## themamaj

Monty's rays may straighten as he gets some more bulk to the caudal. The weight of the fin will help, but even if he develops a slight kink, it wont prevent the fin from growing out and still being beautiful. My Chance had significant fin damage and he has a small kink. I am really amazed he doesn't have more lasting damage considering what came from but he has turned out to have more beautiful fins than I could imagine. The hardest thing is just being patient while they grow out. Taking pictures helps document progress even when it seems so slow. You can go back and look and think wow ok we are really moving forward. I have also heard that feeding shrimp will help with fin development so a good thing to mix into diet.


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## Olivia27

Thanks for all the support through this crazy journey, people. Your comments, advice, donations and adoption requests are all above and beyond what I expected from a community I just joined less than two months ago. Unfortunately the battle ends here. I came home from class this evening to Naga out of his cup, at the bottom of his tank. His spine was curved inwards, and he was not moving. He has fought with every inch of him through all these ordeal, but the illness won anyway. I'm sorry I couldn't save him. I'm on my way to my LFS now, with his frozen body and a water sample from the hospital tank. They promised me they can do necropsy. It's awful to think about, but I must know what killed this beauty. For now his tank will be disinfected and dried out to hopefully get rid of all the nasty stuff that may or may not be in there. Thanks again for all your support. I will get in touch with his stand-by later. Swim in peace, Naga.


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## BettaStarter24

SIP little Naga. Sorry to hear about his passing. He's not suffering anymore. 

Spraying the tank with a 50/50 dilution of vinegar to water and soaking it for 20 min, then rinsing really well should do the trick to disinfect it. Or you can spray it down and soak for 15 min with a 1:10 dilution of bleach:water then rinse really well and let dry overnight.


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## OUOhYeah2016

No! I'm so sorry Olivia! :/ Rescues/Fosters are hard to lose because we devote so much time to their care. SIP Naga. There may always be more fish to save, but each one is special in their own ways.


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## Tealight03

So sorry to hear about Naga. At least he was cared for and loved for a short time.


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## Olivia27

Thanks folks. Unfortunately I prepared the body wrong and the store couldn't do a necropsy on him, so his COD remains a mystery. That being said, judging by the white stringy things I found this morning, I like to assume internal parasites. The store manager refused that hypothesis though. He told me my water change schedule is what killed Naga. Because apparently even dechlorinated water is lethal if not aged for 24 hours beforehand. Also, 100% wc is stressful, so he proposed that Naga died of both stress and poisonous gas contained in the tap water. Is it true? Is it not? I'm too tired to argue. All I know is I have never heard of dechlorinated water murdering a fish. I always acclimated Naga after a water change too, which may or may not help. In the end though I still got full refund on store credit. I used half of it for Seachem Flourish Glue, the rest I let accumulate for emergencies. I'm not a happy camper. I know that store manager must first try to be a businessman and protect the store name more or less, but hearing that I killed Naga is hard to swallow.

I asked my Uber driver to drop me off in front of the grocery store after the LFS visit. I need vinegar to disinfect the tank. Right across the street from the grocery store is... Welp, you've guessed it; Petco. I went there early today to take pics under the request of a member here, so naturally I did my usual "is there anyone that needs help?" round at the same time. I came home with a marble CT girl. Her nickname is Maiden.

Not sure what's up with her yet. She also may or may not have a home already with Naga's stand-by, following a conversation we had much earlier in the week. For now she's still in her Petco cup, floating in Naga's old tank with 80F water. The tank is not yet disinfected unfortunately so she can't go in until tomorrow morning. Pictures should go up tomorrow evening. Thanks again for all your support, folks.


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## Tealight03

I know how hard it is to be told something like that. I got into an argument with someone about my tap water. It had .25 ammonia and this person was telling me Prime wouldn't fix the problem, live plants don't matter and I need spring water. Not something you should say when someone is genuinely trying their best for their fish. 

I doubt water changes killed Naga. I change my baby's tank daily. She doesn't seem stressed. I also don't age water. I have heard you should but I've also heard mixing the conditioner properly should suffice. Now I'm using RO water with Replenish and a little Prime added. 

Naga was ill when you got him. There was something going on, otherwise that white stringy stuff wouldn't have been there. 

Looking forward to pics of the new girl!


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## OUOhYeah2016

Nothing about this was your fault. I know it hurts to hear someone tell you that you're at fault, but if that were the case I think a good number of us here on the forum would be fishless, or at the least wouldn't have fish that live for years longer than those who have owners who listen to people at pet stores. 

I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say that we look forward to your updates. Despite this set back, you're doing a good thing, don't forget that.


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## Dalloway

Been reading through some of your journal and just wanted to say I'm sorry about Naga. 
As for it being your fault, I very highly doubt that poisonous gas in the tap killed him unless she means gbd:
http://www.ultimatereef.com/articles/bubble/

In which case it's still very unlikely and highly improbable if he didn't show physical bubble growth which it doesn't seem was a symptom?? In any case, gbd is actually quite rare as far as I'm aware, especially if you take out the tap water warm to being with. 

Also while 100% water changes can be stressful, in the case of a fish being medicated they do more good than harm in my opinion. You're doing something wonderful for these fish. Very few people would take on the same degree of responsibility you have accepted and follow through with it relentlessly. I hope you fully realize that and don't let the opinion of someone closed-minded affect you.


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## themamaj

I am so sorry to hear! Swim in peace sweet Naga. You fought the good fight and many people cared for you and wished your recovery. I hope results of tests will bring some answers that will help all of us learn how to help in treat in the future. Thank you for all you did for him.


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## themamaj

I just read about the pet store comments. Oh they are full of bologna! I can't imagine they are aging their water for water changes or if some crazy reason they are maybe that is why fish look like they have sat in dirty water for a week. RRRR makes me mad to hear. You are awesome! There is nothing you did wrong. You have given fish a chance at a new start and a great life and not many people would take the time and care you have for each one. I so relate to your passion for these guys. I definitely felt that way when I lost Caleb-also to parasites. He was very sick from beginning too so I knew uphill battle, but I did all I could. I learned about doing things I hadn't tried before and he knew the love of a home while in my care. I have thought of it this way in that even though it is a loss, Naga has opened the door for you to help another and bless her an opportunity at a great life. Keep up the good work. Can't wait to see new pictures. And I can't keep a secret any more...I will be the very proud mama to Kirov on Friday  !!!


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## feistygirl

Oh, Olivia! I'm so very sorry to hear about dear Naga!! May he swim in peace. Please don't think that you killed him. You know that isn't true, and that you did everything you could to help him. You are doing a wonderful thing, and an excellent job at it.

Looking forward to seeing pictures of your new foster, Maiden.


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## Olivia27

Thanks people <3 Maiden is one of those "could be anything" cases. She's so clamped I almost bargained for mislabeling (thought she's a VT). But then she s-l-o-w-l-y spread her caudal and.... Tadaaa a crown tail! She's also pretty unresponsive, so... Again, could be anything. Right now her treatment plan is dark tank and 80F water. 

Thanks again people x


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## themamaj

Just got a shipping conformation notice! Yeah! !! Safe travels Kirov. I'll send you a note as soon as he arrives.


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## Olivia27

Please do! I'm always so nervous at times like this >< 

So, Photobucket is down for the day. I can attach the pics one by one, technically, but then they will all crumple up at the bottom of the page =\ so let's just put up pics of Maiden for now. She's going to Naga's stand-by in Texas 

Maiden is still apprehensive, but it looks like the warm water has helped some. These pictures are taken this morning. She's no longer clamped, which is great, but you can also clearly see the untouched, sunken pellet. Oh well. I'll try her again with frozen food tomorrow morning.


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## Tealight03

She's a pretty little thing.


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## themamaj

What a cutie pie! I wouldn't be too concerned not eating pellets yet. Some have to settle in a bit before they will eat.


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## Olivia27

Occupying the VIP room is my over-the-weekend guest. A member on here is searching for the perfect male for her breeding project, and so this boy was picked. I have started aquascaping for Willow's arrival, so this lucky unnamed HMEE gets to test-drive it before the actual tenant moved in  I don't know if every plant labeled "large" in Petco is actually two plants in one tube, but that's what happens with these Coffeefolia. I paid for one and got two! Yay!


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## Olivia27

Well that's a terrible photo =\ let's try this


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## themamaj

Look at those great fins. Wow! Would love to see fry from him.


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## StellaBetta

Wow I'm so sorry to hear about Naga :/ it sucks when fish like that die of unknown causes it seems like it just eats away at you. Especially when someone tells you its your fault but I can guarantee it was not your fault you put everything you can into taking care of these fish sometimes they are just too far gone by the time we get to them. SIP Naga

On another note the new girl looks really pretty. Ive always been interested in marbles because you never know what color they will be. Its like a nice little surprise. She is definitely going to make someone happy. Also that EE is gorgeous! He is going to make some very cute fry


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## OUOhYeah2016

They're both gorgeous! Good luck with them! People love the cute ones lol I'd want Maiden if I wasn't at capacity for the foreseeable future.


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## feistygirl

Thanks for posting pictures of Maiden!! Oh, she's so very beautiful and lovely!! Eeeepppp!!! <3 <3 <3


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## Olivia27

*How *is Photobucket still down?? GRRR D:<

Gotta settle with picture-less updates then =\ here goes:

Monty: I have started transitioning Monty out of his every-other-day MB bath schedule. Since Fiery is still in the same schedule, I just bathe him every second time Fiery goes for a bath. Does that make sense? Probably not. Either ways, he's getting less baths. Monty also eats like a pig. Like, seriously, this boy is competing with Seren. I'm surprised he's not all plump and round yet! His tail growth is becoming less and less noticeable from this point on. All I know is he actually has a tail now. The rays are super funky, and the new webbing look like my work clothes at the end of a night shift. But hey ho, looks like people say they're gonna get better as time goes by. Plus, what matters most is the fact that I no longer see the fearful, stressed-out fish I brought home twenty days ago. 

AHA! Photobucket decided that the error message it kept sending me was just a cruel joke. So, without further ado, Mr. Monty:



Fiery: Mr. I'm Too Lazy To Hunt For Food. Ugh. Fiery is, technically, easy to feed. He loves to eat, and darts upwards whenever the tank lid is removed. But then, say the food sank, he won't bother diving for it. "Meh, why swim down? Mom would probably pick it up for me anyway", he says. And he is right. Once, on NLS day, the pellet landed on the top part of the flat heater. That's literally an inch away from the surface. Fiery went after it at first, but then you can see the gears turning in his head and he made a U-turn back to the surface. "Whoops, missed that one. Whatever. Where's the next one?". Gaaaah ><

He still could get away with murder with that face though <3 




Maiden: this sweet, dainty little miss is shy and apprehensive still. Looks like whatever symptoms she had has cleared up. She took a very long time to approach food - probably because she's never seen frozen food before - but has gobbled up brine shrimps like a champ tonight. On a second thought, pellets may be too big for her mouth anyway. She takes her time with Omega One too, so NLS (unless crushed) is probably not a good idea for now. I... don't have any extra pics for Maiden just yet ._. the ones of the red boys are taken yesterday. I'm a bit busy with school work tonight but I should have time on the weekends.

King: nope, not as in a King Betta. My over-the-weekend guest, the multi HMEE boy, has now been named King. He's a feisty, curious little thing. Too bad he had to live in that pet store cup, really. He deserves so much better. Since he's occupying "the VIP room", King gets two fully grown Coffeefolia as tank mates. He took his time investigating every little detail of "these green alien stuff", decided to fight the roots, and finally accepted that the broad leaves make a great bed. He took forever to finish his food - and he's not even on frozen food tonight. I had him on Omega One, and he stared at the pellets as if they're made of gold. Then he took the plunge to chew on one, aaand he's hooked. Welcome to the good life, King. Better get used to that!


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## themamaj

They each look great! Fiery is too funny. Love that personality...oops there went a pellet wait wait here comes another didn't have to move after all 

Just got the news Kirov is in town!!! He is just 20 min away at post office. Hopefully they will be up and at it and get him here early tomorrow. Can't wait! Sleep tight buddy. You're almost home.


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## BettaStarter24

Glad to hear Kirov is almost home! Waiting on news of Severus. Last I heard he left CA last night. Nothing since then and it's driving me insane. 

Maiden is absolutely adorable Seren!


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## Olivia27

What sort of mail is Severus in? If it's not Priority Express, there's a possibility of the item being delayed ._. which is why I'm freaking out to no end each time a foster goes out the door. But it seems like they did a great job with Kirov. 2-Day Priority and he's already in the destination post office. That's rare! 

And LOL it took me a while to figure out the last sentence XD I was thinking like "but Maiden and Seren are two different fish?" XD I need a username change.


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## BettaStarter24

He's in USPS 2 day Priority.

lol Seren is pretty as well.


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## themamaj

He's here! !! Doing great. Post more on journal later. Thanks so much Olivia! I love him!


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## OUOhYeah2016

I love seeing everyone happily receiving their new friends!


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## Olivia27

Yaaay for safe delivery! Gee gosh that little fearless dude. Didn't even pale up one bit, did he!

I got pics from today say Photobucket chose to cooperate. I'll put them up soon 

Also: a shoutout for @OUOHyeah's foster boys: Alan and Nick! They're both unusual colors (dalmatian and pineapple), with a personality to match. Do consider them if you have an open space


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## OUOhYeah2016

Haha thanks Olivia!


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## Olivia27

Whoop whoop! Photobucket decided it's a great day to cooperate. Took five times longer to upload than usual, but we got there in the end. So here we go:

Maiden

"You called?"



"Oh, photos? No, no, no thank you..."



Sparkly Monty:





Two bad photos of Fiery





King in his tank this morning, before the rest of my plants order arrived:



After all the aquascaping ordeal (this tank is only 80% done)



Now for my own gang! A close-up photo of Miss Hyperactive. She just got a bunch of green rotala today  



And Volga - who really should have been named Waldo. If "Where's Waldo?" is an Olympics sport I would win a gold medal because of this boy. 





See how well he blends into the environment? Sometimes it takes me five whole minutes to find Vol ._. Keep in mind he's in a 2.5!


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## StellaBetta

O wow Monty is so sparkly! I never noticed how iridescent he was before but its really coming out now it looks so pretty and I love seeing the progress his tail growth has made he really is such a nice fish I keep thinking that every time I see more and more pictures of him and hearing that hes a little piggy just makes him fit even more at home with all the rest of the family. Kratos eats like theres no tomorrow I swear that little boy would be obese if I let him eat as much as he wanted and Stella isnt far behind except she definitely has a belly pouch and even my little ADF im learning loves to eat tons too as soon as I finish giving him his bloodworms or brine shrimp and walk away he starts yelling (yes they do make noise and very loudly at that) at me to come back and give him more..even hes getting a little belly now too! These greedy little aquatic guys lol


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## trilobite

This journal is awesome, keep up the good work! Monty looks like hes going to be a stunner when his fins grow back


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## Olivia27

Thanks @trilobite  and @StellaBetta whenever your tank is ready, Monty can go. He's completely clear of fin rot now. The rest of the fins should fill in with quality care.

I don't have pictures for today. It's been a pretty uneventful day Bettas-wise. Nobody gets wc or gravel vac. Just now everyone had a bite of Omega One - except for Seren who always preferred NLS. Now I'm just sitting in my desk, munching on black grapes and steaming hot herbal tea, watching the fosters mind their own business. 

Monty's heater overheated up to 84 just now, so I added a cup of dechlorinated cold water. He watched intently as I finished my assigned course reading as if he wants to read too. Fiery is spacing out, like usual. He's a little daydreamer. I can't see Maiden from where I'm sitting, but she's thrilled to have an IAL in her tank. King is a little busybody. Swimming up and down exploring all "these weird green things" that kept on uprooting and floating away - driving me insane. Seren has switched beds. I found her sandwiched between two broad Anubias nana leaves last night, and it seems like that's where she sleeps now. Volga is giving me heart attacks again. He uses the bronze crypt leaves as a hammock and often rests there for an extended period of time. Then, just as I thought he's lethargic, a single touch on the tank wall sent him swimming around. I'm really not used to having a calm fish. I constantly worry that he's being listless, while really he's just being Volga. I wish fish can talk.

In another news I joined a Facebook group for Indonesian Betta breeders last night. I immediately regretted it. All these gorgeous PK, HM, EE and giants of all kinds... Up for sale for something like US$3. Or $4. Maybe $4.50. There's even a gorgeous gold OHMPK samurai up for auction at ZERO starting bid and no reserve. Somebody won him for IDR40,000. That's $2 plus a couple cents. US$1 = about IDR 15,000. Last time I checked anyway.

Of course they aren't that cheap in Indonesian currency, but I'm working in The US and I'm paid US dollars. I don't know yet if these small, private breeders also exports, but if they do... My gosh. $5 for a show-qual HMPK! If I posted about that Facebook group here and offer to make purchases for people here, I'd probably end up buying every fish on sale @[email protected] good thing there's about 90% chance those small breeders probably don't export. Only if I can keep Bettas at home =\


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## OUOhYeah2016

Umm if they export for those prices sign me up lol you're torturing yourself with this knowledge, you realize that right? And then proceeding to torture the rest of us!


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## Olivia27

Just feeling particularly chatty tonight. I never wrote extensively (or at all) about myself, so here's a little bit about who's taking care of your fish:

First off: Olivia is my middle name. My first name is Amanda, and that's the name you're gonna see if you're sending me an invoice or payment via PayPal. I have a strange, complicated, lengthy list of names. My name changes depending on who's calling me. If you're in the family, then I'd be Livvy. If you're in my Husky owners forum, then I'd be Liv. If you went to high school with me, I'd be either Amanda or Manda. If you're one of my best friends, then I'd be Nee. Olivia is who I am to everyone else. And so, names have always been something fascinating to me. I used to dedicate my time to study up people's names origin and meaning. But somehow I find pet names a lot more interesting. That is probably why - if you take a peek on my signature - all of my fish have long-winded, complicated names. Just you wait until I got my fourth (and final) fish next semester. It's gonna be even weirder.

Anyway. I'm a second-year Elementary Education student with a minor in TESOL - Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. I chose that minor because SLA (Second Language Acquisition) is a topic dear to my heart. I grow up speaking two native languages. And then my parents added English at age 3, which means I kind of qualify as a native speaker now. At about age 6 I was also enrolled to a Mandarin Chinese class, but I only went once for some reason. Throughout my high school career I also get Chinese from school. However, it seems like my childhood brain has really reached its limit with three languages. I'm 19 now and I still don't speak Chinese. It's truly a shame. I'm Chinese by heritage. My grandparents from both sides migrated to Indonesia as teenagers. Yet, I don't speak a word of their language. Maybe a little bit, but definitely not enough. In fact, I speak more Japanese than Chinese. At age 13, I dedicated a whole year to teach myself the language. I have lost a lot of vocabulary over the years, but I still retain the ability to read and write in the characters. Not too many kanjis, but I can handle hiragana and katakana. I'm not fluent at all either. But I still speak more Japanese than Chinese. What a shame.

In relation to that, I'm also a huge literary nerd. My focus of study is Language-Arts, which means I spend a great deal of my time reading and composing essays. Unfortunately I can't talk a lot about English literary (as in everything written in the English language). English books cost A LOT back home. I have just started reading American authors' works since I started college. But if any of you want to chat about Indonesian novelists, I can probably give you a whole lecture. I'm also a poet. A bad one. I've been writing lousy poems and short stories since I first discovered Microsoft Word. I have also been writing journal entries since 2009. I make bad poems that I keep under lock and key, but I still find writing to be my kinda art. Without writing depression would have swallowed me whole many years ago. 

Along with writing, another thing that kept me alive is my dog, Diamond. I adopted him at age 14 months. He's seven this year. Diamond is the very reason I stepped into the world of animal rescue and welfare. You'd see him if you go to my profile and check out my profile picture, but here we are:



And this is Dime at 2 years old, without my face ruining the shot:



And the same dog just one week after his sixth birthday:



Diamond was born in a puppy mill before the breeder decided that she doesn't like dogs anymore and moved out of town. In her old house was thirteen Husky dogs of varying age, and a "caretaker" who beat them up to pulp. Diamond was pulled out of this environment at around his first birthday. A kind old lady stepped up and adopted him along with his two litter mates. The other two unfortunately passed away not too long later. Diamond survived with a few 'souvenirs'. It took two years to get rid of his phobias and intense trauma. You can barely see it now, but he still has his moments sometimes. There's also the ear infection that went on strong for four years before we switched vets and finally got prescribed a medication that work. Even then, if we ran out, it'd still come back. I'm hoping to get a better opinion from US vets once I fly him over. There's gotta be a way to stop it once and for all.

About fish: I grew up with seven or eight 20 Long freshwater tanks. I have never been a primary caretaker, but they've always been a part of my life. We had to sell all our tanks and fish when we moved to our current house, but still we built a pond and kept more fish. Kois this time. Gorgeous, massive kois. I don't know how many we have now after a recent disease outbreak, but before I left to The US, we had at least 40. Maybe even more than 50. My dad's friend - I think they went to high school together - is a koi breeder. I think he exports too. His house look like the back room of SeaWorld, just without the dolphins and whales. We always get "friends and family" discount, on top of some better-quality ones sold for pet-quality price. Don't tell anyone though. 

I've only been into Bettas for about 14 months. I moved to The US for college and found it depressing to live without a pet. I've never gone a single moment I can remember in my life without a pet. So, sticking to the college dorm rules, I chose to keep fish. Apparently some members in my Husky owner forum are also fish keepers, so they taught me how to cycle the tank and pick a species. Guess what kinda fish I ended up with. 

Fast forward to about two months ago: I lost my second Betta Memory literally in three hours. I thought I already knew better after losing my first. I really thought I'm gonna have Memory all the way until I graduate. Her passing really shocked me, and so - for my third try, Seren - I decided to join a forum so I can give her the absolute best care possible. But being around a group of folks that has dedicated many many years of their lives to these little creatures made me view them differently. At first, I was just all about keeping my fish alive. I'm not at all interested in learning more about the species, nor do I care about any fish that aren't my own. But look at me now. 

Less than a month ago a little red Cambodian boy tugged at my heart strings and I brought him home. Today I have four "fish that aren't my own" occupying my study desk. All my studying activity has to be done in my bedroom now, and my electricity bill is starting to get painful to look at. Yet, I truly enjoy having all these fosters in the house. Instead of just my two, I have SIX googly eyes that watch my every move in their own unique ways. Each one of my fosters - past and present - is a joy to have around. I'll admit: there have definitely been times when I bury my face on my pillow and wonder why the heck would I ever do this. Still, when I read about the thrilled adopters posting about their new friend, or when I eat cereal with four googly eyes watching every spoon movement like a total creep, I realized that these babies - and all you amazing people that adopted them - worth every single penny. 

That's all for tonight's ramble.


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## Olivia27

I've burned my internet data again. So no pic updates for a while. 

Today is bath and wc day again. Only Fiery goes for a bath. Monty gets a 75% wc. Maiden's water is DIRTY. She still gets 100%. King gets a 50%. I removed the filter on Volga's tank. I figured that it's the current - even after being baffled - is what made him look so lazy. Then I went on two siphoning rounds to clear all the plant matters. Happy to see the little guy swimming around a little more 

I think I'm gonna drop my plan to filter the 2.6 as well. I can always siphon regularly. Plus there are the plants to keep the parameters looking great. The problem is, of course, I already bought a filter. So that's THREE unused filters in the house. One from Volga's, one that came with the 2.6, and another one I bought to replace the one that came with the 2.6. I can't decide whether to keep these around for upgrades next semester or sell them off. I can't decide either if I'm gonna upgrade everyone, just Willow or no one at all. We'll see I guess. It all comes down to space.

Meanwhile, enjoy a Maiden


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## themamaj

What an amazing story. Thank you so much for sharing it! I love your dog. So pretty! That is incredibly you have learned several languages and really incredible you have self taught Japanese! Is Indonesia a different language as well? It sounds like you have the perfect major with your background. I am most impressed you are able to balance all the demands of school, work and in your spare time fostering. For me and all the other adoptive fish homes out there we are so grateful for all you do. You are a beautiful and amazing young woman.


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## Olivia27

Yep Indonesian is a different language. It's the lingua franca for the country. I also speak my region's local language. So that's two already. And then we have English. And they still try to fit Chinese into my little head. Yeah right. 

About the balancing thing... well, it's more of a juggling act at times. Once I have to feed everyone their breakfast at 2 AM because of work schedule. But I'm glad to report everyone's alive and well


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## OUOhYeah2016

Jeez lol that's a lot to balance in life let alone during college! I'm there with ya. I struggle with English and the limited Spanish I know! Can't imagine being fluent in that many. Also can't picture being in education, my best friend/roommate is in early childhood education as a major so I hear about that struggle! 

Also Diamond is gorgeous. I have two shepherds at home and my roommate next year has a husky. Chase is 7 and we got from a rescue as his previous owner had kept him and his sister in their garage. Cooper we got as a puppy from a breeder, but that breeder didn't believe in giving their dogs water (insane I know). They soaked their food and then never gave them any other water. So we bought him and our vet was afraid he'd have kidney problems, but he's 5 now and completely happy and healthy. We usually only rescue, but Cooper was an exception. 

Good to know everyone there is doing well!


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## StellaBetta

Thats so great to know! I cant wait! I dont know if you saw my journal yesterday or no but I had issues with the 10 gallon and had to send it back and just bought a new 5.5 gallon from petco for him yesterday. I'm planning on starting the setup when I go back to school tonight so anytime after that will be fine just PM me with any dates your thinking about shipping and any payment stuff.

Thats such a facinating story im really glad you shared that with us. I cant imagine how difficult it must be for you juggling so many things at once. Here I thought just school itself was so hard to manage. And knowing so many languages is incredible! I thought I was cool knowing spanish english and italian but to know such a difficult language like japanese now that takes some real talent and props to you for working so hard to try and learn chinese as well I could never do it. I'd really be interested in any Indonesian novels you have to recommend im a bit of an avid reader myself I have a whole library at home but its mainly american and puerto rican novels I'd love to see any books that you like and would be glad to share any books with you as well if youd like. Also you have a really gorgeous dog look at those eyebrows!


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## Olivia27

I have another foster that's leaving soon. Either tomorrow or so. Monty can go on the same day if that's not too early for you  PM me with your address (and zip code) so I can calculate shipping cost x

Announcement: unfortunately today Volga fell ill  he's already acting funny since yesterday but I put it down to mini stress. After all I rescaped his tank and did two rounds of gravel vacuuming early yesterday. But when I wake up this morning and I see him *still* displaying major stress stripes and swimming erratically, I know something's up. The possibility includes velvet - which I hope is not true because it's highly contagious. I have six in the house. The fosters have their own tweezers and gravel vac BUT STILL. I'm freaking out. Most of my attention is drained towards Volga ATM so I may not post updates. But rest assured that I'm gonna disinfect **everything**. Does anyone have discount coupons for vinegar??


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## themamaj

Bless your heart. I hope it is limited to just Volga but so sorry to hear sick.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Oh no! Im having the same issue that my "sick" rescues are fine now and my Fawkes is showing what I'm starting to lean toward having to treat as parasites... I hope you can help Volga. On the bright side, youre already well stocked in the medicines you'll need for a good majority of the issues he could be suffering from. Good luck. I hope everything goes well for him and you.


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## Olivia27

Volga's tank is a nightmare. There are detritus worms every-(bleep)ing-where, there are snails, there are these tiny almost microscopic fleas running around. The majority is dead now that I added AQ salt, but still. It's filthy. I have no idea how it got to that. Always, always, always quarantine your plants, people!!

I saw a broken snaill shell yesterday, and during dinner I saw Volga spit out his food for the first time. My guess is: since he's been snacking on detritus worm and snails, he never feels hungry for dry food so he spat it out not long after I dropped it. The uneaten food piles up, and all these digusting creatures came to life. I never watched him too long with all the stuff that's going on... I suppose it's not enough to just make sure the food goes into his mouth. I'm soaking all the tank equipments in a vinegar-water solution ATM. Tonight after class, that cursed tank is going for a thorough scrub down. 10-minute PP bath to kill whatever isn't dead yet, and then the plants will be rinsed thoroughly one by one. The gravels and pebbles will be thrown out and replaced. And then everything will be left to air-dry while Volga sits in a cup kept in the dark. I'm hesitant to float him anywhere because of the velvet and the possibility of little critters traveling with him in the cup water, but he'll be fine. THEN I can start velvet treatment. Ugh. That is it. Nothing else but tissue culture plants for me from now on!


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## themamaj

You are right on plants. That is how many little pond snails have found their way into mine. I hate you are having to deal with all of that, but it sounds like you are doing everything to treat and prevent anything in future. 

I have not treated velvet myself but have read that it really helps to keep tank in dark when you are doing treatment as velvet spore tend to need light to reproduce.


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## Tealight03

What a mess. I usually soak plants in a peroxide solution then rinse and put them straight in. I have gotten snails but no worms. That sounds like a nightmare. Hope Volga heals right up!!


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## Olivia27

Well... I did some more reading. Apparently the "fleas" that I mentioned above really, actually are water fleas. Does that name ring a bell? Yes, people, I have *daphnia. *Ironically some sources claim that the presence of daphnia indicates excellent water quality. So I technically babied that tank to its destruction. No wonder Volga spits out his Omega One, though. He's been eating like a king! Bet those dry food look like Taco Bell to him now. Oh gee. Only if I knew I accidentally grew a daphnia culture... Ugh >< It really is not the critters that bugged me about Volga's tank. It's the population boom. Since the fish kept on spitting his dry food, the critters grew out of control. And soon enough I have a disgusting amount of creatures that I, under normal circumstances, would keep around. I'm actually glad that plants bring detritus worms into my tank. Free live feed that I don't have to handle! Yay! Too many of them? *bleep* it. 

In another news, I'm still unsure whether Volga has velvet or not. He's still not eating, but then again I'm offering him Omega One. Plus, his belly actually looks round and plump already. I'm starting to think the nightmare tank is more of an all-you-can-eat buffet in his eyes. Back on topic: after AQ and Operation Scrub Them All Out, Volga is no longer clamped and has completely lost his stress stripes. But - again - he's still not eating, and the shimmering gold color on the edges of his caudal has spread to the edges of his anal, too. Still no signs of "sand sprinkle" on his body, but I *think* I see a very minor one below his head. The fish is not scratching either, so right now there's greater chance of this whole thing being a false alarm. Volga after all, is a copper devil. He's shiny in nature, and I have never shone a flashlight on him before yesterday. So I can't tell what's normal and what's not. It's also pretty unusual for velvet to start at the fins instead of the body, so... yeah. Fingers crossed this is a false alarm. 

That being said I still disinfected all equipment and carried on with the typical velvet treatment. The tank is now down on the floor to avoid light from Seren's Finnex Fugeray. The temperature is currently holding steady at 83F, but I'm shooting for 85 or even 86. The AQ attack has ceased for now, but if Volga starts looking clamped again it'll be my go-to first aid. 

About the fosters:

I decided that it's a great day to do 50% on all the foster tanks except for Fiery who goes for a bath today. Dipping out water seem to stress out everyone, so I tried Maiden and Monty on gravel vac for the very first time. King is a gravel vac expert by now. He follows the hose like a puppy, but he knows it's not food or a giant snake monster. Maiden - contrary to her initial shy personality - decided to try and fit the hose into her mouth. Mind you, this is the fish that isn't even big enough to eat NLS. Monty's vacuuming attempt on the other hand, stressed ME out more than it did him. Little guy has no fear and went directly in front of the line of fire in order to investigate. I seriously thought I'd end up sucking him accidentally. But nope, no casualties today. Fiery goes in and out his bath as easy as one two three. He's getting used to being scooped by hand, it seems. By the way, try not to get tank water in your mouth when starting a gravel vac after that thing got disinfected. Vinegar tastes like poison.


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## Olivia27

Aaand King has been shipped off! Yay! Here's the last photo update of him from me:



It's a quiet day today. No water changes, just NLS for everyone. I probably should feed frozen food real soon though. Some of the gang started staring at their food a second longer before actually eating it. I gotta admit this week is a hectic one, so I had to skip some frozen food days. Don't worry gang, I'll feed daphnia tonight. 

Photo updates on the other fosters:

Maiden's belly is no longer plump and round like the baby that she is. I think this may as well be her eleventh or twelfth week in life. She's still so tiny though. I planned to get an exact measurement of her BO length but never got around to it. Her egg spot is also protruded now. Previously it looks more like a white bump. The anal is starting to show regrowth, too, but you can't see it in these photos. She's a very quick little miss. Now that King has left the plan was for her to move to the "VIP room". I have all these Moneywort I'm looking to plant before she gets in, but on my way to class I fell down and hurt my hand. Any aquascaping plans might have to wait now =\ 





I finally managed to catch Fiery's bloody red eyes on camera. Ooohh spooky!



Funny guilty face 



So Monty is not yet 100% recovered. But I decided to make a timeline photo anyway. So here he is, from 26th December to today:



I can't wait to make the same one for Fiery in the future


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## Olivia27

Hi folks. So things took turn for the worse, and Monty is now available for adoption again. He doesn't have all the parts of his tail yet, but he's showing clear signs of regrowth every day and is healthy enough to leave anytime now. If you have a room for this super special fish, please do let me know.

In another news King has arrived in his new home. The postman somehow put him on the neighbor's porch, so we genuinely thought he was missing for a second there. Luckily things got sorted and now he's safe, sound and acclimating. 

Also, an announcement: Due to school/work demands plus the arrival of my Willow, I will not be taking in any more intakes until either Fiery or Maiden leaves. None are leaving soon unfortunately, so it may be a while until I have another one for adoption. This may be a good thing though. Makes way for other people who are doing what I'm doing.


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## themamaj

Monty's tail looks great! I'm sorry adoption fell through. Maiden is the cutest spunky looking thing! Glad King arrived safely. Is Willow a new fish for you? What kind?

Kirov is doing amazing. He has become one of my favorite boys. He is so playful and was chasing the vacuum tube around so much the other night I just got tickled and stopped vacuuming and just played tag with tube with him. He delights me with big eyes! I am so appreciative of you for seeing his special qualities and giving him a chance. 

I hope Monty finds a new home too. He is such a lovely boy.


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## Olivia27

I do hope so too. Anyone will be lucky to have Monty. He's awesome  and yay for Kirov thriving in his new home! I'm glad you two found each other  

Willow is my Thai import. I won her on AquaBid a couple weeks ago now. She's a bittersweet experience LOL never have I ever thought I would spend this much on a single Betta. BUT I actually feel bad because I don't feel bad. Am I reaching deeper and deeper towards my savings account? Oh yes. Did I promise myself to never touch said savings account? Oh YES. But hey ho, I'll earn it back. I got two more semesters, three with this current one, until I have to use all that money to fly my dog over. I'm sure we'll be fine.


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## themamaj

Oooh ahhh you are killing me with that one. She is incredibly beautiful! Drooling with envy.


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## Tealight03

I would take Monty in if I had the room. I'm sure he will find a great home. 

Willow is gorgeous!


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## Olivia27

Thanks @Tealight03 ^_^ guess it's back to advertising phase.

In another news, Volga doesn't have velvet. He has IP! Yaay =| 

Right after the scrub-down, I added Rooibos into his tank. For whatever reason the day after Rooibos, Volga started squeezing out white stringy poop. I cupped him and did a Prazipro bath. After the bath, the poop got twice in length. Literally the same length as his vents. Not long later he dropped that poop, and pooped out another one. The next day comes and I did another Prazipro bath. He pooped it out (never got as long as the first), and now he's working on a third poop. Nowhere as long as the first two now. 

Couple days ago Volga started eating again. Today he's back on food strike. Bad news, because I soaked his daphnia in Garlic Guard in the hope of fighting off the parasites from the inside. He's still responsive, but spends most of the day on his Anacharis hammock. How frustrating =\ 

How did he contract the parasites? Was it the nightmare tank, or did he come this way? He has never been as active as everyone else in the house. I never see him spreading all his fins out either. The vents are dropped - from time to time - but mostly he looks like a paint brush. Poor guy. Could it be that he's been sick all these time? Aw gee. Well, I guess I'm glad the Rooibos got that poop out of his system. Fingers crossed the Prazipro works


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## OUOhYeah2016

Aw! I hope Monty finds a new home very soon. He certainly is special, you've had him longest and you saved him first. He'll always have that bond to you. 

Also Willow is a cutie!

As for Volga, IP can be the worst thing to diagnose... I'm pretty sure I lost Pudge, the first "rescue" I tried from my office at work, to IP because I thought it was just SBD. There's so many kinds of parasites that it's not easy to pin down exact symptoms every time. Regardless of how he got it I'm sure the meds you already have will help.


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## Olivia27

Thanks Katie  

Well it's the typical water change day again. Everyone got daphnia for breakfast, soaked in Garlic Guard thanks to Volga and his invisible wriggly friends. I... overfed Maiden a little. It's hard to measure how much to give when you're feeding something so small. The rest of the house are OK, but Maiden - who is no bigger than one-inch, by the way - is a bit boated. Oops. Looks like she's gonna have to skip both dinner and tomorrow's breakfast.

Volga is *still* not eating. At this point I just assume he's not a daphnia fan. I know he loves brine shrimps, so we'll see how he reacts with that. Poor guy is listless. He's often found hiding between the tall leaves of the crypt jungle, motionless for hours. He reminded me to Naga =\ 

After today's Prazipro bath, however, Volga has stopped with the stringy poop. For now, at least. I also found him swimming around a bit after I came home from visiting my brother today. I sure hope that means we're progressing. Only if I can get him back to eating, that'll be great. 

I've been reading on different kinds of parasites in tropical fish. I'm still not sure which one is Volga, but I t-h-i-n-k it's tape worm. Maybe. This article talks less about behavioral symptoms and more about the parasites itself. 

Have a read by the way, it's informative: http://www.fishchannel.com/fish-health/disease-prevention/ichy-and-indigestible-2.aspx


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## Olivia27

So I needed some pebbles to anchor my annoying crypts down. Today is my first trip to Petco since I brought King home. I see some really gorgeous new fish, some that are flare-happy, some that are lethargic, some that are sick... Typical day on a chain store. I so wish I brought my phone, but I left it at home to charge. There are some that I'm super tempted to post on the Marketplace. Like the yellow EE that I put up on the Betta Pictures section. It looks like someone bought him and then returned him. I didn't see him when I went to pick up King, but now there he is again. Poor guy. At least he's still perky. Also, there's this VT that I'm preeeeetty sure is closing in to 3" BO. His price? $2.99! Oh oh oh and there's a black copper CT girl that is just soooooo sparkly. Also, Katie, I found two purple-bodied boys. More lavender than dark purple though. And a CT guy the color of red wine <3 Oh gee. I need to be banned from window-shopping XD I sure wish I have enough room for all of them 

In another news, we also have a HMDT with terrible SBD and a solid turq VT that is laying on the bottom of his cup. *sigh*

In *another* news, Volga ate dinner. One single Omega One pellet. But that's a start, no?


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## OUOhYeah2016

Haha it's like we were talking about the impossibilities of purple and now they're everywhere! Also good to hear that Volga ate, if only a little.


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## Olivia27

Pictures time!

Let's start with Volga, problem child of the week. Here he is when he first started pooping out white stringy poop.



And a clear photo of the poop hanging off him (he's in his first Prazipro bath)



Here he is today, outside the cup. Volga never spreads his fins fully. I've had him three weeks and I still never see that caudal fully spread. 



His fourth Prazipro bath (oh and yes, I notice the stress stripes. I forgot to turn the camera's shutter tone off and it spooked the hell outta him)



Seren, the largest fish in the house 



Seren's tank. I have TWO banana plants now XD love those little guys



I had a good chuckle after taking this pic. Notice how Fiery and Merah are holding the exact same pose on a straight line. 



I don't know if any of you noticed, but Fiery is VERY red. 





Comparison photo: first day home vs today



I decided to revert the name back to Merah so the next adopter can feel free to rename again  reminder: this boy is available, people! x







Maiden is a personality confetti. All one inch of her  unfortunately for her, Willow is coming to claim her throne. When that happens she will be transported back to the critter keeper. 



"Although she be but tiny, she is fierce" <- somebody remind me who said this



Maiden's adult male version! XD Found this guy on my Facebook group. You can't see it very well on the photos, but Maiden actually has some yellow on the tips of her fins too. Not on the dorsal, but definitely on the caudal. The anal is damaged and is currently recovering so I can't tell


----------



## Olivia27

It's almost 1 AM and I just got back from my night shift. This post is to announce that Fiery is leaving tomorrow afternoon. No, his fins haven't fully grown back yet, which is why his adopter is going to continue the MB-AQ treatment. But health wise, this little firecracker is undoubtedly good to go. He'll reach his new home by Wednesday afternoon.

My conscience says: no more intakes until Merah got adopted. But I can't get two particular boys out of my mind. One is a multicolor VT with fin melt, and another is a HMDT with severe SBD. I can't take both. No space. Heck, technically I can't take any. I am juggling five classes, two clubs, one community service thing, 19 hours a week of work and an ex I may get back with. Oh and of course: one fish that has traveled halfway around the globe, one that is recovering from IP and another that j-u-s-t developed a tumor/cyst. Common sense says: please, Olivia, no more. 

But: 1) I just found $20 on my way home from work. I'm not joking. I can afford any kind of new intake now and 2) I have horrible impulse control. So don't predict anything yet. I'll keep you guys posted


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## themamaj

So happy to hear about Fiery. Safe travels to him. So technically one is leaving, one possible foster pretty much evens out. I'm no help  Rooting for Merah to get a new home! He sure is a beautiful boy. When is your little double tail girl going to arrive?


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## Olivia27

Wednesday! *shrieks* 

The thing is I gotta consider Maiden too. She's basically renting Willow's room now just so the plants can keep growing. If I bring home another, and I still have Merah, that's four tanks on the living room and two in the bedroom. The idea is to keep only 3 tanks out on the living room to reduce maintenance time. Buuuuut, I've been juggling things pretty well so far. So...

I don't know, I don't wanna promise anything yet. Only if I can find homes right away like how it worked with Maiden!


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## themamaj

Maybe you could at least get pictures of ones thinking of fostering. If people saw the fish, you might could know a head of time if there is some interest.


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## Olivia27

Yeah only if I didn't leave my phone the last time I went to Petco =\ I'll snap those pics today 

In another news Volga is being listless again. No more white stringy poop and he ate a little, but the lethargy came back with a vengeance. Excuse me while I bang my head on the desk.

Other than that Seren developed some sort of a growth underneath her mouth. Not sure yet if it's a cyst or tumor, and whether or not it's benign. Everyone else is doing great. Maiden isn't growing any larger, though. She's a mini fish.


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## themamaj

I think parasites are the worst to treat. Very frustrating! It seems like my females grow a little slower than males. My Sassafrass is smaller but boy does her sassy personality make up for it! She is also a crowntail female. She looks very similar to Maiden but doesn't have the yellow tips on fins. I have seen some in stores that have a lot of yellow and they are so pretty. Maiden is a great coloring.


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## Tealight03

I frequently think "I have five tanks and it's not too bad. One more wouldn't hurt." Of course that's how I ended up with five!


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## xStatic

I'm so excited for Fiery's arrival!  I promise to take pictures for you once he gets here and is all settled in! 

I'm also in over my head with tanks. I've got my king in my ten gallon, now I'll have Fiery in my 5.5 gallon. I'm upgrading my 29 gallon goldfish tank to a 65 gallon, and I'm contemplating turning my 29 gallon into a betta sorority .


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## OUOhYeah2016

Good to know that Volga is making progress and that Fiery is on his way home soon! I hope Seren is okay too and its so exciting that Willow will be here so soon! I think overall everything is about how it should be for you lol maybe hold off on new intakes until Fiery is on his way and Willow gets home? That way you can reevaluate once youre sure of everyone in the house and their needs. I know its hard to leave the sick ones... but the ones already at home are still your priority.


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## Olivia27

Fiery has been shipped! Yaay! Safe travels little thing!

I think I made my decision. I'm gonna go take pictures today and see if I can get anyone adopted before I bring them home. If nobody steps up, I'll hold off until Merah gets adopted. If someone wanted one of the many fish I'd take photos of (I will include the healthy ones that have been there a long while) then I'd bring them home. Might reach a point where someone has to float on Seren's tank instead of sitting in their own tanks though x)


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## OUOhYeah2016

Hey Id love to see those purples, purely out of curiosity of course...


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## Olivia27

Ooohh you can bet they'd make it to the advertising post. I'm still slowly finishing my sandwich right now x) and then I'll go to Petco. I'm itching for another dry food brand too.


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## Olivia27

*Advertising Post*

First off, these are the two boys I'm seriously considering to take in:



Look at him flaring!





The HMDT with SBD that I mentioned previously wasn't there anymore. This guy took his spot in my "potential intake" list. Nothing is exactly wrong with him. He's just super skittish and has been there for a while now.





Other fish I wanna show you guys:

Adorable little DTPK  well technically not really, since his tail isn't fully split, but oh well



This guy is parti-eyed on both eyes. Here's one side of him:



and another side:



Another multi VT



Very light purple-bodied DT with red fins:



Sparkly MG DT:



Marbled blue BF DeT



I'm itching to snatch this lady. Lovely black copper CT



Blue FT (kinda)



Cello body with purple and red fins



Purple and red marble with a pug face



I like this guy too! I have a strong feeling his fins are gonna be dark purple once he colors up.


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## themamaj

Look forward to pictures!


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## themamaj

Just saw pictures. This is great. It is like online shopping without the drive. haha. VT guy very pretty colors. Other than fin issues he looks very strong and interactive. He would make a great fish with some TLC. Love little black crowntail girl so cute! I like the double tail plakat a lot too. The crown tail boy that will probably color up with purple fins will be a real beauty too.


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## Tealight03

Yes they are all nice. Just need a little tlc. Ugh pet stores are so difficult. I want to take them all home.


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## Olivia27

Good news bad news. Let's start with bad news.

I woke up this morning to Volga bloated and pineconing. There are worms on the tank wall. Not detritus - definitely something else. Perhaps tapeworm. They're not very mobile (dying?) but alive. 

I scooped Vol out of his tank, and put him in a hospital. I cupped him and added dissolved Kanaplex (~1/5 of the dosage spoon) and some ES. I heard there's a chance this cocktail may rescue a fish from dropsy. Well, it didn't. Second fish I had that lost the battle with IP. Goodbye, Vol. 

I can't tell if this baby came with IP or if he contracted it in the nightmare tank. All I know is that he's never been active since day one. At least he passed on peacefully. I came back from my community service work to him looking very "normal". Head up on the surface, body completely vertical, vents dropped, rest of the fins slightly spread. Looks as if he just went to sleep.

I had just enough of the nightmare tank. I threw it out and got a 3-gal critter keeper for $6 (Pals Rewards discount). It's currently going through a fishless cycle - API Quick Start added - to house its new tenant who's already here.

Ladies and gentlemen, Merah is now adopted. I already told a couple folks via PM about this grim decision but not publicly yet. So if you notice I didn't really go all the way on advertising Merah, this is why.

Tomorrow after I got Willow all settled in, I will go and pick up the multi VT I posted above. If you know anyone that would love him, please let me know  have a great rest of the night, folks. Better than mine at least.


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## themamaj

So sorry about Volga. I prob would have tossed tank too just to get piece of mind. Good news about Merah! Look fwd to seeing more picture of Willow. Glad to hear VT will be next rescue.


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## Tealight03

That's awesome you decided to keep Merah! 

SIP Volga. At least he went peacefully and isn't suffering anymore.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Aw Olivia! Im so sorry! You and Volga fought as best you could. I'm glad Merah will be staying with you though, despite the circumstances. Good luck with the VT too, and I hope Willow will get to you happy and healthy


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## Olivia27

Willow is home! Pictures -> http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=652682

She's a bit lethargic at first but it doesn't take long for her to show her true colors - both literally and figuratively. This girl is advertised as pink, but really she's more of a very dark purple. Not red, but not as pale as pink either. It's adorable how her thin butterfly band goes all the way except for the top lobe of the caudal. Bet that made her breeder pull his hairs all out LOL she's also a real lady. First minute in tank and she immediately urinated. Gotta mark the territory, no? Currently I'm sitting out on my study desk, too afraid to turn the lights on since it's Willow's first day. But judging by how she's zipping around - up and down and up and down and up again - I may as well turn the lights on now x) 

In another news the weather's been gloomy since yesterday. It's gray, wet and windy. So I never made it to Petco today. I also just heard about the Groundhog Day sale so that's perfect. VT boy may look horrible finnage-wise, but he's pretty lively so I'm not too worried. 

Also, an announcement: Fiery is not yet home. He's shipped on a 3PM guaranteed delivery, yet he's still nowhere to be seen. We're a bit worried now since the last update on the tracking site says that he's still in a town 6 hours away from his adopter's home. After this whole ordeal - and my own experience receiving Willow via FedEx - I'm no longer taking chances. If anyone wants overnight shipping, FedEx will be the way to go. They charge the same price as USPS Priority Express, and has lower tendency to delay delivery. Granted the weather's been nasty everywhere lately, but a guarantee is a guarantee =\ 

Crossing fingers for Fiery's safe arrival...


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## xStatic

Here is a picture of Fiery's new home (I'll be adding some new live plants slowly in the future. It's a Fluval V, with the filter modified and baffled so it won't hinder his recovering fins. No signs of him tonight unfortunately ): hopefully he shows up early tomorrow!


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## OUOhYeah2016

I hope he gets there okay! Fiery will love it I'm sure.


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## trilobite

Ah fingers crossed for Firey! His new home looks beautiful though, I bet he'll be happy in there!


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## Olivia27

Hi guys. Another heartbreaking update today. Fiery was almost 24 hours late, and the heat pack either stopped working, or never worked right. I took it out of its wrapping ~30 minute before packaging it just to make sure it heats up, but apparently it never heated up more than it did when I first tested it. Either ways, Fiery didn't make it. I'm so, so sorry @xStatic.


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## xStatic

Seren27 said:


> Hi guys. Another heartbreaking update today. Fiery was almost 24 hours late, and the heat pack either stopped working, or never worked right. I took it out of its wrapping ~30 minute before packaging it just to make sure it heats up, but apparently it never heated up more than it did when I first tested it. Either ways, Fiery didn't make it. I'm so, so sorry @xStatic.


Again, no need to say sorry. It wasn't your fault. Sometimes these things just happen. 

Also, I mentioned this in my PM but I think a USPS employee may have opened the box at some point to check what was inside and then never sealed it again properly. I'll get a picture of the box when I get home. If that did indeed happen then that could explain why his bag water was so icy cold even though the heat pack was still producing a little by of heat. 

It's a sad day indeed though. I also woke up to find that my king betta had finally passed away from whatever mysterious infection in his mouth he was suffering from. Poor fishies...


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## Olivia27

Oh no. Gee gosh it's death after death lately 

I don't know if I can prove that somebody tinkered with the box, but if someone did, I would be livid. Who does that?? ><


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## xStatic

Seren27 said:


> Oh no. Gee gosh it's death after death lately
> 
> I don't know if I can prove that somebody tinkered with the box, but if someone did, I would be livid. Who does that?? ><


I have heard of it happening with reptiles before, so I'm sure it happens with fish too. Maybe inspectors are in a bad mood or something but sometimes they look inside of boxes that are marked live reptile/fish because they don't trust that people aren't sending illegal animals in the mail. 

Several people I know have gotten dead snakes and lizards in the mail after someone opened the box to look and then did a bad job of throwing the animal back in and resealing, causing the animal to pass away. It is very frustrating, I hope that is not what happened but it's the first thing that popped into my mind when I saw the way the bottom of the box has been retaped. The only other option is that the box somehow came open during shipment and they added the scotch tape as a way to try to keep the box closed.


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## BettaStarter24

So sorry about Fiery and your King xStatic.


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## Tealight03

I'm so sorry to hear about Fiery.


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## trilobite

Aw no Im so sorry about Firey :-(


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## themamaj

Oh no I am so sorry to hear that happened. I was really concerned when heard he had been delayed. My heart goes out to you all.


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## Olivia27

Thanks people. This isn't a good week at all =\ at least they didn't try to cop out of the refund.

In another news, my 3-gal is now fully cycled. 0.25 ammo, 0.50 nitrite and 5 nitrates. In total, this tank cycled within 48 hours. I don't understand, but I'm happy  Merah should be able to move in tomorrow or so. Speaking of, some folks might notice I changed his name on my signature a little bit. Since everyone in the house seem to have a full name, I decided to give Merah one, too. Langit Merah (red sky) is the title of one of my favorite Indonesian novels. Plus, his sparkly green irid layer made me think of sunsets somehow.

I haven't heard news from Maiden's adopter. Not sure yet when will she leave. It's gonna get crazy here by the end of this month. I will have my own three, two fosters (if Maiden is still here) and five adorable imports. I was out hunting for a female PKDT for one of our members here when out of the blue this seller I was talking to offered a 5-in-1 package. I shared the deal with people on here and there seems to be a lot of interest - so I said "yes". They won't be staying long at all, I assume. Thank goodness for Groundhog Day sale.

If Maiden is still here, only one of the five can have his own kingdom. The rest will sit in a split 3-gal. Technically I can float them in a Petco cup on somebody's tank, but it made me feel really bad @[email protected] if Maiden already left, or if multi VT guy wasn't on the shelf anymore, two boys will have a 0.75 KK and two will share a split 3-gal. One is already spoken for by a member here. I don't imagine she'd want to wait any longer once they're already here!


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## Olivia27

Well... Multi VT guy isn't on the shelf anymore. I do worry about the possibility of him falling into the hands of someone who don't know what they're doing, but I suppose it puts a nice comma to my fostering journey for now. I can restart during spring break, but for now I'm going on a hiatus. Once summer rolls around, Katie (@OUOhYeah2016) will inherit the foster house and carry on with the mission. Sadly I won't be able to foster anymore after this semester ends. But I would still very much be involved in the fish-keeping world  heck, I might even add to the gang.

In another news, Merah's new tank is cycling nicely. After checking the color card again I realized that yesterday's nitrate reading was 10-20, not 5. It's 5 today. Nitrite went up to 1, and ammo is a big fat zero. I can't wait to move the little guy in!

Willow is a dream to care for. She eats anything, whatever is on the menu that day. She's the first girl I had that flares, and has started to approach me already  we're dealing with glass-surfing problem ATM ( =\ ) but other than that, she's a breeze.


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## Olivia27

What did I say about going on hiatus again? Somebody kill me now. 

PetSmart is on sale, and I've always wanted to check out my "local" PetSmart on the nearby town. So I placed an order for an itch-relief spray for my dog, and choose the store pick-up option. Big mistake. 

I went home with three Bettas. Two very sick boys, and a copper devil CT girl that I'm not sure yet if I want to keep or sell. Here they are:

Copper devil CT girl



Solid red VT boy (this one's gonna be a challenge to rehome ._. )



Marble double-ray CT boy (he's supposed to be grizzle on the body and red on the fins)



Other fish on my PetSmart that I won't mind picking up for people:

Dumbos are only $15 on this location!





If this boy colors up I bet he'd be gorgeous



Platinum white double tail



Red BF girl



I *almost* brought this one home too. But I can't pick her over my sick boys =\ she's copper with lavender fins



MG-ish HM female



Gotta love blues!



This girl is a steel blue. Just hard to photograph is all



Now for my own gang  Willow has been moved from the living room into the bedroom. It's darker in here which helps with her glass-surfing problem. Here she is wondering what's for dinner.



I went to visit Seren's relatives today LOL someone on here wants a girl that looks like her, and I mentioned that she's bred by my LFS. So she has a ton of twin sisters readily available. 



Merah's fin rot has awakened from the dead. I am *not* happy  so now he's back on MB/AQ schedule. In another news he's been moved back out to the living room. Here in my room he spent too much time flirting with Seren! Snobby Seren doesn't even acknowledge his existence, but Merah was persistent  weirdly enough his tank is next to Maiden's and he never cared. Perhaps he knows May is a baby? At first my plan was to simply get something to block his view of Seren's tank, but with Willow glass-surfing obsessively, I'd rather do this switch. It works this way.



I have a friend who might or might not take one of the two sick boys. But until then, if you or someone you know wants them, let me know. No, seriously, let me know.

This is an impulse buy. I have import boys coming my way that are supposed to sit in the tanks they're currently using x___x technically I can float these guys on someone else's tank in their pet store cups but I feel bad. Help me help them! x


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## themamaj

Olivia what is best way to treat bettas with fin issues like red VT?


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## Olivia27

I'm jumping to medicines with Red VT. That is fin melt, not regular rot. Now that he's all perked up, I may start him on Kanaplex bath starting tomorrow. I may also soak his food in Kanaplex solution. He will also have a weak MB dose in his water 100% of the time. Will it work? We'll see. This is a treatment plan suggested to me when I first had Merah, speaking of.

Both marble CT and red VT are on ES and fed daphnia. Red VT pooped a humongous poop already and is no longer swimming sideways. Marble CT is still horizontal as we speak


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## themamaj

I have treated with Kanaplex before but what dosing for bath and how long? Just curious on treatment plan. I saw a couple with sigificant fin melts other day. Really pondered taking one home to treat but haven't treated melt as much as rot. Do you think Kanaplex better than broad spectrum like Tetracycline?


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## Tealight03

I personally like Kanaplex better than Tetracycline. I have a high ph, and Tetracycline doesn't work as well for me anyway. Plus Kanaplex treats both gram negative and positive bacteria. So it's broader than some of the other antibiotics.

Gosh they all look a little rough. I'm sure you'll do wonders with them!


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## Olivia27

Kanaplex is a tad more specific so I'm going with it. It literally says "fin rot" on the box so that gives me high hopes.

Since the fosters tank is only 0.75 gal, I think I'm gonna do 4 drops of MB (recommended dose for a .5 gal). Dosage guide for Kanaplex is on the back of the box. It comes with a measuring spoon, and apparently one spoon treats a 5gal. So I'm gonna have to try and get a fifth of a spoon. It says to "repeat every two days until symptom disappear". Not exactly sure if it means this thing is safe to use directly on the main tank (and kept there overnight or more) ._. I'll read around


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## themamaj

Thanks. I was reading that a lot of significant cases are caused more by gram negative bacteria so kanaplex good gor that. Have also read about triple sulfate. I appreciate hearing the experience others have had and with what success. Always trying to learn more and treat better. Keep me posted


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## Tealight03

I used it directly in the tank. The whole three doses thing got complicated for me.


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## Olivia27

Excuse the double post. This is the boys' accommodation. Toootally five-star. I tried to get a view-blocker of some sort but nothing works at such a last minute. Pepper (red VT) really doesn't mind, but C.C (Cotton Candy - marble CT) seriously does. Even in his horizontal position he flared and bit the glass. To say that I feel bad is an understatement. Maybe I should have left them on the shelf so someone who actually has sufficient space can take them ._. I have another critter keeper on the mail, but goodness knows when it'll get here. UPS refused to let you know unless you have an account with them.

On the flip side though, this PetSmart does seem to have knowledgeable staff. Their Betta shelf is small, and it seems like it's been a while since they received a new shipment. I do hope it means they'll continue to downsize and wrap up the shelf for good at some point.

Currently, Pepper - the healthier one - has the tank all to himself. I took CC out, but I don't have too many ideas about where to put him. I can move him to a non transparent bowl and float him on Seren's tank, but I really don't like that setup. Critter keepers, please arrive soon.

Edit: @Tealight: gotcha. I can always do a 50% daily too so not too much of the medication stays on the system for long. Just in case it's not safe to keep in the tank for long. But it looks like it is?


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## Olivia27

Good morning, everyone! Pepper hopes you all have a great day!

As you can see I added tannin into his tank just for the heck of it. I totally didn't expect it to do anything at all. But this morning I noticed Pepper's ventral - only one of them is melting - has unfurled. Obviously the more severely infected areas like the dorsal and anal is still all rolled up, but hey! Progress!


----------



## Olivia27

(( sorry for the bump. Phone won't upload more than 1 photo at a time ))

And this is CC last night. He got his own bowl floated in Seren's tank. He's not as horizontal this morning, but still got a long way to go. On Thursday my copper devil girl (now named Lucy by her buyer) will be shipped out, so CC would also have his own tank then. This guy is stunning. If I can get him back to full health I'm sure I won't have issues finding him a new home.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Youre doing great with both of them! I'm sure they'll be upright and swimming in no time. CC has a ways to go, but youre right, hes definitely a pretty boy!


----------



## Olivia27

Whoop whoop! CC is now officially adopted! Just gotta wait for the little guy to heal! 

Everyone got brine shrimps this morning. Merah is being a derp and let his food got carried away by the filter's current, but everyone else devoured their shrimps. I... Overfed Lucy the copper devil a little. I was half a second away from removing the excess food with my tweezers, but she gobbled them all up! Somebody's fat now >< oops.

In another news Maiden has started marbling. The irid blue has reached to the base of the anal and caudal. Could it be that she's turning all blue? We'll see!

Pepper made a huge bubble nest today. Times like this I sure wish bubble nests indicate health or happiness. Guy is still not 100%. Sometimes his whole body turns stiff and floats vertically on the water - head up, tail down, vents horizontal like two outstretched arms. He's a bit like Fiery when he first arrived.

I soaked Pepper and CC's shrimps in Kanaplex. Pepper ate well, but CC doesn't. I sure hope he secretly picked up the leftovers once I turn around and leave. CC hates it when I peer into his bowl. 

It's official. I'm having another boy. Just paid for him last night. I am now maxed out at two boys and two girls. It will be a looong time until I bring home another one to keep. I'll share photos once I got to my laptop, but he's a steel blue BF HM boy. I *think* he's closing in to a rose, but may just be the pic. No matter, I'm not a breeder. All I care about is that he has a wide, clean, *white* (not cello) butterfly band. He will be called Sith 

I'm exhausted. I stayed home from two of my three classes this morning and got somebody to cover my night shift. I'm not feeling like waking up at 6:45 and going to bed at 2:30 AM today. Tuesday is my longest day. I'm taking a break this week. 

And on that note, here is Willow trying to swallow an entire crypt pygmaea to brighten up your day


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## themamaj

Willow is such a cutie! New fosters looking great. I am trying kanaplex on one of mine with rot to see if it works better than tetracycline. Hope you can get some rest. It is hard doing so much without a break.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Glad everyones progressing! Who's there left without an adopter???


----------



## Olivia27

@themamaj: thanks! keep me posted on how the Kanaplex works!

@Katie: The one and only Pepper. As expected TBH. But the good news is: Lucy's sale price covered his adoption fee so he can go for free. CC's adoption fee is gonna be covered by the extra dumbo girls I bring home to sell.


----------



## xStatic

My first ever betta fish was a red veiltail named Pepper too! How cute! He lived forever...


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## Olivia27

I sure hope the longevity passed down then x 

This is a bit shameless, but I'm trying to get Copper Devil CT's buyer to pick up Pepper too. They said they're gonna see if they can find someone who wants Pep. So far they haven't gotten back to me yet. Fingers crossed. 

In another news, Pepper's SBD flared up. He's back on ES now. Fun times =| on the other hand, however, CC is finally swimming upright. Dude is not a grizzle (oops) but a plausible butterfly. Blue-gray on the body and half of the fins, with red outlining.



He's going home with my marble (fancy?) PK boy who I brought home to sell. If all goes well, they should be leaving on Monday. 

Almost everyone is leaving on Monday. As of right now, the only ones left would be Pepper and my Copper Devil HM boy. Somebody pointed out that he's more of a comb tail, but I don't think he has enough web reduction to be called that. Either ways, his caudal still hits 180 so he's a HM nonetheless. 

I seriously need a temporary name for Copper Devil HM Boy. Man, he's such a character. In his store cup he was shy and mellow. But now that he's sitting in a breeder box in Seren's tank, he's flirting 24/7. Seren is not at all interested LOL picky girl.

Tomorrow I'm picking up a couple dumbo girls for @ThatFishThough and @OUOhYeah2016. One is leaving immediately, and another is probably gonna stay with me until the weather in her destination subsides. I'm at nine Bettas in the house right now. It's gonna be fun LOL

Update about import HMDTs: they will be here next Thursday. Yippee yay!


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## themamaj

Sounds like he is quite the Romeo


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## ThatFishThough

So sorry the dumbo won't work out.


I feel bad now, since you mentioned it in your journal. .-.


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## Olivia27

Sorry about the dumbo situation =\ I'm still going to pick up Katie's girl though! Will definitely share pics


----------



## Olivia27

Everyone say hello to my brand new unnamed EEHMPK girl. This is her thread (still accepting name suggestions): http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?p=7069682#post7069682. Like I stated on the thread she's here to stay for now. But if she ever perks up, which I really do hope she will, she can go either up for adoption (if somebody on here reserves her) or for sale (if nobody reserves her). I know lots of people are rehoming/selling around now, and most don't find a buyer/adopter within the forum. But after seeing firsthand what sort of people are in Facebook groups out there, I cross my fingers and toes everyone I ever sell or rehome will go either with someone from here, or someone a member recommends. Sometimes this is just not viable, but with this little one I do much prefer if she goes with someone who knows what they're doing. 

Also like I stated on the thread, that girl ended up with me because of her color changing abilities. I now have a plausible replacement that may or may not be what her adopter is looking for. We're still waiting for her to color up. If not, she'll be up for sale. So here she is


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## Olivia27

Okay. This has been a VERY long day. I had closing shift again on Sunday, so I only arrived home at about 1 AM. That's when I checked my email and saw my professor wanted something submitted by Monday (today) afternoon. There is no way I can submit it during lunch time. I'm using that time to ship off some of my crew =\ so what do I do? Stay up late, of course. All the way until about 2:30 AM. And then on 8 AM, my alarm rings and there begins a brand new day. 

Let's try to write an update on everyone.

First off, the imports. The import gang - which I'm super excited to welcome, speaking of - will not be here until Thursday due to everything closing down on Presidents Day. That is everything outside my little town. I had zero idea there's a national holiday until Maiden's adopter messaged me asking if I was still able to ship off Maiden today. I was. But she's gonna have to spend the night in Lansing because they're not delivering anything until tomorrow. That's fine, I suppose. Much better than being tossed and turned in a truck. 

Maiden's expected delivery date is Friday. Flirty copper devil HM boy - whom I later nicknamed Romeo (thanks @themamaj) - is traveling along with C.C to Ohio. Both should arrive on Thursday. For some reason the barcode on C.C and Romeo's package had trouble scanning early today, so I'm afraid the tracking status won't be as accurate =\ so I do hope they fix it somehow!

Lucy, the teeny tiny copper devil CT girl, will leave next Wednesday to New Hampshire. She's supposed to leave this week, but weather says otherwise. 

Pepper's SBD is settling down again, but I'm still fasting him. He's still pooping out ginormous poop every day so that's not good. He's currently advertised on Facebook. Somebody commented, but he's not in the country =\ We'll see how lucky he can get. I can have him all the way until the end of spring semester, but that does not mean forever.

Marble/fancy PK boy that I brought home the same day as Romeo was not well. I didn't know what's up with him at first and dosed AQ, but later I realized that he probably has SBD. Uh oh. AQ makes SBD worse! So I did a good 90% and another 10% a couple hours later on Saturday. I left him be all Sunday long, and today I started him on a mild dose of ES. He's been pooping, but his poop is literally the tiniest I have ever seen. Let's see if I can fix that.

As of right now I have two EEHMPK ladies. The turquoise one that I brought home a day early is now officially "Saphira". She's a snub-nosed, fun-sized girl that looks like a very colorful tadpole. She's still alert and responsive, but I try my best not to put my hopes up. Her colors are fading. The scales close to the head are still slightly raised. She's currently in a breeder box in Seren's tank. Mean, mean Seren flared and circled around the box =\ Saph didn't care, but I wonder if Seren will get stressed out. She looks so pretty in full flare though <3

The other EEHMPK doesn't have a name yet. This one is poorly formed. Her fins are way too tiny for her body, and her ventrals super stubby. Her anal is barely visible, which is also the case with Saph. But what she lacked in finnage she made up in color. On one side, she is as pictured above: soft pink and lavender. On the other, she's more of a baby blue. Not turquoise, not royal, not steel (although it's probably steel-based). Just... A soft baby blue. I promise I'll snap pics later. 

In another news: Willow, whose tank has been holding C.C's bowl this past week, is enjoying all her extra free space. She's starting to get friendlier  watching her dance around the gravel vac was the highlight of my day. I even made her spin a full circle. Now only if I can pet her the way I can with Seren...

Anyways. Last but not least: Merah. My oh my, Merah. I've been saving him up for the last entry because he just **shredded** his anal fin. I can't work out what exactly did he tear it on since he only has two tank decor: live plants, and pebbles to weigh the crypt roots down. I'm afraid he probably got sucked into the filter at some point ( :'( ) so I removed his filter. He has Rooibos in the tank. Here's hoping he'd heal right up. But on the bright side of things, the rot that reappeared on his caudal is now nowhere to be seen. Hope it stays that way.


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## themamaj

Romeo  I hope all the fishes have safe travels to new homes! You have been busy!! Love reading all the updates. I hate Merah tore his fins. I know that is super frustrating when working so hard to heal fins to begin with. I have had guys do that to me and I look in the tank dumbfounded trying to figure what in the world could they have torn it on. Don't know what kind of filter you had on his tank but have used filter sponges over the intake tube to help. Your SBD guy you can up the Epson salt to 1tsp/gallon if he is pretty symptomatic. That with some frozen daphnia might help the poop along. The other thing I will do for those guys is try to get them to flare. Most of my boys will poop right after they see themselves LOL! I'm sure you know all that. Look forward to seeing pictures of the EE and watching colors progress.


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## Olivia27

I have a Tetra Whisper 2-10i, which is a slightly smaller model than the 10i. But they probably should have named it 5-10i =\ I'll keep an eye out for filter sponges. So far I've been on cartridges, which is not the most helpful when you have so many tanks at once. Including the critter keepers out in the living room, I'm at eight tanks now LOL cleaning day's been fun.

I'm not happy. Somebody deleted my post about Pepper on the FB group and nobody came up telling me which group rule did I break if any =| not sure where else to advertise the little guy...

I actually forgot ALL about the flare trick. I definitely should try that with both Pep and Fancy (the PK guy's not-at-all-creative nickname)! Fancy actually built a huge bubble nest today. Not a sign of health, I know, but my sickest fish never do that before they at least recover a little. I would be really, really sad if Fancy doesn't make it. He's SO gorgeous. His vents are knife-shaped, n-o-t split (which is rare for pet store finds) and stops riiight at the longest point of his pointy red-and-blue anal. Caudal is a bit spade-shaped but that's OK with trads, which is what he is. Dorsal is narrow, but good dorsal is rare anyway so I'm not too worried. Slight arched back, but no spoon head. I'm excited to find out whether or not his caudal hits 180. I kind of sort of doubt he'd be easy to flare, but we'll see.


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## themamaj

I have bought a bunch of these sponge filters. I got mine for $2.91. They have gone up to $4.48 I think but may fluctuate with seller on Amazon. I use them with a Tetra Whisper air pump $7.39 if hasn't changed. I'm sure there are others as well but just wanted to pass that on as a good inexpensive sponge filter. I usually will put a valve on my tubing so I can adjust flow especially if a new rescue where I need it on very low. Here's link 
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005LMQCW2?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00 

Believe me I so feel you on water changes! Most days I enjoy doing them, but really had to push myself tonight to get it done. Once I get into it I usually am ok, but sometimes just getting all stuff out and water ready is half the battle.


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## Olivia27

Yaay thanks for the links! I might have to wait a while to buy anything else though. I bought the wrong book for one of my classes and can't return it, so I gotta dig deeper for more books  plus, Merah's heater quit last night. That is not including the 3gal foster tank that is currently borrowing my 5gal's 50w Hydor Theo. I need that Hydor back in the 5gal to fast forward cycling (fishless). But I also need time to gather up dollars to buy a Marina Mini 25w. Oh and have I mentioned that I still need a Stingray for Merah's tank because it's kept in the dark - down in the second shelf?

Just.

Great.

In another news, little Saphira is doing well. She ate shrimps (a lot), she moved about, and her colors came back (I concluded that she probably just hated the cup I floated her in last night). I'm optimistic now. She may as well go home with "Lavender", the purplish girl I posted above. Lav is not a different color on each side. My eyes fooled me xD the truth is she's blue and purple on both sides.


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## OUOhYeah2016

I'm really looking forward to getting the girls! Lavender is actually a name that could stick with my Harry Potter theme... but we'll see on that. Saphira will probably keep her name. I really hope they both keep improving and can become part of my sorority! They're adorable.


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## Olivia27

Whoops, sorry I just told you about the purplish girl's nickname. I just figured that "Lav and Safi" sounds like a good combo xD plus, it's a nice lazy name. In another news, I will do a huge photo gallery tomorrow. I have no fish to ship and a ton of books to read, so I will finally have time to tinker with Photobucket. Also, the import boys are arriving ON THURSDAY. There will be photos of them too! It's getting real, folks. It's getting real O_O


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## Seaman2012

Eeek! Romeo and Graydy should be here today! I wanted to name him something that incorporated his grayish tint ☺☺ I am so excited to meet my new boys!


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## Olivia27

I think they should arrive tomorrow actually. Presidents Day on Monday... =\


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## Seaman2012

Yep you are right! Tomorrow they will be here !!


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## SydneyA

Don't your imports come today!?


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## Olivia27

My imports are HEREEEEE!! They're all alive and feisty, but I couldn't tell who's who just yet when I left this morning as they're all pale and gray  I couldn't find anyone to cover my shift today so they're gonna have to be acclimated for 5 hours to the temperature before I go home and start adding tank water into their bags. Fun times. Pics will follow shortly.

And @Seaman2012 your boys are currently out for delivery! Maiden has arrived in Texas and is making her way to her adopter's town. Lavender and Saphira has departed Grand Rapids and is on their way to Ohio. Sith, my fourth and last, is departing California. Everyone cross your fingers for these travelers xxx


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## OUOhYeah2016

Woot!! I can't wait to see pictures! Everything seems to be going well!


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## Seaman2012

*My boys are here!*

Romeo and Graydy made it to my home safely and are healthy and happy! My other adoptee from another user arrived today as well! Here are pics!! First pic is of my copper Halfmoon Romeo!


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## Seaman2012

*Next up Graydy*

Graydy is my pretty crowntail boy! He is full of personality and is so sweet!


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## Seaman2012

*Fion*

Fion is my other adoptee and I am a very happy Betta mommy!


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## Olivia27

I'm SO glad those boys made it alive and healthy!

Unfortunately three out of my five imports didn't make it. They were alive this morning, but when I came home from work they're already dead  I immediately messaged my trans shipper. He advised to just claim a DOA to the seller, but I feel bad and told the seller the true story. This may or may not mean I won't get my money back. If that happens, I have no idea what to do. Obviously I can't crank up the price on my one not-yet-sold boy all the way to the hundreds to cover his brothers' prices. So... I don't know, I suppose I'll just wait and see.

On the bright side of things, the one boy that is already sold is very much alive. Heck, he jumped out of his bag and into his tank during acclimation. So yeah, definitely alive. For now his nickname is Copper.



I so need to clean my tank walls...



And the breeder's pic



Copper is ALL fins. His BO measurement came down to something like 1.25" but those fins made him look much much bigger than that. He's a bit of a picky eater. Tonight's menu is brine shrimps, which apparently didn't suit his preferences. Naughty boy spat out his dinner >.> I held my grounds, picked the shrimps up with my tweezers and offered it again. He ate it, spat it out. I picked it up again. Rinse and repeat until finally he swallowed. Someone's got an attitude.

The other survivor is my favorite, who is obviously a blue BF with cute yellow cheeks. I nicknamed him Lucky.

Here's the breeder's pic



And my horrible pics









His bent dorsal rays are even worse in person ._. not a good news to me since this is the only boy I can sell now. We'll see how he goes for higher-than-average price on Facebook and AB. If I can't get away with it, I will have to shave a few dollars off. I'm more than happy to keep this guy with me until the end of spring though LOL he's SO cute. A bit unsure with my method of feeding with tweezers, but he loved his shrimps  

I know I promised a gallery, but all I managed was pics of the newcomers  this week turned out to be crazier than I thought. Here's a bad photo of Pepper, whose dorsal fin is starting to unfurl but my camera cannot show ><



And this is the fancy PK male, now named Liberty





Katie's girl Lavender. Her last pics with me before she left.



She came bloated =\ but she pooped fine 



The three other imports that didn't make it


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## SydneyA

Is it ok to out myself as a buyer and adopter? Copper whose real name will be Casino and Liberty should be winging their way to me soon. It's just across a few counties so hopefully they have a safe trip!


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## Olivia27

Yay for an actual name! Now I know what to call him XD


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## Olivia27

Maiden has been delivered. Still waiting to hear whether or not she made it safely  so I can't breathe just yet. Sith has arrived in Michigan. Lav and Safi... Lav and Safi's tracking hasn't been updated since yesterday at dawn. We're getting a little worried now tbh but I do hope they'll be alright. The import boys' seller is out of town so I won't hear about my refund decision until Monday at least. Lucky, Casino, Liberty, Pepper and Lucy is doing really well. I will clean their tanks once I got home. Casino and Liberty will leave Saturday, and then Lucy leaves on Wednesday. That leaves Pep and Lucky. I might as well keep it that way and get my study desk back. But we'll see. 

Willow is pooping really large poops. I wonder if she's constipated =\ but she's swimming fine. Seren is... Still Seren LOL the little tumor thing under her mouth didn't hold her back one bit. I sure hope it won't progress. Merah's heater has officially quit. I ordered a 25w Theo from Big Al's for $25. It pains me because Sith's 50w Theo was only $15... But desperate times call for desperate measures. Tomorrow is SNE... Meaning I will be dumping more money off my pockets. I also still need that Stingray. The crypts in Merah's tank is either growing in snail speed, or has stopped growing altogether. Why is it that nothing goes right for me =\

In other news, you guys might not hear much from me today whether from the forum or Facebook. I have a lot of papers to write, and there's a bit of drama going on with my best friend ._. Typical teenage stuff. But I'll sort stuff out ASAP!


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## OUOhYeah2016

I'm really hoping for the best with Lavender and Saphira... But good luck with the papers and the drama. It's not just teenage stuff, trust me. It follows you into your 20s too.


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## feistygirl

Maiden arrived here safe and sound. :-D She's been acclimated to her new home (the 5 gallon), feed, and is settling in quite nicely. Oh gosh she's so lovely! She's a dream!  Thanks again!


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## SydneyA

I have had a terribly dramatic morning. It never really ends,just changes.


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## Olivia27

Yay for Maiden arriving safe and sound! Now only if the rest of the gang can follow the trend...

I'm about 40% through school work now. Had to stop to clean out poop from the foster tanks, and add floater plants into the unfiltered permanent tanks. Willow and Merah are still unsure of their brand new green "roof", but at least both has accepted that it's not edible LOL 

I need to go to Petco today. I need to pick up gravels. I'm also eyeing their banana plants (again) and perhaps some Java Fern if they happen to have one. My Petco doesn't do their best with Bettas, but they sure do with live plants. They have two separate plants-only tank with filter and gravel and all. Last I checked, they have really beautiful banana plants for only about $3.50 each. I have a hard time saying no to these funny little things. I may or may not end up buying another one through SNE tomorrow night LOL 

There's only one problem: while it is extra warm out today, the wind has been crazy. I don't really like walking out when the wind is strong enough to make walking forward difficult =\ the original plan was to do homework in the dining hall across the road because they have free wifi, but I don't feel like going outside. We'll see if it settles down later. I may come back with Betta pics... 

... or another bought-to-sell one x)


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## Olivia27

OK no Petco trip for me yesterday. The wind was insane. In Chicago it reached a record number of 69mph, shattering windows in one office building. And yes, it IS 3:40 AM right now. I fell asleep early and woke up at 10 PM, picked up the phone to talk to my friends back home (we're exactly 12 hours apart so that works) and then rolled around the bed thinking about all the fish in the mail, and all the fish supplies I need to buy. I've decided that I'm not gonna get that Stingray for now. I can tour Ace Hardware tomorrow morning for a clip-on mini desk lamp. That should do for a bunch of crypts, a carpet of mixed floaters, and a lone Anubias minima. Speaking of, I have yet to show you guys how Merah's tank look like, haven't I? Well, here is everybody's tank:

Merah, unfiltered 3.2g. There are more plants in the background, but the dark tannin-stained water hid them from view. But yes, he DOES need more plants. I'm itching to get him more crypts. Also: I hate the aquascaping on this thing. I'm fixing it ASAP



Also, here's a bad photo of our little celebrity. I can't believe it's been so long since I put up a pic of Merah. I used to do it almost every day. Merah's becoming really hard to photograph. Beside the dark water, he's getting less patient with the camera and more interested in greeting each one of his pet crypts.



Willow, unfiltered 2.6g. I just added the floaters this morning. Do think that will be my final addition to this tank until I upgrade the tenant to something larger next semester. Oh and yes, I do notice that heater looks ugly sitting there. But the suction cups it came with were useless, and I'm the only person that gets to admire these tanks anyway.



Seren, filtered 5.5g. I'm getting her more banana plants on tomorrow's Petco trip. I'm also trying to figure out what other large, tall plants to add here. It became too open after my L. repens bunch died on me =\ 



Pepper is sleepy





Or not! This one photo was the result of me randomly hitting the camera button about a dozen times. 



Most of the results look like this



Liberty! Dang, only if this guy would pose right, or better yet flare for me. He has a smooth topline, but he was so stressed when he arrived I marked an "arched back" on his notes. Love, love his vents. This little dude, along with Casino, is leaving today. That is, once it's properly morning.



This is a horrible photo but I wanted to include both Liberty and his bubble nest (top right corner) in one shot XD I tried to coax him to pose a little closer to his artwork, but he's having none of it. Might has something to do with the fact that it's 3 AM. So... Consider it a photo of me showcasing my children's book collection



Lucy has stress stripes  not sure why or how.



Ever wonder how long Casino's fins are?



I tried to get him to strike a nicer pose but he won't even look at the camera 



Last but not least, my favorite out of all the scaly guests: Lucky

"I made this!"



Bad photo, but I just love love love butterflies <3 



Speaking of butterflies, Sith is arriving *today*. His tracking information hasn't been updated since yesterday morning though so goodness knows what time will he get here  the import boys actually made it here before noon, so the possibility is there. Either ways I'm gonna have to put him in Liberty's 3gal (after the colorful little guy leaves) for a short while. His 5gal is only halfway through the cycle: 0.25 ammo, 5 nitrites, 0 nitrates. I suppose my previous luck with reading nitrates within 48 hours was a one-time thing, then =\


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## SydneyA

So excited! Safe travels for my new guys!


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## Olivia27

It's one of those days.

Sith was DOA. So now I'm left with a fully cycled (misread nitrates last night) tank and no fish :'( he's a beautiful, beautiful little thing. Do think the box got too warm as we suddenly got hit with an all-time high. Back on the blue butterfly hunt, I suppose. I'm in no rush to get a replacement. But I'm keeping the name Sith, so I'll let the name hang on my signature for a while.

Lavender and Saphira was delivered about an hour ago, almost two days early. They are now happily exploring their divided 10gal. Saph was reported to quickly adapt to her much larger environment and made use of the silk plants to navigate. Lavender is fat. No changes there.

Sydney was kind enough to adopt Pepper on the last minute, so I sent out 3 boys this morning. Liberty, Casino, and little Pep. It was warm out so I walked to the post office instead of calling a cab. Their box has huge LIVE FISH writings on all sides. People's reactions were the highlight of my day. I suppose I've been in the fish keeping world a little too long now. I forgot how funny putting fish in a box can be to outsiders. 

And so with Pepper gone I'm left with Lucy and Lucky. Lucy is still stripey. I'm not happy. She's active and playful, but as skittish as a wild rabbit. And she's been with me... What, two weeks now? Gee, I do wish she'd be a little more confident =\ As for Lucky... I'm telling ya folks, the more time I spend with Lucky the more I am tempted to keep him. But he's worth too much. 

I may bring home a couple of really nice CT girls to sell later today. I just came back from Petco to pick up banana plants. I need some way to earn back all the money I've lost. This week reeks of death. I almost feel like each time I say "I'm so done with this week" I end up with an even worse week to follow. 

Speaking of, I spotted a marble blue BF in my Petco. He's almost perfect. But his caudal has the world's thinnest butterfly band, contrary to the dorsal and anal that has a nice 50/50 separation. A bit on the fence now. We'll see. Fish don't sell fast in my store. I have time to think. 

On the bright side of things, I checked my bank account and saw that I earned more at work than I estimated. Not that my spendings are at an all-time low either, but at least I'm not gonna be scavenging for food on the dumpster anytime soon.


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## SydneyA

I'm so sorry for your doa.  there is some bad juju this week. Glad you will be able to eat though


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## Olivia27

Thanks Sydney  the search goes on. 

Anyway. I lost a lot of money with all these deaths. So I got these two little ones to sell. Meet Violet and Sammy

Still clamped



I waited for fifteen whole minutes for her to drop her vents =\ 



Love her purple hues  it extends to her vents too



And Sammy, which if I am not mistaken, is a Samurai cello







Other Bettas I met on my trip tonight:

I really really wanted to get this guy. But he's too expensive =\ 



The other CT girl I was about to pick up. But then I decided that I don't like her body shape. That top line is as flat as an ironing board.



Our EE collection











This guy's got to be Sammy's brother



And then, there's this guy. He's one of those moral conflict stories. On one hand, I want to pick him up so bad. Just because he's deformed, and no one would ever buy him. But on the other hand, I don't want to encourage the practice of selling deformed fish. If breeders see that people will buy whatever they throw into the shelves, then they will cull less =\ on top of all that, he's just GOT to be a DT too. Poor dude.

edit: just realized the photo is dark. This guy has a seriously deformed spine. If I ever manage to get a photo with better lighting you'll see.


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## SydneyA

Holy moly Sammy is amazing.


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## Olivia27

Hehee isn't he? I'm not a cello person, but form wise he's the best on the rack. I'm more excited about Violet though. I like her body shape, and only if I can catch her flaring on camera, her caudal overlaps the dorsal and anal nicely. No funky rays that extend farther than the other, no bent rays, sharp little pair of vents... Darn! 

Sammy has a broad, forward dorsal which I love. But he has a single wonky ray on there and an uneven caudal edges. I *think* his anal is too long as well. Not sure, haven't caught him posing properly. There's also that dip right behind his dorsal which I have a bad feeling about. But all in all, he's not bad.


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## SydneyA

I need more room, Haha


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## NightStars

That yellow elephant ear, soo pretty!


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## Olivia27

NightStars said:


> That yellow elephant ear, soo pretty!


Isn't he! Now only if he's not $15 =\ I consider that yellow EE an acquaintance now. I've seen him before, almost a month ago. He was bought and then promptly returned. Not sure why, he's still feisty and healthy when returned. I mean, either that or the store received an exact copy of the first yellow EE I saw. But how many Bettas out there are exact copies of one another? Even the uniform-looking solid-colored VTs have unique traits.

Anyway.

I made the switch to sand with my empty 5gal. Following that, I burnt half of this month's paycheck on last night's SNE :roll: don't judge LOL I'm picking up extra shifts already. I haven't checked my payroll website yet, but I have a feeling I got a slight raise. Last I checked my bank account I made more than estimated. Better celebrate with plants :lol:

Miss Violet is still clamped today =\ she refused the frozen bloodworm flat out and doesn't move much. I sure hope she's just shocked with her new environment. I can't handle any more losses. I've lost enough. 

Sammy is doing great though. If these two gets sold, I'd only need to make one more small profit to make up for the DOA imports. So if you know anyone who's got a tank but no fish...

I finally hear back from the import boys' seller. He doesn't do refunds, only replacements. He'll show me my replacement options tomorrow. I'm kinda leaning towards getting something like a HM or HMPK instead of another HMDT honestly, but I haven't asked yet if that's OK. I still need to pay import fee, so I'm super reluctant to receive three replacements. I'd rather get one whose price equals all the dead three boys combined. But even then, I would have no choice but to pick Priority on domestic shipping. Crossing my fingers and toes I won't end up needing a replacement for the replacement fish >< on the bright side of things, though, my mega awesome trans shipper is talking to FedEx to see if I can get my $45 back. Since it's overnight, there should be a refund policy of some sort. 

*sigh*

Why is it that overseas sellers on Facebook don't put up their entire policy like they do in AB? Had I known he doesn't do refunds I would have shopped elsewhere. 

I'll keep you guys posted on what my replacement would look like.


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## BettaStarter24

If he has a blue Butterfly boy whose value equals all three dead guys... 

hope everything works out. 

Sammy is gorgeous. Unfortunately I'm broke and am in the process of trying to downsize as my guys pass on. My goal is to have my 5, 5.5, and 10g still running for a good period of time but to get rid of my smaller tanks.


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## Olivia27

^ now why haven't I thought of that? O_O I will definitely ask if he has a blue BF! Eeep!


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## SydneyA

I had the post office hold my fish box so it would not sit on the truck until 3pm. Then all the postal workers crowded around and begged me to open the box so they could see. It was so funny and they were nice for once so I agreed. Perfectly packed warm fishies, all bright and swimming! I got Pepper,Casino and Liberty. They are acclimating. Olivia did a great job packing them up and I will definitely get fish from her again. Thank you!


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## Olivia27

Yaay! Post pictures when you get the chance 

Sammy is going out today. And I should get better pics of Violet up. Saw someone looking for a female on a Facebook group.


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## SydneyA

Liberty is extremely perky.


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## SydneyA

Casino is still coloring up but is quite lively.


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## SydneyA

Pepper may be the most gorgeous "regular" red betta I have ever seen. He's never still either.


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## OUOhYeah2016

They all look fantastic! Glad everyone got there safely!


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## themamaj

Just catching up. Sorry about DOA. Liberty is gorgeous! Pepper has made great improvements and looks so good! Love new girl with purple fins. Sammy is also very cute but especially loved the guy that could be Sammy's brother! Love his markings. So pretty!


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## Olivia27

Sammy's plausible brother will come home with me tonight if he's still there. I'm not the biggest fan of his form compared to Sammy, but he's "more koi" which may make up for it. Violet is annoying. She's still refusing food, which I'm not happy about =\

Thanks a lot for the photo updates, Sydney! Here's to a long happy life!


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## themamaj

Post some pictures of Sammy's brother when get him home.


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## Tealight03

I would snatch Sammy's brother up if I didn't have two on the way from Lil. Hope he finds a good home!


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## Olivia27

I have one photo of Sammy's plausible brother in the Marketplace sale thread  unfortunately he arrived very stressed and even today he's still cowering below the heater and darting around whenever I come near to the tank walls  so I don't think it's fair to put him through a photo session so soon. Especially since I will probably use a mirror or float Violet with him for that. Since he's more koi than Sammy, I decided to take on a Japanese name stemming from the word "koi" (love). So he is now Kokoro (heart)  super creative, I know.

I finally had time to contact the overseas seller today. Let's see if he has that blue BF. If not I may as well pick whatever fish with "fancy" coloration and nice form, perhaps keep on picking up bought-to-sells for a short while after...

... And then keep Lucky. 

Why is it that I have no will power? >< He's not even an -actual- blue BF. He has yellow cheeks (which are adorable) and he has started marbling already. But he's so... So... Cute @[email protected]

Anyway. I'm not happy with the progress Merah is making on his fins. It felt like he grew a mile of new fins each day back then. But now the regrowth sorta stagnates. I barely see regrowth tissue anymore. So when spring break comes I think I'm putting him back on tannin schedule (right now he has Rooibos too but I take it out every third day, and then replace it if necessary) or even perhaps MB baths again. I'll ask around.

I'm gonna be super busy these next few days. I got to clear out my entire Saturday-Sunday schedule for a sit-down-and-talk with my best friend who suddenly teleported to another part of the world without telling me a single damn thing. I'm fuming already just thinking about it >< but I do want to hear everything, so I'm gonna make sure I don't have anything to do on the weekend. It's a nice way to fast forward through all the stuff I've been piling on my desk, but it also means I need to read five books, write and edit all their reviews, write two reflection papers, finish a work sheet and get at least a skeleton going for my midterm paper ALL within tomorrow through Friday. Should be fun.


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## Olivia27

I just got out of my night shift. So I suppose it's time for another late night update! Yay!

First off: I should hear today whether or not Sammy made it safely to his new home. A bit nervous, but he should technically be fine.

Second off: the seller doesn't have a blue BF after all. I told him about the idea of condensing all three DOAs' value in exchange of only one fish, but I suppose I forgot that I got those five on a clearance sale. Not only does he have no blue BF available, but he also has no fish valued so low. That is, until he introduced me to his "weird fish" - a pastel BF RT, that he's giving away for free. I was just gonna take that guy and run with it (his photo is in the Show Bettas section, in the critique thread) but then I got offered two more deals. The first is an almost-MG HM boy that I got for basically nothing. And then a copper HM with red vents that is slightly more pricey than the almost-MG, but his import fee was zero. So yeah. Needless to say I now have three babies coming my way.

After Kokoro, Violet and Lucy leaves I'm taking in no more bought-to-sells. I gotta clear up room for these three imports to come in. I haven't heard back whether or not my last overnight shipping fee can get refunded (somehow I heard it's possible with some companies) but if so, then Lucky is staying. He's gonna be renamed to Sith, taking in my last DOA boy's "title". But if not, then he sadly has to go too. The right blue BF should come along one day 

I have finished the midterm paper skeleton. Tomorrow I will make sure all those book reviews get done, and then somehow I'll find time to work out the rest on Thursday and Friday morning. Friday afternoon a potential subleaser is going to visit my apartment. Should be fun explaining all the tanks - both hospitals and permanents. Hope I won't get carried away and end up giving a lecture about fish keeping ._.

Speaking of, I went to a different classroom this afternoon at my student-teaching site, and saw two fish tanks. One is a half-filled 20 high (even higher than the Aqueon or Tetra cheap lidless tanks design) full of guppies and a single riparium plant. Another one is a 1gal MiniBow with filter, gravels, one decoration, and a male multi VT who is obviously tail biting. No heater. Because *of course*. I'm tempted to ask about the VT boy's care, but everyone was too busy handling fifteen kids running around. 

I sure wish I can snap pics. He's *gorgeous*. Purple and red, with a BO count that rivals Petco's Kings. Maybe later in the semester I can ask.


----------



## Olivia27

*Kokoro*

So this little dude is spoken for  I haven't tried to get an "AB-worthy" photo just yet but these are some bad photos.

That one red dot on his lips made him look constantly worried LOL





Yeeesh someone's fin biting!



I hate how this photo is blurry, but I really want to show you guys his vents - because the koi markings extend all the way there! Eep!


----------



## themamaj

Good pictures. I like the name you picked out.


----------



## Olivia27

Hehee I do make good names every once in a while  

So it's official. No refund from FedEx. The three replacements will have to travel on Priority =\ hopefully they will be fine.

My SNE hoard arrived today. The crypt wendtii lot are much larger than I expected, so now I have four sitting in a bowl with nowhere to go. If you want really huge green wendtiis let me know. They can all go for $8

In another news my 5gal is now fully planted. The pelvicachromis cave has two Anubias and two small balls of crypt parva glued onto the top, and cute little baby parvas surrounding the sides of the walls. Halfway through the very front of the tank is a line of N. Taiwan, and on the opposing half on the very back is a slightly larger baby N. Taiwan. As a centerpiece, three almost fully-grown Anubias barteri. I sat back with dried glue all over my fingers (I'm talking Seachem Flourish Glue by the way LOL not gorilla glue or super glue) to admire my work, decided that everything looks okay, and then plugged the filter back on. 

Chaos.

My background N. Taiwan got sucked in immediately. One of the centerpiece Anubias tilted badly towards the current, leaving the rhizome uprooting the foreground N. Taiwan like a kung fu swipe kick. The little house with funny green roof looks fine for now, but I'm gonna need to install that Stingray ASAP or everything will rot away. Sometimes I do wonder why is it that I like the Tetra Whisper series so much. I feel like if I hook them up on a bag and a handle they'd make a good vacuum cleaner for sure. 

We have a mini snow storm today, so no classes. The real snow storm is down in Chicago area. But it doesn't look like anyone's hurt. My friend who works in Chicago got sent home early from work, so that's definitely not a bad thing XD happy snow day, everyone!

Also: I'm gonna need nicknames for these three. Wait, actually, just the last two. The first one is spoken for. Suggestions welcome!


----------



## Seaman2012

My little Sammy arrived healthy and happy! I caught a picture of him looking at me! I love him!


----------



## Olivia27

OMG I can't believe I forgot to update that Sammy arrived OK! Glad he's doing well!

EDIT: copper maybe-RT-maybe-HM with red wash is now also spoken for.


----------



## Tealight03

Any guess as to how tall the crypts are? I might be interested.


----------



## Olivia27

Realized that I can't make up any guesses so took them out of QT


----------



## Olivia27

I feel like I live in a snow globe. 

The snow reaches all the way up to my knees, and the wind is blowing like someone's trying to uproot the entire city off the face of the Earth. It's crazy. I'm a tropical human >< get me outta here! 

In another news, I went and shipped off the crypts today. The wisteria and purple Cabomba should be ready to be added into Seren's tank, so I would have my big bowl back. Shoutout to Tealight03 for taking the crypts off my hand so quickly  they should get to you either Saturday or next Monday. Let me know if PayPal didn't email you the tracking. 

Now why is it that I want my big bowl back ASAP? Because once again I have more fish than I have tanks. Someone's gonna have to float in a bowl, or in a breeder box. The three imports got shipped today. Lucy's purchase fell through, Violet isn't attracting any eyes yet, Kokoro is sticking around for a short while, and Lucky is not so lucky with finding a buyer. But since I do have my 5 up and running, if he still doesn't sell by the end of his third repost on AB, against my better judgment I'd allow him to stay. He may has to stay in the 5 for now anyway. One import is sticking around until his buyer is ready for him. Another is not yet sold, and may as well stick around for a little while because I'm not letting him go so cheap. The last import - if all goes well - should head to his owner's home ASAP. So that's one boy in a breeder box, and another occupying Lucky's current foster tank. If the one that should leave soon needs to spend the night, I would need both my small and big bowl available so I can still do water changes even if one of them is used as housing.

I haven't fixed the aquascaping in the 5. Last I checked things got worse. The crypt parva surrounding the cave has floated away too. I'm trying to ignore it. I got three more books to read and review. But the sight of a messed up tank is annoying me to no end ><

*sigh*

My potential summer subleaser is visiting tomorrow. I'm extra nervous. Who wants to live in a miniature SeaWorld? ><


----------



## Netti

Olivia27 said:


> My potential summer subleaser is visiting tomorrow. I'm extra nervous. Who wants to live in a miniature SeaWorld? ><


I would :-D
Maybe you're lucky and he or she is one of us! (Someone who loves Bettas)


----------



## Tealight03

Thanks for shipping so quickly! Glad I freed some space up for you. 

My apartment is feeling like mini Seaworld too.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Not sure why Violet hasn't attracted as much attention! I love her... Good luck moving everyone on though!


----------



## themamaj

I would live in Sea World. Actually i kindof do... could give aquarium tours lol. I bet your lease person will probably be impressed by your tanks. I understand frustration with plants.


----------



## Olivia27

I think I figured what's wrong with my 5. I'm using sand on it, and apparently most people do 1-2". I'm super sure my sand depth isn't even an inch  so that's probably why everything's floating away. But on the bright side of things (literally) I did the Maths and found that I can afford a Finnex Stingray. _A_ Stingray. So that's lighting for my 5, and nothing for my 3. Poor Merah. To keep the plants alive I've been taking out his tank and putting it in a brighter spot for 6-7 hours per day. He must be really confused x)

Here's the 5 as of now. See all that chaos? I'm not fixing it. Nope. Not until tomorrow or so.


----------



## Olivia27

Sorry for the double post, I can only put up one pic at a time through my phone. Anyway. Here's today's kicker: I found a fifth crypt 

*facepalm* *screams into pillow*

I wondered if I only sent three to Tealight, but this one doesn't look like any of the four I took pics of last night. So... Yeah. If you want one mature Cryptocoryne Pontederiifolia (I noticed I called them wendtii on the last entry, which they are not) let me know. It's healthy and growing. The leaves may not look pretty now because of the shipping but it should quickly grow some more. Pontis are skinny and tall rosette plant with huge broad leaves, making them a nice background filler. Their tall leaves reach the surface, so they also make a nice natural Betta hammock. Being a crypt, these guys are low light plants. That said they're a greedy root feeder and would benefit from root tabs or iron tabs every 2-3 months. Flourish won't do much for these guys.

I'll take any offer. As an estimate, I got a similarly sized species from JD for something like $6.50. But I got this one in a package deal so I only paid $1. Shipping is a flat $7.

I thought of keeping it for a moment there, but all four tanks are maxed out on space for rooted plants. Check out Seren's after the wisteria and purple cabomba got added!


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

@themamaj I LOVE SeaWorld... I spent my birthday there in Orlando last year. I know they get a bad rep, but I have a lot of really great childhood memories there.


----------



## ThatFishThough

Now I wish my parents would let me buy from you; I would take every. single. one. of your girls. Except Seren.


----------



## themamaj

OUOhYeah2016 said:


> @themamaj I LOVE SeaWorld... I spent my birthday there in Orlando last year. I know they get a bad rep, but I have a lot of really great childhood memories there.


What a great place to celebrate bday! I have only been once but loved it especially feeding dolphins. Sea Lions were precious and shows amazing. I would love to do like a trainer for a day or behind scenes tour. Another place dying to visit is Clearwater Aquaruim in Tampa where Winter the dolphin is. I love going to aquariums.I probably need to go one day by myself. I usually have kids with me that want to run through exhibition as I saying wait...let me see the fish lol. I could spend hours just observing different ones. Ok professing fish geek haha!


----------



## Olivia27

Violet is spoken for! Wooo! Now who's gonna get Lucy? Third time is the charm, no?


----------



## themamaj

Yeah glad to hear Violet has a home ! Cheering for Lucy...now who out ther can say "I love Lucy" and give her great home? How's that for advertising


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

@themamaj I love the Shedd Aquarium back home in Chicago. Whenever my friends come to visit that's always a stop I make sure happens.

@Olivia Good! I'm admittedly jealous, but good! lol


----------



## Olivia27

In Chicago! Is it far from the airport? I'm flying home from O'Hare this summer, and because bus schedules are just funny like that I had no choice but to spend a night in Chicago. I forgot if I would have that much free time or not (planning an international trip is just... no. Just no) but if yes, eeeep! Aquarium!! <3 

Speaking of, Violet is going home with a forum member again LOL beginning to wonder when will I ever sell/adopt out a fish to an outsider XD I'm happier about it though. I was expecting her to be bought as a breeder, and I've been trying really hard not to imagine the chances of her getting injured or killed during the spawning process. But luck sticks with her like a tail and she's bought as a pet. Woo!


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

The Shedd is by the lake and O'Hare is pretty far out. If you have a day it's a possible trip though. They have baby otters so yeah it's a wonderful place.


----------



## Olivia27

Aww that's too far then I guess 

Sad news: Violet passed away last night. I've informed her buyer  her round belly was hemorrhaging badly, to the point my tissue turns brown when I pick up the body. My guess is that she's not eggy after all. It's probably a tumor, and last night it ruptured  poor girl. Only if I caught on earlier.

I'm planning to visit Petco today to buy my friend's new puppy a chew toy. I'm tempted to pick up another little girl to sell but I seriously doubt there's any that can beat Violet. She looked like she came straight out of a Thai breeder. Such a shame


----------



## Netti

It makes me very sad to hear that. She was such a pretty little girl, and I was so glad you had found a buyer.


----------



## themamaj

So sorry. SIP Violet


----------



## Olivia27

And the day got progressively worse. I found a cute little blue BF on eBay who's stagnating at $11.50 with 1 day left. I was *about* to bid when my bank called informing me of a recent transaction. Amazon charged my card $51.92 for Prime membership - because my free subscription period has ended. I was under the impression that Amazon Student gives you one year free subscription but as it turns out, it's only 6 months. I can't even get a new power strip until next pay day now. Let alone the blue BF of my dreams =\ here he is


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

If you call Amazon they'll take the charge off and take away your prime, unless you want to keep it, in which case yeah they charge you.


----------



## Olivia27

Then I should totally call D: thanks!

Edit: they have a button for it! The refund will be sent in 3 days! Squeee!


----------



## SydneyA

Poor violet. I'm pulling my crown tail female and treating her. She hugely fat. I don't know what's up but something is wrong.


----------



## Olivia27

Sorry to hear about your girl Sydney  it's not a good fish week yet again. Hoping for the best xx 

As for the blue BF, he's way out of my reach now. I got my fifty bucks back, but someone placed a $31 bid on him! Really now?? $31 on a $11.50 starting point? That's before shipping, too =\ 

But oh well. Perhaps it's just not meant to be. I put another boy on my watch list. He's a blue orchid (like Lucky) BF Super DeT bred by Prism Bettas. So he's not exactly a look-a-like of the last boy, but he still caught my eye. His starting bid is $15 with five days left, and one other person watching. We'll see. If he stays below $20 until Monday I'll bid. 

Here's the lil' guy (don't bid please XD )

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281945309203?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

I'm pretty sure you can message them and they'll take the auction down if you say you want him.... I think I heard that somewhere.


----------



## Olivia27

Messaged Prism Bettas on FB. Guy is not a BF anymore. I do know that BF is not a stable pattern, but still... It'll be nice to have them looking BF for at least a short while x)

I decided to fix my 5 today. Added sand, re planted all the parva, and moved all the N. Taiwan no matter big or small to the foreground. I sorta feel like I'm gonna regret that once they grow to full size, but right now it looks cute that way. I was about to move Lucky in, but luckily I decided to do a water test first. Lo and behold, the tank has lost its cycle. Ammo is at 2 (I'm guessing from the plant matter), nitrite at 0.25 and nitrates at 0. Just. G-r-e-a-t. I added 5 ml of Quick Start. Hope the plants would at least remove all the ammo to make the tank habitable. Once the imports arrive, I need Lucky to move in.

Speaking of the imports...

It's Saturday now, and I haven't heard whether they've made it to MN or not  I hope they're alright.

Here's the 5 as of now. The theme is supposedly "little house on the prairie". But I have a feeling that will soon change to "the jungle book". Can't wait to see this tank under LED lighting.


----------



## Tealight03

I've definitely gotten frustrated with their being ammonia in a planted tank. It's not supposed to work that way lol.


----------



## Olivia27

Lol ikr. Changed my mind again. Now the N. Taiwan are scattered around instead of lining up on the foreground. My Stingray arrived but I need to get a new power strip first. My Hydor Theo is waiting on the local UPS store. Time to toss Merah's off-brand heater in exchange of a "real" one. Koo Yang just got back to me. The imports will reach MN by Monday, and then to me by Thursday. Let's see if I can get my shift that day covered. I don't want to leave them the way I did last time =\

The UPS store is right across the road from Petco. I'll see if I meet anyone interesting today. 

I'm running out of internet data real quick. But I should be able to do a gallery once I got free wifi. Kokoro is doing really well. Still shy, but a lot less skittish now. Lucy has lost her stress stripes, but hasn't found a buyer yet. Lucky is on his second round in AB. Wish them luck x


----------



## Olivia27

Oh.

My.

*bleep*ing.

Goodness.

Gosh.

UPS messed up my package!! OMG why is it that every single time I have something delivered via UPS it's always like pulling a tooth to get it?? I received a "sorry we missed you" slip noting that my item is on the nearest store. I visited the store and the clerk can't find anything under my name. So I gave him the tracking number, he punched it into the computer, and told me that it's being held on their "main hub" because there's an issue with my address. 

Issue with my address, he said.

SURE. The same issue with finding my door to stick that stupid slip on, right?! Aaaaargh >< FedEx, you're our last hope. Don't mess up or I'd start keeping storks and pigeons to deliver my mail!

Uuuugh I placed too much trust on UPS. I've tossed Merah's off-brand heater already. Lil' dude needs to float on somebody's tank tonight then. Said 'main hub' closes before noon during Saturday, and I can bet money it won't be open on Sunday. I'll call Monday, and even if they're willing to redeliver it won't be the same day. Merah really likes Seren. He flirted nonstop when his tank was still right next to hers. Might be his lucky day, then. But I don't know if Seren likes him. Should I try him with Willow? But Willow is the embodiment of "mean". Oh goodness. Oh UPS, would you look at what you've done!

One of my books is late. I got to find a new book to read and review before midnight now. I also still got a work sheet to submit, but it's a rather short one. I'll survive. Right? I'll survive. Hopefully. The subleasers visit went smoothly yesterday. They didn't ask as many questions as I expected, and completely ignored the crazy amount of tanks I have on display. See? Things are going well. I'm fine. I'm fine, I'm fine, I'm fine... 

... I've just had part one of my sit-down-and-talk with my best friend. Contrary to the expected result, I went from calm to near fuming again. Sometimes I truly wonder why is it that I have friends ._. animals are much better. 

The promised gallery:

Mr. Kokoro (buyer hasn't proposed an actual name yet)





Creepy face... 



Sweet Lucky



Marbling on the edges of the fins...





Princess Lucy with her sparkly green irid



I need a photo tank instead of just snapping pics of the gang in their actual tanks =\



This little lady just doesn't stop moving!



Kokoro's blue irid!


----------



## SydneyA

Amazon billed me for my regular Prime $99 at a most inconvenient time, lol. I paid it because I buy so often from Amazon, but it hurt, lol.


----------



## SydneyA

Liberty saying hi with his gorgeous self and Casino eating frog food being naughty. Pepper was feeling antisocial.


----------



## themamaj

Olivia27 said:


> Sorry to hear about your girl Sydney  it's not a good fish week yet again. Hoping for the best xx
> 
> As for the blue BF, he's way out of my reach now. I got my fifty bucks back, but someone placed a $31 bid on him! Really now?? $31 on a $11.50 starting point? That's before shipping, too =\
> 
> But oh well. Perhaps it's just not meant to be. I put another boy on my watch list. He's a blue orchid (like Lucky) BF Super DeT bred by Prism Bettas. So he's not exactly a look-a-like of the last boy, but he still caught my eye. His starting bid is $15 with five days left, and one other person watching. We'll see. If he stays below $20 until Monday I'll bid.
> 
> Here's the lil' guy (don't bid please XD )
> 
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/281945309203?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT


He is a beauty! I hope you get him.


----------



## themamaj

Olivia, could you go ahead and send me a paypal statement. I would like to take care of that today if possible. Love the pictures. Still haven't decided on name.


----------



## Olivia27

themamaj said:


> Olivia, could you go ahead and send me a paypal statement. I would like to take care of that today if possible. Love the pictures. Still haven't decided on name.


Okay! You should see it after 2 PM today


----------



## themamaj

Olivia27 said:


> Okay! You should see it after 2 PM today



thanks!


----------



## Tealight03

I got the plants. Thanks!


----------



## Olivia27

Yay for the plants making it safely! Decided to keep the fifth crypt around. Floated some Cabomba instead of rooting them down for space. I don't have much to say so no updates for now but the end of this week should be mega interesting. Stay tuned for the big news


----------



## Olivia27

OK I just got to share. So Merah is floating in a bowl in Willow's tank, right? Because of UPS and all the heater issues. Willow's tank is the 2.6 Top Fin glass cube, so there's not much surface space left when the bowl is floating. This is the reason why I chose it, speaking of, because there's less chance of the bowl becoming unstable and pouring Merah out. Anyway. It's cleaning day for the smaller permanent tanks, and I decided that it's a great idea to just slip the siphon between the tank wall and Merah's bowl. But of course I soon realize that I need my hand right on the edge of the siphon so I can suck in all the poops and plant matter. I noticed that my hand tipped Merah's bowl around a little bit, so I used one finger to hold it up, while the rest of the fingers work the siphon. Works, right? 

Nope.

Ten seconds later I realized that I can't find Willow. I looked into the bowl, and sure enough there are TWO fish in there. I felt like my heart jumped up to my mouth. Immediately I scooped Willow out (catching her was probably the longest five seconds in my life), and took Merah's bowl under the brighter kitchen light so I can check for injuries. 

There are none. 

I ran back into my room to check on Willow. There are still no signs of injury or stress. Huge sigh of relief. Continue vacuuming. Set up empty mini KK. Put Merah in KK. Freak out. No more floating bowls.

I knew Merah wouldn't hurt Wil. But I suppose I never expected Willow to be equally mild. This is the same girl that uprooted an entire crypt just because she's determined to eat it. Nobody even flared to each other. They just swam in unison, Merah above and Willow underneath him. It's almost like they don't notice each other's presence. Meanwhile I frantically tried to catch Willow, caught Merah instead, put him back down, tried again, missed, scooped the right fish out successfully, and dropped her back into her tank. Talking about heart attack!


----------



## themamaj

Bless your heart. I would have had heart attack too. Glad everyone ok. Could have been some love in air for those two


----------



## katalindia

Phew!! Good thing you noticed so quickly


----------



## Seaman2012

New pic of Sammy saying good morning haha


----------



## SydneyA

He's gorgeous!


----------



## Seaman2012

And new pic of Romeo! I'll take one of Graydy in a few  all three boys are doing awesome!


----------



## Seaman2012

Here's Graydy boy..I can't wait for your copper Halfmoon to arrive! So happy I am getting him!


----------



## Olivia27

Thanks for updating me on the boys! 

Ouch, I see Romeo tore his caudal. The downside of long fins, I suppose. Might wanna remove anything potentially sharp in his tank


----------



## Seaman2012

I will for sure and I make sure to keep their water pristine  graydys fins are growing nicely


----------



## Seaman2012

I named the new copper Halfmoon that I am purchasing from you Anarchy


----------



## themamaj

Sam has the cutest flaring face! How is Kokoro this am? Looking fwd to seeing him next week  Any potential adopters on Lucy? I sure hope she gets a home soon. Crowntail females are the cutest with their spikey tails!


----------



## Olivia27

Kokoro is a hyperactive little thing lol just can't sit still even for a minute. And no, nobody's taking Lucy yet  thinking of putting her up on AB soon.

Anarchy. Got it!


----------



## themamaj

Olivia27 said:


> Kokoro is a hyperactive little thing lol just can't sit still even for a minute. And no, nobody's taking Lucy yet  thinking of putting her up on AB soon.
> 
> Anarchy. Got it!



Good to hear so active!


----------



## Seaman2012

I would love to breed Anarchy with one of my beautiful Halfmoon females since he has excellent form and would produce beautiful babies


----------



## Olivia27

I wouldn't breed Anarchy. He's dumped on me for a reason. Too many bent rays all over his fins. Miiight be environmental, but chances are it's genetic. In short: he's an x-factor. Unless you want to cull the entire spawn for chances of carrying the geno, I'd find another male.


----------



## Olivia27

Aaalright! Gallery day! One of my class got cancelled for weather and I finished studying earlier than I thought, so I decided to hold a photo session for everyone. 

... That is, only Lucky and Kokoro before I give up and just snap pics of everyone else in their own tanks. 

Here's Lucky



Lucky says "ooooh!"



Lucky says "kissy kissy"



Lucky's belly is now yellowish, like his cheeks. 





I was aiming for one of those super cool turning photo people took ._. but the result was not as expected



Don't you just love Lucky's eyes? They look... Almost human-like.



Kokoro's anal does not have a missing piece anymore  



Again with the worried look... LOL



Now only if he didn't fold his dorsal in this photo... =\



... or his caudal in this one...



Little cutie <3 





Guess who just got spoken for? This girl! Lucy can't raise her hand to say "me!", so she raised her dorsal ray 



Yeeesh, algae problem. Lucy's tank used to be the closest to the window so it makes sense, but I've moved it and the algae still lives on ><



Excuse the tannin. Merah is regressing really badly



Just Willow showing off her killer vents



And her big, big eyes



Seren under white LED. Her fins look all red  



With the lights off



And under blue LED


----------



## themamaj

Wow Lucky is all fins isn't he! Love new pictures!! Put a couple on journal. So excited to hear Lucy has home. I hate to hear Merah having more fin issues. Sometimes it is really a battle. Willow is the cutest thing! So girly. I like the tank ornament you have in Seren's tank. Did you get it at Petco? Seren could be a perfect mate for my Eli. Their coloring are so similar. She is really a beautiful female. Was she a local find or from a breeder? Very unusual to find a girl with her coloring. She is like a model posing under different lights


----------



## Olivia27

Yeah the Roman pillars is a Petco find. Can't seem to find another one like that though. Seren is bred by my LFS' owner so both local find and from a breeder  can't believe Lucky is still here tbh!


----------



## SydneyA

I just love the look of Willow. Like a heart. Your tanks are awesome!


----------



## Seaman2012

Good morning from Sammy boy


----------



## Olivia27

Holy *bleeeeep* 

Just how fast can they marble exactly?? That caudal was only black at the tips the last time I saw him!

EDIT: forgot to announce that Lucky is now also spoken for. This leaves me with only one available fish left, which is the pastel BF RT import. I have a feeling I'm gonna bring home one or two more... yeesh.


----------



## ThatFishThough

Awww. Good for them.  I'm sure they will love their new homes. The Pastel is really cool; do you have a name for him?


----------



## Olivia27

ThatFishThough said:


> Awww. Good for them.  I'm sure they will love their new homes. The Pastel is really cool; do you have a name for him?


Nope. May or may not hold a naming contest LOL I'm drawing a blank. We'll see.


----------



## SydneyA

It's funny that you call that an "algae problem" I just cleaned a tank where I could not see the betta, lol. That stuff sure is persistent though!


----------



## Olivia27

I don't know, I hate algae XD I'm picking up Excel this weekend. Die, algae, die >_<


----------



## SydneyA

I have some algae killer I resorted to. It works! But I was going to scrape down my community tank and there were 6 baby rams horn snails on the algae patch. I did not have the the heart to do it.


----------



## Olivia27

So with everyone leaving early next week and Violet gone, I decided to pick up one more bought-to-sell. The UPS drama carries on and I have decided to give up entirely. Got Merah's 3g a temporary 15w flat heater, which means he's moving back. The KK he's been occupying now goes to this super cute marble double-ray CT boy. He's gonna go for $12. No name yet but I'll figure something out soon


----------



## themamaj

Gorgeous colors


----------



## Olivia27

Aand just like that, he's spoken for ;D


----------



## ThatFishThough

Pictures?  (Of pastel)


----------



## ThatFishThough

Some different, interesting names.

Rozu
Sakana
Hikari
Tobu
Rokou
Hachi
Kyuu
Kosho
Kippu
Tooku - Particularly like this one. It means 'Far' in Japanese. He came from far.
Chizu
Tsuki
Haru
Kyou
Otoko
Bakemono - Means 'Monster' - Depends if he flares alot. 
Saru
Hana

Did I win?


----------



## Olivia27

Pastel BF RT isn't here yet =\ tracking number says they just departed St. Paul. I'm trying really hard not to freak out now because we have another snow storm forecasted for tomorrow. I do love the Japanese theme! I'll see if any of those stuck. Thought of Bara (rose) at first but Tsuki is a much better one. Tooku is another good one, but I'm a bit of a grammar Nazi and I swear the fact that it's not in adjective form (tooi) would bug me to no end ._. Rozu (katakana form! Nice idea!) would make a nice alternative to Bara but I also want something just about anyone can pronounce. Hmmm...

... If this indecisiveness goes on I may as well start an official contest in the contests section xD or else he'd end up being named Friday or March!


----------



## Olivia27

Mini gallery. These are all the other interesting fish I met on my Petco visit today. They're unfortunately too expensive to be brought home as a bought-to-sell, but still they're pretty so I'll put them up here for you guys to see! 

"I have a raccoon face"



"Butterfly" they say. Yea right. 



Tricolor (BF?) DT 



This pic doesn't do this boy justice. Gotta love MGs!



I forgot if this guy is sold as a delta or something else. He's cute <3 



Green/red bicolor HMPK. I almost laughed seeing he's labeled as a DT. I mean, come on, Petco. Really?



Lucky has changed eye color! I rushed to his tank thinking he's pale. He's not. His eyes are now half yellow half black.



Under dim lighting (which this pic does not show) the chocolate-ish color is actually all over his body, not just on the belly. Marbles are interesting aren't they?


----------



## Seaman2012

So happy I get to have the crowntail


----------



## katalindia

Wish I had seen that crown tail. Come on Seaman, you have 16, share a little. LOL


----------



## SydneyA

Petco has lost its mind. "Half moon double plakat male?". That's what I bought my awesome king male as in my avatar. The fish in your pic is just a regular plakat they sell as "king". I have one. They are so inconsistent with their betta labels.


----------



## Seaman2012

Katalindia hahaha sorry! I'm done I promise!


----------



## Olivia27

The three imports - to my surprise- turned up at my door early today. So Anarchy, Lucky and the tricolor CT who is now named Tsunami have all been shipped off. Part of me feels bad because Anarchy j-u-s-t arrived from a long journey ._. but Koo Yang packed the boys real well. None were even pale when I opened the box. I acclimated Anarchy to my water and re-bagged him. Did the same for Lucky and Tsunami, except that Tsunami has Rooibos water due to minor curling on his anal. The other two imports took over Lucky and Anarchy's tanks. None are named for now. Here they are:

This boy is spoken for, so name-wise I'd probably just wait until the buyer came up with something





And this one is still available. Zero names came up in my head so far.



I noticed his eyes too. I don't know what that thin cloudy membrane is =\ hoping it's just cloudy eye. But he sees just fine, so I'm not too worried.



And now for the big reveal. Ladies and gentlemen, meet Heliconius Sapho 

(( eBay pic ))



Just like any butterfly, Sapho's color pattern is not stable. Unfortunately I never did see him being an actual butterfly as he marbled during shipment. But I don't care, he's still adorable <3 and yes, he's fin biting too. I kind of don't mind that. As long as it's not rot.



Excuse the bad pics. This tank is in a shelf. I should get better pics once the Stingray is up and running



Sapho arrived lethargic in poop-filled water =\ so he was acclimated for four whole hours. Here he is in the acclimation bowl, showing his true color



Aaaand... Sapho found a snail. GREAT. Now I'm freaking out again >< 



A bit about the name: _Heliconius sapho_ is a scientific name for a South American blue butterfly species. I thought that was pretty smart of me LOL here is the actual, real life H. sapho


----------



## Olivia27

I went ahead and started the naming contest! Wooo! Here is the link if you haven't seen it yet: http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?p=7142034#post7142034

Just as a disclaimer: I have zero name in my head right now. Suggestions given in this journal may be submitted as an official contest entry, but it won't get a preference


----------



## themamaj

Olivia27 said:


> I went ahead and started the naming contest! Wooo! Here is the link if you haven't seen it yet: http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?p=7142034#post7142034
> 
> Just as a disclaimer: I have zero name in my head right now. Suggestions given in this journal may be submitted as an official contest entry, but it won't get a preference



Great idea. Now if I could only settle on name for my guy lol


----------



## themamaj

Is the guy you are trying to name grey or green? So much for being color blind. Everything looks green to me lol. If he is grey he looks a lot like my Nimbus.


----------



## Olivia27

He's silver  well technically he's copper, but he just came across silver for some reason.


----------



## Olivia27

Well, today is pretty interesting. I woke up at 8:30 AM and did the usual tank check from under my blanket. Willow got spotted wiggling around immediately. Merah's tank is dark, but he's sparkly so it's not hard to find him. Finding Seren in the middle of her crazy jungle is starting to be a chore, but I found her after a few seconds. So that's three Bettas accounted for. Now where's Sapho? 

I went from staring closely, to dragging my body closer to the bedside shelf, all the way to pressing my nose on the tank walls and there is still no Sapho. The black sand made the tank look darker, and the plants reach all the way to the surface, but come on. It's a blue fish in a green-black tank! Five minutes later I started checking behind the tank and around the shelf. The lid is not a tight fit. There's the heater cable and whatnot. But oh gee please don't tell me he jumped. Or did he get stuck on the filter? Where did he go?? Where is... 

... Oh.



That's a few seconds after I lured him out from behind the filter with a blood worm. Apparently the super cool cave I got him is not small enough of a corner, so Sapho chose that gap behind the filter instead =\ Gee. It's that black head. When he hides behind my all-black Tetra Whisper I cannot see him at all. Heck, even in that photo you can see how well his black head blends into the environment. I toootally need to get that second power strip. That Stingray needs to get installed! 

In another news, after Sapho found that gigantic ramshorn in his tank, I gave up trying to re-plant the crypts and N. Taiwans that floated up. I just don't want to stick my hand into that tank for too long >< so I scooped them all up, and divided them between Willow's 2.6 and Seren's 5.5. Sadly the parva is dying now  looks like they've been floating for too long. Here's hoping the proper planting would revive them



The N. Taiwan lining up on the foreground. Luckily these ones are still going strong despite being left floating for a while



Not plant-related, but here's Merah looking proud of his tail-biting tendencies. Featuring: yet another dead Salvinia. Just... WHY ><



The nameless boy showing off his red wash



Is he an EE? 



The MG HM set his flare-o-meter at 10%



Lucy is zipping around. She can't wait to go home!



Neither can Kokoro!


----------



## Olivia27

Okay people, this is important. If you read this I need your response. On Monday I have Kokoro leaving for his forever home. There is possibility that Lucy leaves on the same day. If not, MG HM goes home on Wednesday so I'd still end up with two open tanks. Today I went to my LFS to pick up an EE girl for a member here, and I spotted two runts in the sorority tank. One is also an EEHMPK, the other a metallic with full mask. Both are badly beat up and are knocking on deaths door. I don't have the space to bring them home there and then, but once the bought-to-sells leave, I will have free space. So if you are looking for a cute mini female, or know someone who does, let me know *now*! The sooner the better! The most ideal scenario is always when a foster found a home before I bring them in. Similar foster policy like usual: $0 adoption fee, just pay shipping. Also, if I somehow ended up with three open space by Wednesday, I might bring home this gorgeous, HUGE (over 1.5" BO, compared to the 1.5" BO girl I brought home) red Sally EEHMPK girl in the same death trap sorority tank. Yes, she is the bully. Anyway. I will bring her home to sell so I can make up the cost of the fosters' purchase. I will try to ask for a discount though!


----------



## katalindia

I am *very* interested in the EEHMPK girl that you might foster and have the space for her if so. I'll message you.


----------



## SydneyA

I would say that nameless is definitely an EE. Do you not like snails?


----------



## Olivia27

I have a huge snail phobia after stepping on and killing one as a child ._. It's a pretty annoying phobia to have when you're a fish keeper I suppose. At my LFS there are these awesome planted tanks put on display. But if I come closer to check out the aquascaping, I would almost always spot a snail  And then I would have to stand back and admire it from afar. There were these two gorgeous planted shrimp tanks next to the free water test station that also has snails in it. Sitting in front of those tanks waiting for my water test result was torture x___x it doesn't help that my LFS is a huge snail fan either. They intentionally keep snails in their plant tanks so people would get hitch hikers. Such a shame because they have some really nice plants! ><

About the next two fosters: thanks @katalindia for stepping forward so soon! I just hope I'd get to them on time. The masked metallic has a potential home lined up too. Not that I won't bring both home either ways anyway, but yay! This is best case scenario!


----------



## SydneyA

Well I have snails and make them their own homemade food . But I have a phobia of wasp nests even more than the wasps themselves, also going back to childhood so I understand.


----------



## Olivia27

I'm happy to announce I have never met a wasp XD 

So! It's Omega One for breakfast today. The two Indonesian imports has zero concept of pellets, but finally ate up anyway. The MG HM is hilarious. He just floated there right below the pellets, staring at them as if they might start crawling around. Nameless BF RT let them all sink but one or two ._. Time to do some vacuuming I guess. No food for the EEHMPK I just got yesterday as she's leaving already. I'm shipping her out after visiting my brother 

Sapho's tank reads zero across the board. But then again I just did a water change yesterday so it might not mean much =\ The rest of the parva in his tank has floated up too. So Willow's gonna get more plants. Seren's tank got its first ever dose of Excel just now. If *that* doesn't kill all the green algae, I'm gonna scream >< Merah has developed regrowth tissue. Let's see if he would ever let it grow back.


----------



## Olivia27

One word: velvet. Somehow this nasty thing slipped into my menagerie  Seren - the only one with LED lighting kept on for 8 hours a day - got hit the hardest. Nobody else shows symptoms, but I see some gold sprinkles on Merah too >.> so it's crank-it-and-cover-it for everyone until I can get a hold of Cupramine. This is gonna be fun =| glad to report the guests are all clean though.

So it's Omega One Betta Buffet for the permanents and NLS for the guests today. Tonight I'm trying mysis. Everyone's doing alright so there's not much to tell. Merah's tail is regaining width. Willow's tank is filthy and will be vacuumed today. Seren is sick  and Sapho is handling the current better and better. By Monday morning we should finally hear what will I call my nameless BF RT (EE!) boy. If you guys remember his weird eyes from the first pictures, they're all clear now  Kokoro is being fasted for travel. No news yet when will Lucy leave. I ran out of Rooibos. I divided my last three bags between Merah, Sapho and the BF RTEE. I'm also running low on cereal. I really should go grocery shopping. *But it's cold out* >< I wish we can have groceries delivered to our doors. 

Aside from the grocery shopping and a short essay due in two weeks, I have nothing planned for today. So do expect a gallery in a couple hours


----------



## Olivia27

*Gallery*

As promised. Let's start with the guests

I managed to get MG HM to flare today! Yay! He only did it for a short second, but kept his fins spread out long after :-D



Bit worried about that scratch on his cheeks =\ but he's acting okay



BF RT didn't care about the mirror at all. 



This would be a great shot if there's no reflection of my fingers ><



Come on, Koko, come closer



Yep. Like that.



Lucy and her bumpy topline



This is Envy. She only stayed with me one night, and is making her way to Texas as we speak. 



I floated her with Lu in the hope of seeing her flare, but she never did. Lucy is 1". Envy is not the smallest girl at all.



On to the permanents! Say hi to Willow



She's a little roly poly <3 



I should re plant that Anubias on the background... ._.



Merah, back on tannin



Trust me that's improvement =\



Seren yesterday  you can't see the cut on her caudal because she's clamped, but she's also on tannin because of it now



Sapho came with a chewed up tail, so he's on Rooibos too. Those banana plants are new. I went to Petco to pick up more gravel vacs and couldn't leave them behind.


----------



## SydneyA

I need some of those banana plants. Love the pics!


----------



## themamaj

Loving seeing Koko's blue coming out. Safe travels and see you Wed afternoon!


----------



## NightStars

Olivia27 said:


> Isn't he! Now only if he's not $15 =\ I consider that yellow EE an acquaintance now. I've seen him before, almost a month ago. He was bought and then promptly returned. Not sure why, he's still feisty and healthy when returned. I mean, either that or the store received an exact copy of the first yellow EE I saw. But how many Bettas out there are exact copies of one another? Even the uniform-looking solid-colored VTs have unique traits.


Sorry for the late reply. 
I know right the price is the bad part =/ Oh how weird poor boy, he's so pretty though as well as all the other bettas you post.


----------



## Seaman2012

All boys arrived safe! Thank you so much!! Here is lucky!


----------



## Seaman2012

Here is Tsunami!


----------



## Seaman2012

And here is Anarchy!


----------



## Olivia27

Yaay! Always glad to hear 100% live arrivals! Envy is arriving today. Hope the good news carries on...


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Aw lol I actually did a double take and looked over at Saphira and Lavender to double check they were still there! Good to know one of their sisters is going to a good home!


----------



## themamaj

Seaman2012 said:


> Here is Tsunami!


Wow Tsunami is such a gorgeous boy! Love the name.


----------



## themamaj

Got note that Kokoro was shipped


----------



## ThatFishThough

@Seaman - Exactly how many is that now? o.o

Nice fish, everyone! Happy they're all in a good home!


----------



## Olivia27

Glad to hear you received the confirmation email mamaj! So I just went to my LFS again. The masked metallic girl wasn't there anymore. I sure hope it simply means she got bought. I pointed out the EE girl to a clerk. I offered to care for her if they can't, but they said they have a lot of QT tanks in the back room and she was removed immediately. I do trust the employees' fish keeping knowledge, but I don't know what to think TBH. I just hope I'll see her happy and healthy in a few weeks. 

My brother visited today. I hid my foster tanks and locked my room door. I feel bad ._. It's not like I can hide my Bettas forever either. Next year we're moving together. But I don't know how to explain the fosters and bought to sells. I'm just afraid he's gonna tell my parents. All they know so far is that I have one Betta. Yup. Toootally true. Gotta cough up the truth at some point later.


----------



## Olivia27

In another news, the MG HM is now available again. Here he is on his debut run on eBay: http://m.ebay.com/itm/Male-Mustard-...nesia-Import-/182046750498?nav=SELLING_ACTIVE

Following the failed foster attempt I'm looking at another one now. He's a bicolor delta boy from Petco. Don't quote me on the tail type though since his rot is pretty bad. He should be coming home with me tomorrow. 

Tomorrow is also the last day on the eBay auction for the BF RT - now officially Miki. I got four watchers. We'll see if any would place a bid. I started him on a higher than average price, after all. If he got sold I will try to ship him on the same day, which means one more open space. It's always good practice to have open tanks, no?

I got Cupramine and Paraguard from my LFS trip early today. I wanted to get Mal Green and some other stuff too just to fill up the first aid kit, but geeez they cost a lot. I will start the Cupramine tomorrow.


----------



## themamaj

You could bring him to my house and by the time he got over betta shock yours would be no big deal  I understand though. I hope they will see the good in all you do and be supportive. It takes a special person to invest time and care into each of the fish and to have a heart to continue to fight for those in great need. And to do it plus work and college big hats off to you!!!!


----------



## Olivia27

Aaww thank you @themamaj  x unfortunately today's daily schedule ended up much later than expected. So I had to hold off on shipping the Betta log to the contest winner, and also visiting Petco. I've been having second thoughts anyway. This is the worst part of the gig, really. I can't take in everyone, so I have to make sure the ones I take in are those who need it the most. While bicolor delta boy I met on Petco obviously needs his fins back, he's not lethargic and still looks adoptable. I just got a Meijer gift card as a reward for participating in a research, so if I found a fish that needs more help at Meijer I may have to change the plan. There's also this thing about a Petco clerk ._. if you guys don't know yet, I have social anxiety. When I went to pick up Tsunami, the guy gave me a funny look and asked: "how many Bettas do you have?". I explained that I only have four and none of the ones I bought from Petco are for myself. He didn't say anything afterwards. From that event on, I get a mini panic attack entering Petco >< I would hate to explain what I've been doing with all the fish I got from them. That would make their store sound bad, wouldn't it? 

Ugh. Anyway. I'm visiting Meijer tomorrow after work. I'll keep you guys posted. 

In another news, I finally installed Sapho's Stingray. Here are the results:





And a blurry action shot before I fixed a "hole" I made on the substrate after water change



I l-o-v-e the Stingray. It's bright, it's slim, it's small, it's light and it's not choking my wallet. Plus, *look* at how awesome it made my dingy tank look! That's a 5g KK, people! Now to wait until next week to order another one for Merah! 

If you guys are wondering what all those red debris are, they're Rooibos tea leaves. Sapho *bleep*ing attacked the tea bag to the point it tore and spilled tea leaves everywhere. Fun times. Now how am I supposed to monitor poop? ><

In a related note, I also noticed the banana plant blocking the entrance to the cave. I am still mustering up courage to stick my hand in and move the banana plant. Remember: this is the tank with that ginormous (well not really but in my eyes...) ramshorn hitch hiker. I am not at all keen in getting my hand inside for too long. I fixed the sand by scraping it with tweezers. I keep my gravel vac near the surface. I make sure I don't see the snail before I come closer to the tank to greet Sapho. That said... 

... I decided not to kill the snail. I have Cupramine ready, but Seren is already fully healed. I can still run her (and everyone really) through a preventative dose, but I still got to figure out the "let it sit for 14 days" part. I can't let my 2.6 and 3.3 sit without water change for 14 days. Especially in Merah's case. 

In another news though, I tried taking a video of the girls just because I wanna know how to embed videos on here. Let's see:

https://www.facebook.com/aoliviasugiharto/videos/1143040732380993/ 

EDIT: noope doesn't work. Let's try YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hBzhUoNRtQ

Uuugh just copy pasting the link used to work! ><


----------



## SydneyA

I love the video, very peaceful. You should just send me the snail. I have lots and some just had babies. 

All the plants look great! Good job.


----------



## Netti

Beautiful video!  Love those tanks.


----------



## themamaj

Kokomo just arrived safely and whew is he feisty and ready to get out of bag! Looks great. Postman had just placed on porch as drove up from work so perfect timing. Will post some pictures on journal when get settled. Fancy packing!


----------



## Olivia27

Happy to have another live arrival! Yaay! Guess this means I got this whole shipping thing down a little bit, huh?  welp better keep it up. I ran out of most shipping supplies. Gonna have to buy more tomorrow.

In another news, I still don't have any new intakes, and it would likely stay that way. Reason being: Miki officially has unilateral popeye. It took me this long to drop the diagnosis because the little guy is definitely still active and eating. I was thinking that he just has cloudy eye and proper maintenance alone should make it go away, but upon closer inspection, I sadly have to confirm he has popeye. The mild version, but still popeye. When he first arrived he has it on both eyes (again mistaken for cloudy eye). Couple days later one eye completely healed up without any meds - further reinforcing my suspicion of cloudy eye. I was hoping the other one would follow suit but it never did. Tonight while I was watching him I finally saw that the other eye is swollen. It's not all that bad, which is why I had to see closely to spot the swelling, but I don't like it. So Miki is now on Kanaplex-ES cocktail (on top of tannin). I may soak his food on Kanaplex too since he's still eating. I was thinking about just dosing ES for now and use Tetracycline later (once I get a hold of it) but kanamycin is a gentler antibiotic from what I understand, so I suppose I'm sticking with it. 

Pessimistic voice: this dude better not die on me. I have had j-u-s-t enough of fish deaths. No more, I say! No more! 

Commercial break: This is a shoutout to anyone who's been wanting to import but can't afford it just yet. The breeder I've been working with needs a couple of his fish gone, and they're only $10 each. Photos and full info are on my Marketplace thread. As a comparison, I got Willow for a grand total of ~$80, and she's already at the cheaper end of the scale. There is no way you can get a $10 import (grand total $40 with every other fees on top) anywhere else or any other time. Unfortunately this offer expires two days from now (unless I can ask for an extension but I feel bad). I just can't leave the breeder hanging and as a reseller myself I know how much it sucks when people say they want your fish but then disappear into thin air. So yea. Make the best of this offer!

The permanents: I finally fixed Willow's Anubias in the background, which kicked up lots of debris in the process. So I vacuumed her tank. She's the only one that got a vacuuming today aside from the guests. It's NLS day. I have been feeding mysis for a little too long now (what, almost 2 full days?) so a bit of a switch is due. I still haven't fixed Sapho's banana plant. Seren now has a lobster clasp tail. As seen in the video from last night. The regrowth tissue on the base of the tear somehow made it look worse, and now my girl is half lobster. Merah, on the other hand, hasn't grown any visible regrowth tissue. I. Am. Sad ><

In an unrelated note, I dropped an entire pizza while trying to put it in the oven at work today. Before that I accidentally branded my boss with the metal part of the pizza paddle (fresh out of the oven) when he stood too close. The sheer fact that I am still alive today instead of slipping comically on a banana peel and killed myself is a miracle by default


----------



## Olivia27

Well I just shipped Lucy off. I never thought I would say this, but the house feels so empty now. I have my four tanks in the bedroom, but I *don't* have four tanks out in the dining room anymore. There's only the MG HM, and Miki. Funny how the table look so empty that way. I got another person asking for a female EEHMPK from my LFS though so I will be back to a total of 7 soon, but she won't stay long at all. And then there are the third import batch, but they won't be here until sometime in the middle of the month. 

Getting a bit disheartened by the idea of selling on eBay now ._. I always got watchers but not a single bid. Let's see if I can get my current two out of the house before the next batch arrives.


----------



## RussellTheShihTzu

Put them on AquaBid. No fees except PayPal. I don't know how to post multiple but De does.


----------



## Olivia27

Fun fact: somehow I got $0 seller fee on eBay too  I didn't put them up on AB because I worry about getting two bids at the same time from both eBay and AB but I suppose that's unlikely. It also feels a bit daunting to post an AB honestly. Like, "is my fish awesome enough to compete with all these Thai fish??"


----------



## RussellTheShihTzu

Some of those Thai fish, I've noticed, aren't quite as pictured once they arrive. ;-)


----------



## SydneyA

They do specials where they don't have seller fees sometimes, to lure you in lol


----------



## Olivia27

Olivia27 said:


> Well I just shipped Lucy off. I never thought I would say this, but the house feels so empty now. I have my four tanks in the bedroom, but I *don't* have four tanks out in the dining room anymore. There's only the MG HM, and Miki. Funny how the table look so empty that way..


WHY did I say this?? Ugh I'm horrible. Ladies and gents, the foster house is full once more. Two VT boys were brought home for free from Meijer a few hours ago. Both immediately perked up once floated in warmer water. No names yet. 

I ran out of internet data again. And uploading to Photobucket through my phone takes an eternity and a half. So: double post warning 

Boy #1: red with turq wash

This guy made me look like an idiot. He was lethargic and horizontal in the store. But the moment he's floated in 82F water he's a flaring monster. Still a bit bloated but we'll work on that  managed to flare him a couple times tonight but never snapped a decent photo =\


----------



## Olivia27

And boy #2: red dragon. This guy flares too but a little more lethargic. Somehow his cup is only half filled so that makes things worse =\ I tested both cups for ammonia. The result was 8 for boy #1, and 8+++ for this boy. Like, literally, I didn't even know it's possible to have a reading that high. I have a photo of the test results but again I can only attach one at a time >< I'll put it up later. Meanwhile, thanks to my siphon accidentally sucking in his long flowy tail, both the dining room and the kitchen lights are now off to create total darkness. Both boys are still floating in their cups - now sparkling clean. I will release them at dawn. I gotta wake up around that time anyway. Maintenance day + morning shift.

The good news is this guy found a home already


----------



## RussellTheShihTzu

If you don't already you should always carry a small eye drops bottle filled with Prime. Then you can immediately put a drop or two in the cups.


----------



## Olivia27

^^^ that is genius O_O I may as well do that for every cup in the shelf

Edit: test results


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

RussellTheShihTzu said:


> If you don't already you should always carry a small eye drops bottle filled with Prime. Then you can immediately put a drop or two in the cups.


How have I never heard this before!?!?! It really is genius!


----------



## RussellTheShihTzu

If you carry the Prime and have an impulse buy you don't have to wait until you get home to detoxify Ammonia. When I receive a shipped fish or invert the first thing I do is open the bag and add a drop of Prime.


----------



## Olivia27

Almost forgot: I didn't take pictures but there are two boys that caught my eyes in Meijer. One is a solid orange CT and another is a red BF VT. He looks like the VT version of Tourmaline's Roman. Solid red body, cello fins, uneven BF banding. If anyone wants them let me know. I can snap photos tomorrow too. I can't keep two more around due to space limitations but since they're doing alright they can probably be shipped out immediately. It's $6 for the CT and $5 for the VT. Shipping is a flat $12, heat pack included


----------



## katalindia

An orange crowntail?!?! Yes yes yes yes interested, would buy, much love, kthx. I'm in love with bright colors. Take pictures!


----------



## Olivia27

katalindia said:


> An orange crowntail?!?! Yes yes yes yes interested, would buy, much love, kthx. I'm in love with bright colors. Take pictures!


Hehee sure. You might want to add me on FB or something like that so I can send the picture while I'm standing right in front of him in Meijer tomorrow


----------



## SydneyA

I'm curious to see an orange crown tail. Thanks again for chatting with me last night. mg:


----------



## Olivia27

OK I'm cheating. This little guy is from Google. Meijer fish is obviously not as high quality, but he's more or less the same color. BUT since he's currently in a freezing ammonia cesspool there's a possibility of him turning darker orange once acclimated to a dechlorinated 82F water


----------



## Olivia27

Well... The orange CT turned out to be a pale red. The moment I took him under better lighting it's obvious. Well, he's still lovely. Hope someone gave him a good home  

In another news, (nick)naming ceremony:

- MG HM has actually been Cosi for a while now. It's the name of this Italian restaurant nearby. I like their classy menus, so MG HM becomes Cosi because he's classy. Lol there's a reason why I failed art class in high school, people.

- dragon VT is Kitt. Somebody mentioned that he looks like a kitty, and so the name stuck lol

- red with turq wash VT is Big Red. Bet you can't guess how I picked that name

Now for the updates:
- I think I spoke too soon for Big Red. I see he has difficulty turning, and he's the only one that didn't poop this morning. So I'm starting him on ES tonight.
- Kitt is still lethargic. Yes he moves, but very slowly. He also prefers to stay on the bottom =\ poor guy. Hope he perks up soon
- This is Cosi's last auction day on eBay. Still no bids. He's also on AB now though. Miki too.
- I vacuumed Miki's tank and dosed another ES-Kanaplex cocktail yesterday. Today his tank is filthy. There's this brown, thick, dust like debris literally piling up overnight. Not sure what it is or if it's harmful ._. Miki doesn't seem to care though. I cleaned up the same kind and amount of debris yesterday too. 
- Merah's heater is driving me nuts. It's only 15w but it overheats almost literally like hell. Tonight I came home to a reading of 88F. That is not good >.> can't afford another Theo just yet. The one I ordered initially is now gone for good. Big Al's never received them back and my local UPS location never had them shipped from "the main hub". I'm just about done with UPS. That's $20 gone =\
- I'm starting to feel concerned about Seren's cyst. I can't decide if it's growing larger or staying stagnant. But the sheer fact that it grew to its current size within 3 months is staggering enough of a fact. See, I love all my pets. But Seren is my queen. If anything happens to her I swear I would break down =\ so I suppose this means a call to the university's vet clinic. Times like this, I wish I don't have social anxiety 
- Sapho is most definitely a HM. I wrote DeT on my signature at first because I can't be sure, but now that his caudal has mostly grown back (except for one little patch) I can see he's a HM. At least. If not HM then RT. Little guy never flares. But hey, no such thing as HMRT anyway so I suppose HM is as accurate as it can be. I so wish I have a photo to show you guys what I mean. But Sapho is also probably a DT geno carrier. His dorsal looks like a sail. Broad, tall and proud; carrying him with grace against the high seas (or a 5g KK). He's so very charming.
- among all the problems I had with everyone else in the house, it's always so relaxing to look at Willow and think: "hey! I have one who's problem free! Can't be entirely my fault then!". Willow has always been so easy. She eats anything, never acting abnormal, and is so much more tolerant than I expected. I still can't get over how I got away unscathed from the "two fish in a bowl" incident. If it was Seren the story would be different.
- I went to sign the lease for my new apartment today. Gee, there's so. Much. Space. Not sure if I can resist the temptation to get more tanks in that kind of space. Not good... ><

P.S: picture of our false orange guy


----------



## Olivia27

Video embedding attempt #2: Photobucket

Can you guys tell me if this one work?



If yes, who wants that boy? XD I swear this breeder needs to stop advertising his lot my way. I just so wish I have space for another permanent  I mean, look at those fins! Eeep!! He's Rapunzel reincarnated!!


----------



## themamaj

Lol false orange. Your grey fish was green to me so you can appreciate how funny it is I am an art teacher's daughter! 

Oh Seren. I sure hope that cyst will stop growing! I understand how special fish can be. I feel that way about Chance. It never hurts to ask the vet clinic. Do you know if they have anyone that specializes in fish? I actually did that in college with a sick goldfish. Funny now thinking about it. I trudged across campus carrying my goldfish in a cup to see my Biology professor. No doubt I got some funny looks from fellow students lol. It is times like these I sure wish I had the knowledge of how to help.


----------



## Olivia27

I don't know if they have a fish specialist, but that only means I *have* to ask. I will try to muster up courage by the end of the week ._.

In another news, I had a midnight scare last night. Seren's filter made this funny coughing noise, waking me up. I went and plugged it off since it was 4 AM and I'm dead tired. Luckily enough at about 5 AM I decided to take a closer look to check what's wrong. Lo and behold: there was only about 25% of water left in the tank. There was no leak or cracks. No water on the floor or behind the tank. It just seem to evaporate - except the temp is still steady at 80. I still have no idea where did all those water go or how did they leave my tank so fast. All I know is I'm super lucky I woke up or else the filter would drain the tank dry.

In the morning - after the tank got refilled - I checked the filter and found a clump of Java Moss, Susswassertang plus a couple microsword leaves blocking the intake part. I do remember years ago my koi pond back home would make this awful alarm-like noise if the leaves from a nearby tree fell and blocked the filter intake. The pond would also somehow lose a lot of water. But it sorta doesn't make sense in my head. If the filter can't take in water, then where did they go??

Anyway. Seren is still happy and healthy. So is the rest of the current residents. 

Here are Kitt and Big Red on their flaring session. Kitt is still lazy and skittish. He refused the mysis shrimp  Big Red ate, but I don't like how I don't see him pooping. And so a flaring session is due


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## Olivia27

Gallery time! 

Let's start with Sapho. I'm so in love with this guy <3 



Somehow, his dorsal is regaining the BF pattern. Hope the anal follows suit 



The black sand made him look headless LOL



Seren, cyst and tear and all



Willow's eyes are actually hazel  



Bad photo of Miki showcasing his one good eye



Another bad photo showing his other eye - which is slightly swollen and cloudy



Merah posing in the kitchen. I move his tank around so the plants can get some light



Regrowth tissue!



Unimpressed Cosi is unimpressed



I added a piece of tissue on his tank wall so he won't get caught in a flaring contest with the two new boys. He wasn't impressed about that either LOL



Big Red, at 1.6-1.7" BO (just measured him). He's a thing of beauty <3 



No photos of Kitt yet. Lil' guy is too skittish


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## themamaj

Cosi is so funny. You will have to work harder to impress him  Love all the pictures! Kokomo says hi. He is sooooo active!


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## RussellTheShihTzu

Big Red is gorgeous and so is Cosi. Thanks for sharing all the photos.


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## themamaj

Did you say you had some fish on Aquabid? What is your screen name on that?


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## Olivia27

themamaj said:


> Did you say you had some fish on Aquabid? What is your screen name on that?


Just Miki and Cosi. I'm Oliviaxiao on there  they're currently in page 11 (or is it 10?) in the Half Moon section

edit: yup page 11.

Miki: http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwbettashm&1458300681

Cosi: http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwbettashm&1458301198


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## themamaj

I was on their earlier and must have scanned through too quick. Wow what incredible pictures. I may have to ban myself from your journal. Lol I really like the fish you pick out!


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## Olivia27

OMG GUYS. I got paid!! I just remembered it's past Friday now! Eeep! I got everything I need for myself already so... ahem... well, let's just say I went on a bit of a shopping spree. Don't worry, I didn't burn 100% of this week's paycheck. Yet. 

Coming in the mail:
- Finnex Stingray 12" (for Merah. I'm absolutely done carrying the tank out every morning and putting it back into the shelf at sundown) 
- Used 25w Hydor Theo ($17 including shipping. Also for Merah, no thanks to UPS)
- $9 5g KK (just in case Miki, Cosi and Big Red are still here when my next batch of bought-to-sells arrive. Will be divided.)
- A small bag of soft chews "for senior dogs". It breaks my heart that I actually bought this just now. Diamond's second birthday still feels like yesterday 

SNE Hoard Plan:
- Cave. Definitely another one of those Pelvicachromis caves. Merah needs one.
- Still looking for the tissue culture version of crypt petchii (for Sapho's foreground plant)
- OMG Frogbit! Can't find any no matter where I go?
- Aquascaping tools to help with planting. Someone just linked me to this angled tweezers thing on Amazon that is supposed to work like magic, but it's sold as a package with stuff I'd never need =\ let's see if it'll come up on SNE.
- edit: driftwood? I feel like they'd match Merah's tank theme. I might even have space for one in Seren's. But this one's a big "maybe" still

@themamaj hehee I have an eye for quality


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## themamaj

Hint on Hydors. 50 watt is usually a few dollars cheaper. I can use it even in smaller tanks as easily adjust temp to fit tank size. 

How much are those Finnex? I keep hearing great reviews on them. Might have to get one to see if it perks the plants. Let me know if find link tweezers alone. Been looking too but dont want a set.

And as for fish...great minds think alike 

Happy shopping!


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## Olivia27

If you buy them from aquavibrant.com they're $27 including shipping. They're bright and easy to set up


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## Olivia27

Announcements of the day: 

Heads up #1: Photobucket is acting funny again. You can only upload one at a time or only the first photo will show =\

Heads up #2: if you're a seller and has been using PayPal's "print shipping label" option, do know that the discount you got is because you're paying "commercial base price" - which is labeled as ComBasPrice on top of your shipping label. This price is technically not available for anyone who's not a registered business under USPS. In order to be a registered business, you must mail at least ten thousand pieces every year - which means 99% of us don't qualify. So if your post office clerk scrutinizes your prepaid label and pointed out that you're paying ComBasPrice, unfortunately there's not much you can do except to pay the difference between the ComBasPrice and the online fee in USPS Click-N-Ship  the difference is often about $1.50

Now it's gallery time again! Yay!

I never manage to get good pics of Miki. I actually wonder how the heck did the breeder get those pics of him with his fins all spread out. My photos are always like this







Ooohh I like this one. See, the tissue I used as a white background dipped slightly into the water. Miki stared at it for a good 15 seconds, allowing for some cool vertical shots. I also love how his reflection shows on top  



"Photos, you say? Meh. What a nuisance."



"What about this? Huh? Happy now?"



Big Red is progressing really well! He's super active, eats well and poops normally. I have this crazy idea of running him on eBay for three bucks just once or twice - just because he's really nice - but of course if you're adopting him from here he'd be $0. 





On the other hand, I'm not happy with Kitt's progress  he's still pretty lethargic, and super skittish. He avoids my tweezers like a plague so I just drop his shrimp and leave the room. Notice how he's on the bottom of the tank =\ on the bright side of things, though, he's scheduled to go home the same day my next import batch arrives. So he has plenty of time to heal.


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## RussellTheShihTzu

Crypt 'pygmaea' is the foreground plant; 'petchii' can get 4"-6" high. I bought my TC from JDAquatics. Saturday, March 19, is SNE.

Crypt 'pygmaea' left front; Crypt 'petchii' back left; Red Flame Sword center. This is just the left half of Hobbs' 5.5.


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## Olivia27

Oops, I suppose I mixed them up. Somehow I thought petchii is the same size as pygmaea. I have pygmaea in Willow's 2.6 right now. I suppose I'll just grab more of those.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Both of them colored up nicely though! I'd give eBay a shot lol what's the worst that can happen?


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## themamaj

Oh Flame Sword! Thanks for listing that. On my wish list! 

Great deal on light. Will be looking for that. Thanks


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## RussellTheShihTzu

http://www.aquavibrant.com/lighting/finnex-tri-color-stingray.html

Free shipping at $75.00.

I have a Stingray *on* and a Red Flame Sword *in* all of my tanks.


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## Olivia27

OUOhYeah2016 said:


> Both of them colored up nicely though! I'd give eBay a shot lol what's the worst that can happen?


Look what you've done LOL -> http://www.ebay.com/itm/-/182053736921?

Aww I want red flame sword too >< now I wish I have more larger tanks =\ can't fit anything too tall in any of my tanks anymore. Sorta regret getting anything below 5.5 now...


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## RussellTheShihTzu

The Red Flame is quite small. Mine have never gotten much over 6"-10". They do need Iron tabs as well as general root tabs because of their red coloration.


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## ThatFishThough

If I had the space I would totally get Big Red. >.< I mean, who wouldn't want him? I've seen Red w/ Royal Blue wash, and vice versa, but never with Turquoise.


So pretty!


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## Olivia27

Isn't he just? Kitt is cute too, being a dragon and all, but daaarn Big Red is an aquatic jewel. If he's any other color than red with blue wash (turq is still blue technically) I seriously doubt I would still have him by now. He's got 2 watchers on eBay though  in another news, I just messaged the person that was gonna take Kitt initially. She mentioned that Kitt is going to a divided 10, but now that his personality has came out, I don't think that's an ideal setup. Both Kitt and Red are *VERY* aggressive. Like, biting-on-the-tank-wall, don't-ever-remove-the-view-blocker kind of aggressive. I had Cosi in between their tanks at first and poor guy turned from MG to cello due to the sheer amount of intimidation from both sides. I had Cosi on the farthest end of the table now. Yesterday I didn't put the view blocker between Miki and Big Red right, leaving a less-than-half-inch gap underneath (the view blocker is clipped onto the KK's handle). Red shoved his face to that gap and flared so much even sweet Little Miki flared back! I'm kind of glad I got to see Miki in full flare but gee, that sure showed me how aggressive these new boys are. So if you're reading this and has been contemplating to take Red, do *not* attempt to put him in a divided tank, much less a community. If you have all your tanks side by side be very sure to have a solid view blocker. If there's even a slight gap Red will find it and harass whoever's on the other side. 

Update: Kitt still has a home. He's going to have his own tank now


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## themamaj

Big Red is really beautiful with turquoise wash. I am really smitten with Cosi.


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## Olivia27

Eeep! Someone inquired about Cosi in eBay! They asked if I do pick ups since they live an hour drive away. Yes of course! Unfortunately that doesn't mean the person gave a definite "I'll take him" but that's a start!


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## katalindia

Fingers and toes crossed for Cosi!


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## Olivia27

Good news: Lucy made it safely in her new home today. That said, I'm ready to cut ties with USPS as well now =\ she's supposed to be delivered by Saturday, but for no good reason she was held in Grand Rapids for almost two whole days before she finally left the facility late Sunday. I would understand if she's going somewhere far, but nope - she's just going to PA! Come ooon =\ my super adorable Willow plushie also arrived with a damaged box. It looked like someone sliced it open with a cutter just to check the contents. The doll wasn't damaged so I can't file a claim, but I seriously considered it. *Who* opens people's packages? GRRRR

Non USPS-related rant: I buy all the books for my class in Google Books because I can't afford the hard copy. But Google Books is so $%^&ing glitchy I just can't even. I really need to finish my novel today but the page won't load. It just went all white. I refreshed the page a gazillion times, but nothing came up still. Some other times in the middle of the book they would suddenly say I reached my preview limit. What preview? I *bought* the whole thing! A-R-G-H. Why can't I just win the lottery? Then I'd make a personal library full of children (and young adult) literature. Oh, oh, and a fish room! Yes, definitely a fish room. And then another room for all the collars, leashes, harnesses and bandannas for my dog - soon to be dogS. And then a separate cupboard for my tea mug collection. Because one can never have enough tea mugs. 

... Anyway. 

It's laxative night tonight. I decided it's a great idea to thaw both daphnia and brine shrimp and feed them together. I imagine it's a lot more exciting to the fishies than I made it sound 

I'm super happy with Merah's fin regrowth. I wonder if it's indeed true that shrimp fast-forwards fin growth. I've been feeding a lot of mysis lately, and now I'm on to brine shrimp. At this rate I may as well see how Merah looks with a full tail before summer. 

I got a truck ton of stuff to do this week. I just finished one out of two papers due Sunday. The short one. I have a presentation tomorrow morning (at nine, mind you), a novel I need to finish but can't, a take-home exam I haven't even looked at, and of course one batch of imports I gotta ship to their respective homes. Two will leave immediately, the rest will stay until someone on eBay fell in love. 

I'm having a hard time figuring out when to stop bringing home intakes. I really want to do this all the way until the last day of spring. There's at least one more fish from my local Petco that I so very want to bring home. But on the other hand, it's that busy time of the year. Not only do I have to worry about finals, I also need to worry about flight schedules and hotel reservations and whatnot as I make my annual headache-inducing trip home. Heck. All those trouble and I don't even _like _being home. I suppose there are more plus sides to it now that I've discovered the Betta fish community, but it's still pretty much hell on Earth to me ._. quite literally, in fact, if we're comparing temperatures in MI with temperatures back home. 

Aaanyway. I got two tanks to clean, eight fish to feed and then I'm heading to bed. Big, long day tomorrow.


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## Olivia27

This week just could not start any worse. Seren has dropsy. No idea how or why. I did notice she was bloated yesterday, but I put it down to plausible overfeeding because she's still her usual self. All I did was let her skip dinner. This morning she ate two pellets of Omega One Mini Color. Tonight I looked at her from above, and unfortunately she has started pineconing. I'm going the usual kanamycin-epsom route, added to the replacement water during pwc. On Thursday I will do another pwc and re-dose. I'm crossing my fingers and toes she'll be fine since I caught it early. Seren is still happy and hungry, but I let her skip dinner again in fear all the food would just add to the bloating. 

Do cross your fingers for a special little lady tonight.


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## BettaStarter24

Oh no...Prayers for lil miss Seren.


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## Olivia27

Thanks @BettaStarter xxx 

I only got about three hours of sleep last night. Seren is not any better. At 2:30 AM someone made a huge SPLASH noise and I jumped out of bed. It's not Seren, but I'm glad I checked anyway. The lethargy and clamping kicked in around that time. Currently I'm going 110% antibacterial mode. Aside from the meds I turn down the lights, crank up the temp, add tannin, and do daily pwc. I have one class cancelled today. So I can just run home after my presentation and do a 50%. 

Seren is cupped as we speak to allow easier access to the surface. It's kind of amazing how I still had to do three tries before I managed to catch her. At least she's not gasping for air or laying down lifeless.

Attached is a back view of her last night. She's grotesquely bloated. The pineconing might not be visible on the photo but it's actually so obvious it hurts :'(

In another news everyone ate Omega One Mini Color this morning. Seren skipped the meal again.


----------



## Netti

:-(


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## OUOhYeah2016

:/ No not Seren! she's your baby and has been your one to count on to not have any issues...


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## ThatFishThough

No! No! Not Seren! NoooOOooOOooooooOO!


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## Olivia27

Hey folks if you're one of the people that got a fish in my next import batch they will be shipped on the 24th instead of the 14th, and so should reach me by the 29th instead of the 19th. Apparently I placed the order too late to join with the 14th March batch. I could, technically, send this notice via PM to all of ya but my life is sorta crazy right now so I try to spend as little time as possible on the internet when it's not for school stuff  

Thank you for all the well wishes for little Seren. I did another pwc and redosed the medicines this morning. She's still mega bloated. The pineconing may or may not has calmed down a little. As in: you can't really tell unless you're looking at her from behind whereas yesterday you can see it from a mile away. I don't know. I'm getting obsessed over the littlest details at this point. 

Everyone else is doing well. Cosi found a home, the person is just waiting until the last minute to place a bid. I'm being super cranky. It's not even sun down yet and I'm already at my second mug of tea. I had to report my own post last night because apparently I become really mean when I'm sad. I haven't checked back. I hope the post got removed.


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## Sadist

Seren is in my thoughts.


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## Olivia27

Thanks Sadist. She's in mine too.

What did I say about staying off the internet again? Yeah I still found myself browsing around whenever I have time lol like right now. Anyway. Today's update:

I woke up to Seren's cup being empty. I moved some moss around, separated the floating Cabomba from one another, scanned the Anubias, the tall background crypt, the roots of the banana plants... Everywhere. No fish. I checked behind the tank, around the shelf, inside the other three tanks just in case. Still no fish. Finally I turned the tank light on and checked the filter. There was a fat shimmering turquoise body in front of the media, resting on top of this plastic comb thing that's supposed to catch debris. I turned the filter off two nights ago so the top of the comb is dry. It's not moving.

I took a deep breath, grabbed a tissue and pulled up the plastic comb. Right that moment the body curled, kicked, jumped, and finally splashed back into the water. Alive.

There was no more pineconing. Okay, maybe a little bit if I look really closely. But compared to last night the pineconing has definitely gone down. The bloating dissipated a little bit as well but there's still room for improvement. Seren is now sporting two more tears on her caudal and at least a few damaged scales. But holy goodness me, she's determined to keep on living. Obviously being stuck bone dry got her a bit disoriented but she's still swimming around instead of sinking, gasping for air, or laying on her sides. So that's a plus point. I did another pwc and redosed the meds. After class I will start soaking her food on Kanaplex instead of dissolving the powder into the tank water. Suppose it's time for her to eat again.

Unfortunately I have a morning class today I cannot miss. I've skipped on Monday. I can't skip again. And then there's History class, and then I'll stay home all day. I don't want to say Seren is all good now, but there is hope. I'm being cautiously optimistic now.


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## SydneyA

Go Seren Go!


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## Sadist

She's a fighter! Good for her.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Yay! I'm glad she's making progress.


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## themamaj

Olivia27 said:


> This week just could not start any worse. Seren has dropsy. No idea how or why. I did notice she was bloated yesterday, but I put it down to plausible overfeeding because she's still her usual self. All I did was let her skip dinner. This morning she ate two pellets of Omega One Mini Color. Tonight I looked at her from above, and unfortunately she has started pineconing. I'm going the usual kanamycin-epsom route, added to the replacement water during pwc. On Thursday I will do another pwc and re-dose. I'm crossing my fingers and toes she'll be fine since I caught it early. Seren is still happy and hungry, but I let her skip dinner again in fear all the food would just add to the bloating.
> 
> Do cross your fingers for a special little lady tonight.


Heartfelt thoughts and prayers for your sweet girl!


----------



## Olivia27

Thanks people x 

I'm about 40% through writing my five-page research paper and about 80% through my take-out dinner. So here's a quick update. 

I don't know what to say. Things seem to be on a roller coaster for Seren. This morning I could bet money her pineconing has gone down. This afternoon she's back to how she was last night. Even worse: she's stopped eating. I soaked some brine shrimps in Kanaplex but she doesn't want it. The injuries from the filter incident aren't helping either. She got scraped pretty badly on one side, and there are some scales falling off. Her tail looked like an old rag. Poor girl. 

I'm a worst case scenario kinda person. So I've been thinking a lot what's gonna happen if Seren does pass on. I don't think I can bear having a new fish occupying her tank. My plan so far is to move Willow to the 5.5, and then Merah can go up to the 2.6. The 3.3 Merah is currently in will be empty. A part of me wants to keep it that way. Just grow plants, and make it an aquascaping practice or a photo tank. But another part of me wants another little girl. I don't have a picture in my head what kind of female do I want. I don't want to rush it, though, so I will most likely stick with just my remaining three. But of course, best case scenario would be just sticking to my current four. 

In another news:
Miki and Big Red are still not going anywhere. This means I will have to set up the 5g KK I just received today. That is, unless Big Red got adopted before the 29th. Someone pick him up. He's active, feisty, healthy and has no reason to live in a bare 1.4g KK. Also: Kitt ate from the tweezers for the first time today. Pretty proud of him for that  everyone else got a water change. Brine shrimps and daphnia is still on the menu. I have a cool video of Big Red on my phone that I never posted anywhere. I may have to put it up if I want him adopted.


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## SydneyA

Can we see updated pics of the Meijer boys?


----------



## Olivia27

Do these work? I don't have photos but here are videos  





EDIT wait no they don't work. Let's go the old school way: YouTube

Taken today, mainly starring Kitt the dragon with Big Red making a cameo:
https://youtu.be/NS_s0ANc2k4

Taken a few days ago starring Big Red. Tank was setup as a photo tank

https://youtu.be/SvHippPtVq8


----------



## SydneyA

Yeah! Thank you!


----------



## Tourmaline

Big Red is so gorgeous. <3 One of the few VTs I've actually liked.


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## Olivia27

I would like to thank you guys again for all your support. Not only with the foster house but also with my importing project and, very recently, sick little Seren. I'm sad to announce that despite all the fight we have put up, dropsy came out the victor nonetheless. I won't be getting any more fish of my own. The 5.5 will get broken down and disinfected, switched from gravel to sand and totally rescaped this weekend. Willow will move in, allowing Merah to leave his disastrous 3.3 and settle in the 2.65. 

About the fosters: I see that Kitt is still pretty lethargic (see video from today before I removed the view blocker and he starts flaring) even after this long. I begin to wonder if the gray patch on his chin indicates old age. If he's still not improving in the next few days I *might* keep Kitt around and send Big Red to his adopter instead. Haven't asked but she did say she's fine with either boys. I chose to send Kitt away because I thought Red is gonna be easier to rehome. And he is. But now I don't know if it's fair to ship off Kitt who might be on his last few months of life. He can go to my pet sitter during summer too, since I don't have Seren anymore ( :'( ). 

So yeah. That's the plan for the next few days. Tonight I just want to binge on steaming hot tea.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

oops. double post somehow


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

You know I'm up for fish sitting as many fish as you wanna send my way 

And Im not sure if thats indicative of old age? Fawkes has had it for a while and I've only had him since late October I think. I think its also more common in reds for some reason... I rarely have seen it in blues.


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## Tealight03

I have a couple who have a grey/white patch on their chin. I freaked and treated with Kanaplex before someone told me it was natural coloring.


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## Tealight03

Also sorry to hear about Seran. I'm glad she's not suffering anymore.


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## themamaj

Olivia I am so deeply sorry! I know how special she was to you.


----------



## Olivia27

All I can say is I'm glad I followed my guts few months back and set up a second tank (which later turned to third... and then fourth). If I still only had Seren I wouldn't be doing well at all right now ._. But since I still have my three I can't just give up on the hobby. Following what has been suggested on discussions about dropsy, it seems like Seren's case is between bacterial infection and genetics - which translates to "bad luck", really. The Kanaplex not working kinda sorta ruled out the bacterial infection option though. I thought I would have a better chance by purchasing from a local breeder. Yet my previous Petco buy outlived her. *sigh* I don't know if this is for the best though honestly. Had Seren live on to her golden years that cyst won't make those years comfortable for sure. It's almost like she's a goner either ways 

I'm certainly curious if old age can be reflected on physical appearance at all. I have no way of knowing how long the Meijer boys have been sitting in their shelves, and the common agreement is that they're often already adults when they arrive. I suppose I just need to wait a little more and see if Kitt will ever be as active as Red. He did, after all, lived in a cold cup containing 8+ ppm ammonia.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

I've seen depression like symptoms in fish that come from those kinds of conditions too. The lethargy could have something to do with that. If you have any spare plants you could put in with him and maybe give him something more to explore it may help. When I had Nick it was like a flipped a switch when he saw Luna and started glaring at her. All of a sudden he was a new fish and became really active.


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## SydneyA

I'm so sorry for the loss of Seren. I highly doubt you could have pulled her out of it despite what medications you gave her. Don't let her be your last fish. Maybe until you come back. 

If you do need anyone else to watch your fish, I don't mind taking a Saturday and driving out your way. I could hopefully see some sandhill cranes. I love the area.


----------



## Sadist

I'm so sorry about Seren. She was a fighter, and she'll live on in our memories.

I've read about fish getting gray "old age" areas. My boy I was going to adopt out has that, so I'm keeping him. He's really skinny, eats well, poop normal, etc.

Red sure is an active fellow! If I had room, I'd take him. I've already put a betta in my "peaceful fish only" tank, so now everything has a betta in it.


----------



## Tealight03

One more thing, Red's lethargy might be because he's healing from that cup. I read on another thread it can take awhile for them to heal, even if there's nothing physically wrong with them.


----------



## Olivia27

Thanks for all your input guys. Here's a photo showing what I mean when I say Kitt is "still lethargic". It's that bad =\ I had to sneak carefully and use the camera's zoom to snap this photo though because if he realizes I'm watching he'd swim around like normal. He DID show improvement though. He ate floating pellets this morning. Previously he wouldn't even bother with sinking frozen food. So here's hoping he's just taking his time walking doen the path to recovery

Edit: depression is an interesting plausible diagnosis, actually. I get paid this Friday. I'll see what I can do to make his teeny tank more stimulating


----------



## Olivia27

SydneyA said:


> If you do need anyone else to watch your fish, I don't mind taking a Saturday and driving out your way. I could hopefully see some sandhill cranes. I love the area.


Oohhh this is exciting. Is that really okay? I may or may not need two sitters after all. I'll keep ya posted


----------



## SydneyA

Olivia27 said:


> Oohhh this is exciting. Is that really okay? I may or may not need two sitters after all. I'll keep ya posted


Yup, I cleared it with my husband. It's gotta be easier than the pitbul.:lol:


----------



## Olivia27

Yaaay! That opens a new window of opportunity LOL final plan:

- The 5.5 will get a huge water change. It won't get tore down. I can't afford to lose the plants. They worth at least $60 in total. 
- Willow is moving in to the 5.5 
- Merah is not moving to Willow's 2.6 as he needs horizontal swimming space. His current 3 will get a new heater and a Stingray
- The brand new 5 I just received yesterday will be filtered, cycled and scaped over the weekend. Since it's filtered it's probably not a good idea to put Merah in. Last time I put him in a filtered tank he shredded his anal fin =\
- Willow's old 2.6 will be empty, and the brand new 5 will be ready to house one of the boys in the next import batch
- *** If *** I manage to get either Miki or Red out of the house before the end of the month the new 5 will be empty too. I honestly prefer if this happens. Neither boys have a reason to sit in a hospital tank this long 
- *** If *** I ended up with two empty tanks I will have to think long and hard about whether or not to get two new girls from Lil. Otherwise I will have only one to consider: a black copper CT. Now that I have two sitters it's really only all about how ready I am to have another so soon after Seren's passing. 
- *** If *** I got all four current guests out the door by the end of the month I will pick up one last bought to sell from Petco if he's still there. He's a green-red bicolor HMPK. And I mean dark emerald green! Not kinda green  unfortunately I can't have another foster because: 1) the foster house must stop operating by the end of April and that's not enough time to both nurse a sick fish back to health and find him a good home. 2) Petco just jacked up their prices BIG time. Unless I start asking for adoption fees I can't afford taking in another. But adoption fee = less interest and I have a deadline to meet 

So yeah. That's the final plan


----------



## ThatFishThough

Red.. Won't be able to go into a divided 10, right?


----------



## Olivia27

ThatFishThough said:


> Red.. Won't be able to go into a divided 10, right?


Only if the divider is solid. As in he won't be able to see whoever is on the other side. He's a big bully =\


----------



## Olivia27

I just shipped off Cosi today. Not sure what happened to the person that wanted to do a pick up. Looks like they got outbid by this dude. Anyway. Cosi is on his way to warm, sunny Texas now as we speak  I do wonder if the Michigander kid is talking about Miki but sent the message from Cosi's auction. Because they did say "if I buy one of your Bettas..." which means it can be either Coz or Mick.

I have dropped Miki's price on eBay. Looks like I can't get away with charging what those Thai sellers charge after all. I will relist him on AquaBid for the same lowered price. I probably shouldn't say this, but I think Miki's pattern is stable. He's been with me a while and he still has a thick, clean butterfly band. His professional photo was taken when he's 3-month old. I use it anyway because he still looks exactly like that. Hopefully that means he's not marble-based

The last time I listed Red on eBay my auction got removed because I forgot to list Priority Express as the shipping method. I haven't relisted him since but I'm thinking about it. May as well list him today.

I have started Kitt on ES last night. I noticed that he's swimming a bit funny, like Parallax and Saphira do. I can't tell if it's depression, bacterial SBD or just birth defect but I figure ES should at least help rule out the SBD part. I have a College of Ed orientation tonight (guess who just got officially admitted last week??) so won't be at home until dinner time but I do plan on making a quick stop at Petco to buy banana plants. Lots and LOTS of them. See if a decorated tank will help Kitt cheer up. 

It's technically not yet water change day for the larger tanks. But I know I'll do it anyway. After some contemplating I decided to toss the Roman pillars ornament in the 5.5. I can't prove it's leaking dangerous chemicals or whatnot - and it most likely doesn't, but my head has decided to blame it on the premature passing of my past three. I'm also supposed to start setting up and cycling my brand new 5 today, but I'm still worried about my research paper =\ I do want to edit it a little more so the new 5 would probably have to wait. Probably all the way until next weekend, when my SNE order batch arrives. With yet another empty tank to fill I readied myself to pay more than I expected LOL I have my entire sprin break paycheck as budget. Should be fun.

Commercial break: ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, do know that Red is FREE if you get him from here. Those unlucky eBay folks have to pay three bucks. Come get him, he's sick of my hospital tank


----------



## ThatFishThough

I'd be interested in Red.


Let me talk to my parents.

Grr, I hate being young.


----------



## Olivia27

ThatFishThough said:


> I'd be interested in Red.
> 
> 
> Let me talk to my parents.
> 
> Grr, I hate being young.


Oh okay! I won't list him today then


----------



## Olivia27

*The Cheer Up Condo*

Well, this is Kitt's Cheer Up Condo so far. I gotta get Anubias - which is okay with being floated - since there's no catching this little guy. So all decorating must be done with the fish inside the tank. With Kitt mainly hanging around the tank floor, substrate is a no go. Problem is even if I manage to cup him it's a stressful, lengthy process which is the exact opposite of what I'm trying to do here. Anyway. I suppose I underestimated the size of this KK. I thought for sure the two large Anubias will cover everything up. Buuuut apparently there's a lot of open spots left. I'll get more Anubias on Sunday after I pay all my SNE hoard. Unfortunately the Cheer Up Condo is funded by my SNE budget so I gotta wait and see how much I actually use up.

I'm getting worried about Kitt. I often find him laying around. You know, classic poisoning symptoms. I know that's what he's recovering from, but it made me a bit paranoid about the tank readings ._. Like: it's not my tank is it? Should I vacuum twice a day? I'm doing a 50% daily now. That's more than enough, right?


----------



## ThatFishThough

Could you get some clear photos of him, please?


----------



## Olivia27

ThatFishThough said:


> Could you get some clear photos of him, please?


Wait, "him" who? I assume you mean Red? Sure thing, hang on


----------



## Olivia27

Taaa daaah


----------



## BettaStarter24

That grumpy face...


----------



## Olivia27

If that's not tempting enough here are some video screenshots


----------



## Tourmaline

You're just tempting me instead of ThatFishThough. ._. I was heavily considering adopting him.


----------



## Olivia27

Tourmaline said:


> You're just tempting me instead of ThatFishThough. ._. I was heavily considering adopting him.


You can be next in line say things don't work out


----------



## Olivia27

Whoop whoop! Someone placed a bid on Miki! With two people showing interest on Big Red as well, this means my foster house will be empty by the time the three imports get here. Once I ship off Miki on Monday I may as well bring home my one last bought to sell, and then once he and the import boys got sold, the foster house will close down for good. I may have to start a brand new journal then =\ 

But! On the plus side of that, without fosters looking for homes, I won't have to link my journal in my signature anymore. That means more room for names LOL which I will need... because my limit number has grown from 4 to 7. This semester I will go up to 5, and then the remaining two will join the menagerie next semester once I fill up the last two open spots on my bedside shelf. I've dropped my plan to set up a multies tank =\ aside from their astronomical price I can't figure out how to find someone to pet-sit them during summer. The latter problem extends to my other plan of setting up a honey gourami community tank. Who's gonna pet-sit? I can bag and ship my Bettas or get someone to come over and bring the Betta plus the tank, but that's not viable with a 20 Long community tank. So two more Bettas it is.

Anyway. So far I've given an official "yes" for Lil's grizzle girl. She's going to my brand new 5g, which I admittedly haven't even touched yet. To fill Willow's 2.6 after she moves into the 5.5 is a gorgeous blue BF DeT bred by Betta138, sold by Prism Bettas. I'm still waiting to hear whether or not he's still available. Here he is:


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

As long as no one has bid on him on eBay they usually will pull the auction if he's still there :] I'm happy you're gunna have more bettas on your own


----------



## Olivia27

He's still available!! I just paid for him using the money I got from selling Cosi LOL it's a Betta barter. Anyway, he's going to be shipped Monday (also the day I ship off Miki) which means he should arrive Wednesday or Thursday in worst case scenario. I'm going with another South American butterfly species name so he will be Morpho Cypris  here's the real M. cypris: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morpho_cypris

The 5.5 just got a 50% water change last night. I dosed it with 3 tsp of AQ to hopefully get rid of whatever pathogens are still in there. On Monday I will do another big water change (probably more than 50%) and put Willow in. For precautions sake I would still keep her on AQ at half tsp per gal for the next five days or so. I have never reused a tank so quickly after the death of the original resident, so I'm paranoid. This does not mean I'm on the pro-AQ side, speaking of. I'm still neutral on the AQ debate. Can't make up my mind since both sides hold solid evidences. But hey, at this dose, it can't hurt.

I kind of don't know what to say about Kitt. The ES certainly helped him poop. There's this ginormous poop on the tank floor this morning so it looks like he does have some degree of constipation. I found him hanging around the surface a little more, but mainly lounging on the broad Anubias leaves. Maybe my expectations are just too high. I want him to be as crazy as Red. But I suppose I need to remember that Red is borderline insane LOL


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Haha hey that sounds like you'll get your boy about when I get the girl I was supposed to get from Prism Bettas lol


----------



## Olivia27

They're probably from the same shipment batch then. Did you see Kasey's latest post (well, second latest now)? There's yet ANOTHER girl that is identical to your identical two. OMG. How do breeders figure out a tub full of twins going to many different people is beyond me.


----------



## ThatFishThough

Olivia, I feel so terrible.


It's another no.

>.< I [censor] hate my parents.


I got a yes for one spawn, thoigh


----------



## Olivia27

Naw, it's alright. Congrats on getting a yes for the spawn! I signed up for a spawn in the forum as well 

Soooo Tourmaline, do you still want Red? If not he's going up on eBay


----------



## Tourmaline

I just got the tank today and it turns out its a 20g tall.. x.x I'm not sure how I'm going to divide this thing. I'm probably going to sell it and get a 10g.. But I need to find someone to buy it first. Probably going to take a bit..


----------



## BettaStarter24

Lol love my 20g tall. Or you could keep it and get a giant...then get a 10 at the Petco dollar per gallon sale and divide that for red and a CT. Or a ct and whoever. (Ima big huge enabler)


----------



## Olivia27

Tourmaline said:


> I just got the tank today and it turns out its a 20g tall.. x.x I'm not sure how I'm going to divide this thing. I'm probably going to sell it and get a 10g.. But I need to find someone to buy it first. Probably going to take a bit..


Do you want me to hold on to him, though? Because I don't mind doing that for ya :-D

edit: where'd you buy that thing from, speaking of? You can ask for a refund or return it?



BettaStarter24 said:


> Lol love my 20g tall. Or you could keep it and get a giant...then get a 10 at the Petco dollar per gallon sale and divide that for red and a CT. Or a ct and whoever. (Ima big huge enabler)


Ooohh when's Petco's dollar-gallon sale?


----------



## Tourmaline

I didn't buy it. My friends found it and asked me if I wanted it. It's in good condition, just a little dirty. I already cleaned it up. It really looked like a 10g in the pictures.. 

How long would you be willing to hold him for? I have an ad on Craigslist for the tank but last time I sold a tank, no one bought it for 2 weeks. I'll try an ad on here too, maybe there are some NY lurkers near me.


----------



## Olivia27

Well since Miki is leaving, you have all the way until the end of April really


----------



## Tourmaline

I'd kinda feel bad holding him for that long when he's in a hospital tank and could have a home in that time.. :/ Try eBay, and if no one buys him by the time I get a tank for him, he'll have a home here. 

I'm actually trying to work out a trade with the friend I sold my 10g to.. Right before I had space for it. I'm still upset about that. He's not using it, and he likes bigger tanks. No response yet.


----------



## Olivia27

Yea I know what you mean =\ I'll put him up then. But when you work things out let me know and I'll pull his auction off


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## BettaStarter24

Not sure when it is actually. I've heard sometime in April but I could be wrong.


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## Olivia27

Yeeeesh that's a very long time >< sure hope there's one sometime around late August =\ I'm setting up my 20 Long around then


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## Olivia27

Aaalright folks, here is my one last bought to sell. His nickname is Malachite, like the medicine. Because he is *green

*Attached are some bad photos in Petco and during acclimation. I'll get some clearer, more high-res photos soon. I messed up his acclimation a bit and so he's a bit shocked now  but he'll perk up, I'm sure. Prices won't be named until he's actually perky and active, but he'll be cheaper here than eBay.


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## Sadist

Wow Malachite is gorgeous! I bet he'll sell really well.


----------



## Olivia27

Heh heh, yeah Malachite is gonna cover a good amount of my SNE spendings >

Seriously though. Mal is a very skittish little guy. He recovered from his shock and swam around normally last night, but this morning when I come up to feed everyone he basically played dead below the flat heater. When it came time for him to gulp air, he dashed upwards, made a huge splash and slipped back underneath the heater. Poor dude  I had my coat over his tank all day. Hope he calms down when I come home tonight. If he does I will transfer him to Miki's tank - now vacant - which has several Wisteria and moneywort to make it feel more homey. 

In another news, I got two tanks that somehow lost its cycle. I noticed Willow was clamped a little bit yesterday so I did a water test. What do you know, I fetched 0.25 ammo, 0.25 nitrite and 0 nitrate. The 5.5 fetched 0.25 ammo, 0.5 nitrite and 0 nitrates. Super worried now. I added Quick Start - which some people say doesn't work at all - and hoped for the best. Cypris is arriving this Wednesday. By that time Willow must move to the 5.5 so he can take up her current 2.6. Crossing all fingers and toes all goes well.

For some reason, even if I'm 101% convinced I *have* placed an order for another Stingray, I never paid for it and thus never received it. But I've budgeted for other stuff now, so I can't just hit the button and order =\ looks like Merah will be living in the dark for a little while longer. Not that he minds it.

I put Sapho on Rooibos again. His left ventral has uncurled a lot. Hopefully with more Rooibos it will uncurl even more. He's doing really well for a fish that arrived half dead. For once something turned out for the better in my life 

Big Red only garnered give or take 20 views after two days in eBay. Miki had almost 150 in the same amount of time. I really need to tweak the title or display photo a little. Gotta attract more eyes...

You guys need to remind me to put up a pic of Kitt. He's a lot happier in his cheer up condo now  swimming around and whatnot.

The imports will be shipped in three days. Soooo not looking forward to paying the trans shipper (I do make that money back, but those digits still make me wince). With my new 5g still cycling, it looks like the imports will arrive the same day as my new girl. She's a marble PK from our very own SusieG's spawn  

After a lengthy late night contemplation session to put every little bit of my inner creativity to work, I decided to name her Nichiyobi. Nichi (nee-chee) for short. She looks Samurai to me (disclaimer: I legit have poor vision), so I decided to go with a Japanese name. I was *this* close to naming her Tomoe Gozen - one of Japan's most famous female Samurai. But then I decided that the average people don't know how to pronounce "Tomoe", so... since I officially reserved her yesterday, Nichiyobi (Sunday) it is :lol:

So! To recap: I have five permanents currently; three with me and two more on the way. Big Red is still up for auction on eBay and adoption on here. Kitt has had a home since day one. Miki just left. Malachite will be listed today after class. Three imports, all platinum white with minimal BF bands, are arriving at the end of the month. And then that's it. Fin. 

To mark the near end of this journal and my fostering journey, here's little Nichi looking cute :-D


----------



## SydneyA

I LOVE her! I can't wait for the imports and kitt to arrive.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Good luck with everyone! As for Red and eBay, I think not having "import" in the title doesn't help. Try words like "rare coloration" or "Fancy"


----------



## Olivia27

I'm soooo using the "rare" trick on Malachite's listing LOL between you and me, guys, there's no such thing as a green Betta  Mal is a metallic royal blue. If you look at him from above, under natural lighting, royal blue is his true color. But for some reason, 90% of the time if you look at him from his sides, he's dark green no matter how bright or dim the lighting is. So I suppose he indeed is rare in that case.

I still don't have "professional" photos of Mal. Poor guy is super fearful of humans  I swore he had bacterial SBD when he first arrived. But then when I watch him from the opposite end of the table, he was swimming around normally. The moment I step into his field of vision, though, he'd sink like a rock and flatten himself underneath the tilted flat heater. I mean, it's great to know that he's not sick, but the whole playing dead thing made me a little sad  

From what I can see from a good distance away though, here are Malachite's stats:
- smooth topline (ish? sometimes I think he has an arched back, some other times I think I'm crazy)
- no spoon head
- sharp, knife-shaped, NOT split vents 
- nice pointy anal
- 180, D-shaped caudal
- no excessive branching (4-ray) <- did not see this one from afar. Checked him for this on the pet store
- strong peduncle <- same deal
- Narrow, stair-stepping, not-forward dorsal (uuugh why!!)
- Incomplete butterfly band. Fun fact: although the band failed to extend to his dorsal and only made it through about 25% of his anal, his pecs have a complete one LOL

All in all, he is a gorgeous little guy. Now only if I can capture that beauty on camera, that would be great.


----------



## Tealight03

Aw poor guy. How much are you asking for him? Probably can't take him but you never know.


----------



## Olivia27

Tealight03 said:


> Aw poor guy. How much are you asking for him? Probably can't take him but you never know.


He's gonna start at $30 on eBay, but he can go for $25 in here.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Lol guess he's another case for camera zoom from across the table.


----------



## Sadist

That poor guy who's all scared :-( It makes me wonder what happened to him before you got him! He'll take extra work.

I love Malachite's coloring! I thought it was called turquoise when they showed as blue or green, depending on the lighting (they can also show as purple). He's gorgeous! I'm sure someone will snap him up in a heartbeat. "Rare color" may be just what you need!


----------



## Tealight03

I feel bad for him being scared. But $25 is a little much for me right now. Hope he finds a good home.


----------



## Olivia27

If he's still here next Monday I'd drop his price to $20 on here and $25 on eBay. Currently I'm just trying to see how far can I run with a higher price. We'll see how he does on eBay 

So Malachite is still not eating. Sorta not surprising, buuut I do want him to eat =\ I'll thaw some blood worms tonight

Meanwhile, Kitt is loving his jungle  apparently the true cure for depression is a big, soft, green bed


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Good to hear Kitt is doing better!!


----------



## Sadist

Lots of plants makes them all happy


----------



## Tealight03

Ugh I'm flip flopping. Don't need another or to spend money on another setup. Keep him on ebay and we'll see what happens. Sorry for being indecisive.


----------



## Olivia27

Naw don't worry. Little green guy is still very nervous unfortunately so it doesn't look like he'd be up on eBay until a little later this week. Anyway, the price drop is gonna happen after his first listing period ends. So that's five days after whenever I manage to snap good enough pics of him


----------



## Tealight03

Ok let me know what happens on ebay. Meanwhile I will add up Mal/shipping/tank/heater. These guys get expensive don't they.


----------



## Olivia27

The dollar gallon sale is coming up though. And the aquatics sale is following right after!

Here's some not-so-professional photos from today's photo shoot attempt

Malachite Not-Green



Finally off the tank floor



Looking blue-green



And his adorable skunk stripe. No, he's not dead. He's just... Mal ._.


----------



## Tealight03

Oh dollar per gallon sale. Hmm. 

He looks sad. Poor guy.


----------



## Olivia27

OK one last late-night update before I go to bed. I just got back from my closing shift. I'm tired, but I'm excited to share these!

1) Malachite

I think I may have cracked the Malachite code. I always drape my coat over his tank during the day, and then observe him with the lights on when I get back in the evening. Somehow it never crossed my mind that this guy probably acts differently in the dark. Well tonight is the first time I watched Mal with the lights off, and I got this beautiful shot 



*Look* at that! Fins spread out, ventrals dropped, swimming near the surface, no labored breathing (well the pic can't show that but that's what happened)... Gee! And all I need to do is hit a switch. Literally. Looks like Mal's photo shoot is gonna be a little out of the box then.

2) Big Red

So Red got some plants in his little KK as well. You know, just to make it more homey. I don't want him to scare off Malachite, so I pushed his tank a little farther. Since he lives right in between Kitt and Mal, his tank moving further from Mal's mean it's moving closer to Kitt's. And... Are you ready? Big Red didn't flare. Nope. He definitely has a full, clear view of Kitt - who's usually equally aggressive. But neither boys bothered tonight. I can't figure out whether it's because of the darkness, the plants, or just desensitization after being neighbors for a while, but these Meijer boys NOT challenging each other into a death match is a BIG news. 

3) Kitt

I told ya he's not sick. Kitt has been found swimming normally these past few days. He even did the typical Betta dance, and ate his food the moment he sees it. He still sleeps in the weirdest play dead positions. But at least he's not hugging the heater all day with a gray cloud over his head. He has also stopped sitting on his tail like a mermaid. Like this:



4) Nichi and Cypris

Both newcomers are on their way as we speak. Nichi will arrive Friday, and Cypris... I don't know. The tracking says Thursday but at the same time he has reached Lansing already. He's literally about 20 minutes away from me now. I'm hoping he'd get here tomorrow. Nichi has just left NJ. Her tank is halfway through the fishless cycle. It's reading 0.25 ammo, 0.5 nitrite and 0 nitrates this morning. I added two more drops of ammo so now it's 2ppm ammo, 2ppm nitrite and 0ppm nitrates. Let's hope Quick Start does its job. But if not, I have a hospital tank open anyway.

And then, there's Miki. I shipped Miki at 3:25 PM on Monday, after printing the shipping label from PayPal at exactly 2:29 PM the same day. The label I printed says it's a 1-Day Priority Express. The tracking website says it's a TWO-day Priority Express. What's more: they told me I printed my label at 6:29 PM on Monday and shipped the package at 3:25 PM ** today **. That's an utter, blatant lie. Are they trying to avoid admitting their mistake by altering times and dates?? Because I have proof of the actual shipping date, and I'm going to ask for a refund tomorrow. They better do as they promise and deliver Miki tomorrow or ELSE. I emailed my buyer explaining everything. I also asked to be updated about Miki's arrival whether DOA or not. Hopefully it's the latter though. I have had a very crappy week. I don't need USPS killing my gorgeous little import boy as the cherry on top.


----------



## Tealight03

Usps has been so weird lately. Customer service is a joke too. I hope he arrives safely.


----------



## Sadist

I hope they all make it! 

I think they fudge the times on a lot of my arriving things, too. I had a 2-day priority on a live food culture. They showed when it was shipped out (if that was the real time), and then there were 0 updates for 5 days, then 5 things updated all at once as it arrived on my side of the country. Then nothing for 3 days, and then everything updated at once saying it was on the way from the post office to my house. This is with email updates, too. On top of it all, the delivery person left the box against the garage, where I can't see it from a window (and it was sunny!). Last week, I just ordered leaves and fish bags, so they were prompt and came in on time.

I really hope they're on top of their game with all of your shipments!


----------



## Olivia27

Well Miki is in the destination town as we speak. Hope he arrives safely later today =\

In another news Cypris is here! He's currently in a hospital tank since my 5.5 is going through a mini cycle right now. The ammo reads 0.25 and nitrite 0.5, so it's not very safe to move Willow just yet. Cy is happy and healthy though!



He was pretty pale when he first arrived, but moments later he tried to challenge Big Red to a flaring contest. Red, surprisingly, ignored him. Normally I would be proud. But I just noticed that Red is heavily fin biting... So I'm not very happy with him >< little guy's on Rooibos now

See his tail?



Kitt on the other hand is looking great


----------



## Sadist

Kitt's mermaid pose is too funny; I forgot to add that earlier!


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Red reminds me of Fawkes lol, same kind of biting problem too.


----------



## themamaj

Hopefully this face will brighten your day. Can you guess who???


----------



## Olivia27

There's no mistaking those eyes LOL hi Kirov!!


----------



## SydneyA

Yay kitt!


----------



## Olivia27

Good news: Miki has arrived safe and sound. Buuut since I still feel cheated, I still plan to go ask for a refund tomorrow. Let's see how that goes. 

Malachite has improved. Even with the lights on he's been swimming near the surface. But make *any* kind of loud noise and he'd dart back behind the heater. I dropped a bloodworm for him tonight. He approached it, but then backed away. Now this is anthropomorphism through and through, but I immediately thought of prisoners that suspect their food are poisoned =\ poor guy. Oh well, it's nice to see him improving. One step at a time.


----------



## Olivia27

Nichi is here!!

I was getting ready to leave for class this morning when my phone told me Nichi is out for delivery. So I dropped everything and stayed home waiting for her. Not too long later there are three knocks on the door and my gorgeous lady arrived. Nichi is not supposed to be here until tomorrow. The tracking says she's only in Allen Park yesterday ._. Our weird friend USPS, huh? 

Anyway. This means Cypris needs to move in to his actual tank. Luckily the 5.5 has cycled (well... 0.25 ammo 0 nitrite 10 nitrates) so I plopped him in, and put Nichi in the hospital tank. Goodness me, this girl is *feisty* as anything. I opened the box and found her kicking around banging her head on the plastic bag. She ate a bloodworm almost as long as her BO count half an hour after arrival. Malachite, who lives right next door, apparently got inspired and snapped food out of the tweezers for the first time ever 

Here is my little princess in the hospital tank (before I do today's vacuuming round)


----------



## Sadist

What a sweety!

I've had the same problem with new fish looking scared of blood worms. Sadly, I think they just don't know what they are until they take a bite.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

She's adorable!!! Glad everyone is doing well!


----------



## Olivia27

Thanks everyone! She looks like a cheesecake XD 

In another news: heads up! my imports are shipped out today. So I need to either put Malachite on a 3-Day auction or get a fifth KK (which I need anyway).


----------



## themamaj

Aww love new little girl so cute! Exciting on imports. When do you get them?


----------



## Olivia27

I'm trying to get them here on the 30th - a Wednesday. That's the only day I can be home to receive them. I'd hate to skip any more classes =\


----------



## SydneyA

Pretty new girl! Allen Park is like 20 minutes from me. USPS is all screwed up half the time. Yay on the imports! Safe and gentle travels!


----------



## Olivia27

I should hear from the trans shipper real soon. Uugh time to cough up all the $$ ><

Speaking of dollars, please check out Malachite on eBay! This boy has made a full recovery and is now flaring away just the way he should. Remember: eBay tells people if the item is viewed frequently. So click on the link and check him out  

http://www.ebay.com/itm/182066128901?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

EDIT: and this is Big Red

http://www.ebay.com/itm/182061049513?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649


----------



## Olivia27

So! I'm going to USPS today to ask for a refund. And then I'm gonna have to buy another power strip to accommodate all the tanks and their equipment. I totally thought today is Saturday waking up O_O I have an 8AM shift on Saturday. But nope, it's Friday. Paper day. After my little adventure to the post office I'd have to sit down getting my paper done. But before any of that, here are some quick updates 

Nichi's actual tank - 50% done. Most of the plants are still being loaned to Kitt. Oh and yes, those are high light plants. Don't worry, I just ordered a Stingray 



Ugly tank alert =\ Cypris in the 5.5. In the end I decided - out of pure laziness - that it's too much work to catch Willow and move her. Plus, with the filter pad, the filter made essentially no current. Cy can even swim directly underneath the flow. I also notice the lack of top cover. The Cabomba are supposed to float >< but they keep on sinking!



And here is Nichi today. She's soooo cute and tiny!


----------



## Olivia27

*1600*

Well, THAT was an eventful day. 

I was desperate enough to volunteer coming in on Saturday morning for a "really big" pizza order. I thought it's gonna be just like any other shifts: putting sauce on top of dough, following the recipe, chucking it into the oven, boxing the pizza. Four, five hours tops. Nope. 

Someone - who I really wish could meet and question - has placed an order for 200 whole pizzas. Each pizza has eight slices, so we made, baked and boxed 1600 slices of pizza this morning. _Morning. _As in my shift started at 8 AM - because they want 100 out of that 200 delivered by noon. 100 pizzas. 800 slices. In under four hours. _Under. _The order totaled to a staggering $1,596. Now I don't usually ask questions about what people spend their money on, but this one is quite extraordinary. If *I *have that amount of money in hand, as much as I love pizza, I certainly would not spend it on 100 pepperoni, 50 cheese and 50 three-meats. Is there a pizza cult now? 

Anyway. 

I came home smelling like melted cheese, pizza sauce and smoke. I only had four hours of sleep the night before, because a big early event only worsens your insomnia. I was going to sit at Starbucks or somewhere else with free wifi so I can finish up some school work, but once I sat down on my chair - surrounded by all the wiggly, jiggly, googly eyes on my desk - I don't want to go anywhere anymore. So I did small water changes for everyone in the house and ordered a big bowl of garden salad. After that, it's pictures time.

First up is Malachite - who turns out to be an OHMPK (second picture shows it best). I have updated his eBay pics :-D http://www.ebay.com/itm/182066128901?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649 

There. It looks a lot better now.

Next up is Merah, whose tank is sunbathing next to Malachite's. 



I wish I could snap a side view of him with his beard open =\ my phone camera takes way too long to focus. This is the best I could manage:



Big Red skipped the photo session due to his dark brown tannin-stained water. His tail is looking better though! He told Kitt to say "hi"



One day I should put Kitt on one of my "professional" photo shoots. With the tank put under the bright kitchen light, white tissue as background, and all the plants and heater removed. I always talk about how lovely Big Red is, but Kitt... Kitt is stunning too. 

Same goes for this young lady. I keep trying to snap a flare photo of her, but she only flares for one microsecond each time ><



And now: Sapho. The Impossible-to-photograph Sapho. When I finally snapped a clear picture of him, he's wedged between an Anubias leaf and the filter's sponge baffler





Most of Sapho's pics came out like this - with horrible glare, reflection, and an blurry head



Cypris, a.k.a Mini Sapho. Say this boy has a thicker butterfly band and a white outer band instead of cello, he'd be Sapho's identical twin. 



Who's left?



Aw, of course. How can I forget Miss Will-o-the-wisp?  



Now for the big announcement: I am not getting a 20 Long. My limit is still seven - no more no less. But it looks like I'm reaching it far sooner than planned. Sapho's five gal will move to the bottom shelf with Nichi's. On the compartment where his five gal currently is, I will place another three gal to house a gorgeous black copper CT girl I've admired for a while now. Next semester, my third shelf will hold an 8.5g (ADA Do! Aqua 60-F to be exact) where my last addition will live. And then that's it. I'm done. No more Bettas past that.


----------



## SydneyA

That is a HUGE amount of pizza! Some company party or a school maybe? Wow. 
Kitt looks SO much better, awesome job!


----------



## ShelbysFish

Love love love the photos!


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## Olivia27

Thanks guys  got some more photos of the Meijer boys today. Everyone else didn't join in LOL too lazy

So Kitt isn't as active as Big Red. Even with a mirror I couldn't snap a nice flare photo of him. Two videos later I only got four notable screenshots.



ACK! No time to fix the background ><





And his sad, sad face



Big Red was another story. Blurry parts say it all





He loves his plants too 



And then, the mirror comes out



Big Red dreams to be a camel someday



That poor tail  now you know why the water is brown



And here's my Betta shelf today. From top most shelf to bottom shelf: Cypris (5.5), Willow (2.6), Merah (3g black gravels), empty (3g white sand), Sapho (lighted 5g), Nichi (empty, still-cycling, not-yet-lighted 5g).



On Monday the other five and the 3g with black gravels will get a Stingray. The 3g with white sand is where Silhouette - black copper female CT - will go. The equipment shelf in the middle is where I want to put my 8.5 next semester. As you can see it's very narrow, so I don't have too many options beside the Do! Aqua... which is $85 ><


----------



## ShelbysFish

Omg you could make a perfect meme with his "sad face" hahaha.


----------



## Tealight03

Kitt is a handsome guy


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## BettaSplendid

Yup, the "sad, sad face" got me too. I sounded like I was deflating as I slowly wheeze/squealed/whined over his pitifulness. So cute! Oooooooeeeeeeeehhhhhhhmmmmmmmmeeeeeeeeeeehhhhhh......


----------



## Olivia27

Lol Betta Splendid you made my day. I should hold a caption contest or something lol


----------



## BettaNard

Even though it's blurry, Merah's beard photo is adorbs haha. And holy moly, your "betta shelf" is awesome, I wish I had the $$$ for that, right now I can only afford to maintain my two tanks with Callisto and Castor haha.


----------



## SydneyA

Kitt looks like he has emotional issues. The betta with anxiety and depression. He will fit right in. Poor guy, lolol. He does look so sorry for himself in that pic.


----------



## BettaSplendid

Okay, I must admit, I saved that picture. Kitsadface.jpg LOL.

It is only cute and funny because I know he isn't really sad. If I saw that face at a store though I would cry! He is very handsome and tempting. Has he been spoken for?


----------



## Olivia27

@ SydneyA: lol yup love that photo of Kitt x)

@ BettaNard: It helps if you eat off your workplace and never buys new clothes ever XD seriously though, the most I have ever spent on a tank is $20, and that's for the 2.6 Willow is in because I gotta pay shipping. Tank itself was $10. The rest are $12 and $11. The 5gals were $8 and $9. Got them during Petco sale. If you don't mind plastic tanks it's easy to spend less on them. 4 out of 6 tanks are unfiltered too, so there's that. My top three biggest spendings are heater, lights and plants. Holy moly the plants >< and Merah says thank you! 

@ Betta Splendid: lol I think that's the file name on my laptop too. And yep unless there's a change in arrangement Kitt has found a home since day one


----------



## SydneyA

He's coming to me next week! I kinda picked him when she was choosing them at meijer, lol. We happened to be chatting. Hope it's ok to out myself


----------



## BettaNard

ShelbysFish said:


> Omg you could make a perfect meme with his "sad face" hahaha.



Way ahead of you:










Sounds like good advice, but I can never stop spending money on food ==" clothes is probably easy for me but food is a whole different story haha. Holy, your tanks sound so cheap, a plastic tank like the ones on your shelves would cost $20-$30 here in Aus 
The tank I have Castor in was $120 with the stand and Callisto's tank was $59!!! And don't get me started on plants, buying them is so addicting, hence Castor's mini jungle I have him in, I've spent way too much, my fishies are spoilt :lol:


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## Olivia27

AAAAHHHH!! Three-digit numbers with a dollar sign in front! I'm allergic to that! @[email protected]

And loool loving the meme. I actually have been destroying his bubble nest too XD


----------



## Sadist

Love all the fish updates! I really love the one peaking from behind a leaf and your boy wedging himself into the space between the plant and filter outflow.


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## BettaSplendid

BettaNard said:


> Way ahead of you:


*cries* aaaaaaaaaawwww!


----------



## Olivia27

Lol see? We totally need a captioning contest of some sort. 

@Sadist: Willow and Sapho says thank you!  

Okay several announcements tonight before I go back to climbing my mountain of assignments:
1) Those of you who have a fish in my next import batch, Koo Yang just picked them up from the airport today. Seeing how crazy his life must be ATM, I actually expect the gang to reach me a little later than planned. So that's either this Friday or Saturday. I haven't even paid anything to the trans shipper tbh. Guy's too busy to send invoices 
2) There is this SUPER CUTE pink-peach VT male in my Petco. I can take pics tomorrow evening. The last time I was in Petco I left my phone at home  anyway. I don't see pink fish often so I thought I'd let you guys know. Unfortunately unless Big Red gets adopted and Malachite sold, I can't bring another home. But he's healthy enough to be immediately shipped if anyone is interested. Unfortunately, Petco recently jacked up their prices =\ so he's gonna be $5 instead of the usual $3. Shipping is a flat $12 unless you want Priority Express which would be $35.


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## Olivia27

Okay I just paid the trans shipper last night. The gang is gonna be here Friday. One didn't survive :'( not yours, Sydney, but he was reserved for someone else in the forum. %^#*. I felt bad ._. But since I'm cutting so close to the end of spring I don't think I'm gonna ask for a replacement. Gee only if this seller does refunds =\


----------



## Olivia27

Okay this is a lot of announcements in the course of a few hours, but Big Red just got adopted  x only Malachite and the rest of the imports are left


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Yay! Does that mean you're getting the pink VT? or are you actually done now? lol


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## Olivia27

Nooo lol first off I still have Malachite, and second off if I really must bring home another it's gonna be someone from that miserable rack of death at Meijer. There's this huge red BF VT when I was there for Kitt and Red. Buttefly VTs aren't very common...

... Wait >< I can't. I can't I can't I can't...

Edit: the offer stands tho if anyone wants the pink fish I can ship. Pictures should be up tonight.


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## Olivia27

Nooo pink fish is gone :'( on the other hand te imports have been shipped out x


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## SydneyA

I'm beginning to think we should make up a business cards and leave them at meijer and places that direct to this site.


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## Olivia27

Yup we totally should. My Husky owner forum has that.


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## Tealight03

I still kick myself over a d bf vt at Petsmart. I went back to look for him and found one that might have been him, but he was so clamped I couldn't tell. He was gorgeous the first time I saw him.


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## Olivia27

Aww  isn't it sad what pet stores do to beautiful fish  I'm really curious if the BF VT I saw is still there. I really shouldn't, but I may not be able to resist if I met him again...


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## Olivia27

Don't you just love USPS?

Silhouette arrived early enough for me to still make it to class. So after I released her to the 3g and fed everyone, I got back to getting ready for class. But just as I was about to get dressed there were three knocks on the door and - guess what - it's my import batch. Their 3-Day delivery has turned to overnight. I'm happy, but I'm also unprepared. A bit frantically, I grabbed my Disney shirt and short pants, packed Kitt, Big Red and one of the four imports and went off to the post office. 

It was not that warm yet. 

Brrrr! x___x note to self: always have a coat ready by the door. And never pick short pants first!

Anyway. There's one more import boy that will leave as soon as he is paid. And then two more that I will put up here, eBay and AB. They're both platinum white EE DeT. One has an incomplete red butterfly band, and the other is almost pure white except for one tiny red streak on his dorsal. Pics will be up shortly 

With the imports in the house Nichi will have to move into her permanent tank. I'm a bit jittery. The filter broke nearing the end of the fishless cycling, and now somehow I'm stuck with 0.25 ammo. The nitrite dropped and dropped each day I test (from 5 to 0) but the ammo stayed 0.25 =\ suppose that calls for a wc. Sapho - not Nichi - is moving to that tank. Nichi gets Sapho's filtered tank since she's a stronger swimmer. So at least I don't have a baby in such a young tank.

I also have two papers to finish today. This is gonna be a looooong week.


----------



## BettaSplendid

Aaw, hate that I missed the pink veiltail!


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## OUOhYeah2016

Oh wow lol thats a lot going on in fish land today! Can't wait to see the imports!

@BettaSplendid Are you looking for pink? I have a pink/purple/blue (but mostly pink) CT for sale.


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## Olivia27

Quick gallery to advertise the imports before I start researching for my two papers  

First off, the one with the least red: "Ice"



He has the thickest, whitest, most adorable puckered lip 





Second in line is the one with red wash: "Candy Cane". He's not an EE, but his caudal edges are smoother. Ice has a very messy one I'm afraid.







I can't really capture it on camera, but Cane wears a blood red lipstick LOL if any of you can point out a really nice-sounding makeup brand I'd change his nickname XD



Cane's breeder pic: showing off his butt



And now for the guy that is already sold. Here's his breeder pic:



And my horrible pics:





I don't have photos of Malachite from today. I just moved him to another foster tank with two fully-grown Anubias with the hope of cheering him up even more - but he's a bit freaked out by the move =\ but he'd bounce back, I'm sure.

And now for my permanents! Wooo! My two new Stingrays just arrived. So here is the Betta shelf today, looking all nice and bright



Let's go by tank order from top most shelf to the bottom. Here's Cypris, behind his algae-ridden tank wall. It's nothing but regular green algae, but even Excel doesn't kill it =\ in another news: Cypris is turning black! He kept on reminding me to Bruno Mars' song "Grenade" now LOL "what color is Cy?" "Black, black, black and blue~" 



On to Cy's neighbor: Willow the Roly Poly. Look how round she is with her vents folded LOL



Willow's downstairs neighbor is: Merah! Now in HD  (ignore the reflection. And the thermometer. It's a great shot if you ignore those two >< )



Separated by a big solid wall is Merah's brand new neighbor and my latest addition: Silhouette. She is - as you may imagine - very difficult to take photos of. I managed one shot that captured the copper part of her "black copper" color, but I haven't fixed the white background yet so you see a lot of reflections =\



After the white background, Silhouette lived up to her name



Quick note: surprisingly enough, Silhouette is not exactly clamped. I just can't catch her on camera with all her fins spread. I wish I could though. She's so very beautiful! <3

Now on to the twin tanks on the bottom shelf. On the left we have Nichi, who has just moved in this morning. This is the best photo I could manage:



On the right we have Sapho. I can't take a good pic of Sapho to save my life ._.


----------



## Olivia27

And LOL do you guys realize how I have one of almost every tail type available? HM, CT, DT, Delta, RT, PK, (the past ones count right?) VT and even roundtail! The only ones missing are FT and Super DeT (and all the funky combos like DTPK, CTPK or DTCT if you count them). Sorta gave me ideas for what I'm getting next...

edit: I even have had a combtail in the house! Romeo (now with Seaman2012) is totally a combtail. I just don't list him as that because most people care more about his HM-ness.


----------



## SydneyA

Lovely pics! I love all the plants. And for those interested, Kitt, Big Red, and the other import arrived safe and sound slightly unexpectedly overnight!


----------



## Aqua Aurora

Tip to show betta lips in photo: get above view photo, prep to feed and get photos when betta is at sruface waiting for food.


----------



## themamaj

I knew there was a reason I needed to stay off the computer. Lol Ice is so cute!! and love those pucker lips. You're killing me with white fish!!  Candy Cane could have been a twin to my Blizzard.


----------



## SydneyA

Candy cane is a great name by the way!


----------



## Olivia27

Thanks Aqua  I might as well try that with Cane tonight. I was *this* close to naming him Peppermint, but then I was like: "doesn't @themamaj has one called that too?" so I changed it to Candy Cane LOL trying to stay original here. And @themamaj I knew you'd love Ice ;P he looks like he's wearing Lady Gaga's lipstick haha. Glad you like the nickname Sydney  I still think I should change it to some makeup brand if anyone can name a good one though. It's the lipstick. One cannot simply ignore the lipstick XD 

So I'm stuck at my workplace. I got out eight minutes early due to a new hire coming in, but as soon as I reached the door, I saw that it was pouring. I only have my thin Husky jacket =\ so I suppose I'd wait here. The plan was to continue researching for my paper, maybe write a book review or two. Yet here I am LOL good thing I have my laptop with me tonight. My phone is dying. 

Anyway, a quick announcement: I'm pulling Malachite off eBay. I will not list him in the Marketplace anytime soon either. Poor little guy has reverted back to square one. There is still no signs of illness. Poop is healthy-looking, no difficulty swimming, no signs of external parasites. Tank gets daily 50% wc, is holding at 80-82F and has been moved to a darker corner in the room. He has two fully grown Anubias barteri and... I don't know what else to say. He's just simply back to square one. Zero interest in food, spends most of his day at the bottom of the tank, clamped, labored breathing...  hope he'd bounce back as soon as he did the first time.


----------



## SydneyA

Do you have any Seachem Paraguard? If you do I would just dose him. That stuff covers a huge range of icky junk. It's kinda hard to find though. I had to go to an actual fish store.


----------



## Olivia27

I'm lucky enough my LFS carries anything I need. I honestly cringe each time I go there though since no bus routes go their way, and so I must call a cab. It's $12 roundtrip. All for a bottle of $5 medicine. Yaay ._.

EDIT: can I just steal this moment to show you all how awesome Koo Yang is? How many trans shippers ask you how the fish are doing?


----------



## SydneyA

That's awesome! Mine just ate several pellets and is doing quite well. He's digging thru stones hoping he missed a pellet or two. I know we live close but I'm still surprised they made it here overnight!


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Koo is awesome! When I was fish sitting for BamNeko he sent those girls to me and was extremely helpful letting me know when to expect them and check on them.


----------



## Olivia27

I have zero experience with other trans shippers... But I don't think I'd ever switch now <3

Also: I found ParaGuard in my cupboard!! Good thinking, me!!


----------



## ThatFishThough

I found... I think Merah's twin. I can't remember.


----------



## Olivia27

Aw, does he have a huge missing chunk of his fins then? Can't really tell from the picture. He's really cute though! Great find!


----------



## ThatFishThough

Yeah. I didn't grab him, no room ;-; I is sad now. I crei everitime.


----------



## Olivia27

Aw  don't worry, I'm sure we're not the only bleeding hearts out there. The sheer existence of this forum itself is prove of that 

Picture-less update:
- Silhouette skips breakfast. She's been pooping HUGE poops ._. The color is still red and healthy but it did hang off her for a while which I don't feel comfortable seeing
- Nichi changed color. She has more cello on her dorsal now. Which doesn't make sense because usually it's the color that takes over the cello parts!
- I had a dream Sapho jumped out. Why Sapho specifically or why only him, goodness knows. But I'm happy to report that he's still in his tank when I woke up! In another news: Sapho's been building a huuuge bubble nest. I suppose he never had time to make one in his old filtered tank. Now that there's no current to throw him around, he spends most of his day perfecting his bubble nest. Too cute <3
- Candy Cane is a HM. He only flares as fast as one can blink, so no photos yet, but I will make it my mission to catch it on camera ><
- Ice is not the sharpest tool in the box. He won't eat food that is farther than a quarter inch away from his face. But if you drop it directly on top, he won't eat it either. I tried to flare him but all he did was raise his gills a little bit. "Derp, is this how you flare?"
- Malachite is on ParaGuard. Still no interest in food, but thank the good heavens he actually responds when I place my hand on the tank wall now. He's been sticking his belly to the glass like a Pleco. Worries me =\
- nothing special to note from everyone else in the house. I'm supposed to have a busy day but I'm not sure if my group would remember to meet and work today. If they don't then I'll have time to do a gallery


----------



## Olivia27

And the boys are officially up for auction! Unfortunately Cane's breeder pic is too small for eBay's liking, so I gotta make do with one of his first-day-home pics =\ I really should snap better ones soon. Anyway. If you guys have time, please do click their auctions to increase view count. Help Ice and Candy Cane find their homes  

Ice: http://www.ebay.com/itm/182076226274?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Cane: http://www.ebay.com/itm/182076238180?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Ice is also on AB, but view counts don't do much there. Here he is anyway: http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwbettasd&1459987838 

I haven't listed Cane on AB yet. Posting there without a really good photo is just asking to be a laughing stock. I kind of want to hold a photo session now, but I also need to finish my paper. I'm only about 60% through. Decisions, decisions.

edit: also, the red BF EEFT that was tentatively sold is still here. Looks like things came up on the other end. If the buyer doesn't get back to me until Monday - or officially backed out before then - he'd be up on eBay too. If that happens I'm gonna need another nickname. Eeep!


----------



## Olivia27

*Not Fish Related*

I'm being SUPER chatty today, unless you haven't noticed. I'm surprised nobody told me to shut up yet LOL anyway, insomnia-induced rambling: GO! 

There's this project I've been working on. It's some sort of a short story about Merah's life - told from his perspective. The big theme is about self discovery and identity. Like, by instinct, Merah was born knowing that he's an aggressive fighting fish. But then he was shipped out to Petco, sat there for so SO SO long, and finally he came home with me. What I'm doing is I blend his animal instinct - the knowledge of who he is, what he is, what he does, how he does it - with a fictional human-like self-consciousness. What came out of that mix is an existential crisis. Is he a majestic, lethal, daunting predator? Is he a piece of trinket that costs a dime a dozen? Is he a human toy? Is he a beloved companion? Stuff like that. And then we just follow him through his questioning of self identity. Several of my fosters made an appearance here too, and of course my permanents including the late Seren and Volga. I'll make sure I mention the rest too as the story goes on. 

Why Merah specifically, I'm not exactly sure. I started writing this a long while ago. But I never finished because, well, Merah's story is still ongoing. I should probably write another one from Seren's perspective - as a tribute. But I'm too busy ATM  once I start writing I can't stop, so I do need one whole free day if not more. Merah's tale is at 15 pages as of now, with many many many parts I'm not happy about. After I edit the conversations that make little sense, and the bits that add nothing at all to the story line, I may as well end up with a much shorter page count. Anyway. I may as well post a sneak peek. If you're a grammar Nazi please do scrutinize it. I'm really bad with tense consistency. There are probably many verbs in here that are supposed to be in past tense. But sometimes, for some reason, present tense sounds better XD so! Without further ado, the first three chapters of Merah's story:

_Born_​
_If you were just hatched, you probably only know one kind of creatures: us. However, there are more creatures out there other than our kind. There is only one other I know of, for now. They are huge. The largest of us all still doesn’t compare to the tips of their fins. I’m not even sure if they have fins. Mine are long and flowy. My sisters’ are not as long, but they’re still soft and swift – carrying them gliding back and forth with grace. These creatures don’t glide. They don’t dive, dance nor flare. They just awkwardly move around. Loudly. The fins that they put into my room look heavy and thick. Sometimes those fins carry food. Sometimes they’re just there to mess up the place. Again. _

_I later learned that these creatures are called humans. There are many kinds of them, as far as I can tell. And that is big coming from a Betta splendens. Because there are many of us. Too many. One too many._

_What am I supposed to be?_

_I am Betta splendens. Siamese fighting fish. I am a fighter. A vicious murderer with gills that flare and fins that spread pointing north and south. I may be a grain of salt compared to humans, but in my world I am huge. I am lethal. I pose danger to anyone who dares to enter my domain. That is who I am. That is what I am supposed to be. _

_Or so I thought._

_My life began when the egg cracked and my tail drooped down to the warm water. Everything was dark, and quiet. For me, at least. To my father it was a busy day. He kept me – and hundreds upon hundreds of my siblings – out of harm’s way. He fed us, caught us when we fall off our nest, and taught us many things about how to be a Betta splendens. He taught us about fins, and gliding, and diving and dancing and flaring. There really are many things you can do when you have fins. I bet those humans are missing out. But at this point of life, I didn’t know about humans yet. All I see were my brothers and sisters, all Betta splendens. All fighters. That is what we’re supposed to be. We were born to fight. _

_It was around the time when we all have our own fins when my brothers start practicing to be a real fighter. My sisters caught on a little slower. They fought less. Slightly less. The space is tight, and there were many of us. Too many. One too many. We flared and nipped and spread our fins. We make ourselves look big, so hopefully the other would relent. Sometimes they do. Sometimes they don’t. If it’s the latter, we fight. We were born to. That is what we were supposed to be. _

_Or so I thought. _

_Soon, things change. Very soon. The humans dunk their fat, stocky fins into the water and suddenly I am alone. I cannot see my brothers. I cannot see my sisters. There were no more fighting. Just silence, me, and the four walls. _

_Especially the four walls. _

_New Room_​
_I never noticed the walls when I still live with my father and siblings. They were stretched so far away. So far, in my young eyes they seemed like the end of the horizon. I never had to worry about how much swimming I can do before I hit my head on the wall. Here, I never had to worry either. Because no matter how little I move, I bump my head anyway._

_Do you know what you are supposed to be?_

_I am Betta splendens. Siamese fighting fish. I am born a fighter, and here I am having no one to fight. That is if you don’t count the walls, and the slight sore on my head. I’m embarrassed to admit this, but I’m actually relieved I live alone. I don’t have to fight anyone this way. I don’t have to keep an eye out in case one of my brothers is stalking me from behind. I don’t have to worry about how far my beard can stretch or how far my small, weak fins can spread. I don’t have to chase anyone away. I don’t have to be chased by anyone away. I am supposed to be born a fighter, but I must admit I’m glad I don’t have to be one. _

_So what am I supposed to be?_

_At first, I do wonder if I will ever have to fight again. I don’t. I know for sure now.
_ _The Move_​_One day the humans pressed their massive fins on my walls, wrapping my entire home and lifting it as if it weighs nothing. Then I was put in a different kind of wall, this time with little water that is dark. The water, I mean. Hard to tell, though, since everything is dark. Briefly, I see a glimpse of my siblings in the same kind of dark water and funny walls. I see them, and they see me. But we were separated by our own walls and dark water. There would be no space to fight within these walls anyway. I did say I am small, but the container really was only big enough for one me. We were all terrified. The water splashed and sloshed as we were all jammed together in what seemed like a rimless black sky. And I mean all of us. I told you we were many. I have no idea there was anything big enough to contain us all, each separated into solitary containers. And then the light disappeared, and the world rumbled and tumbled for what felt like an eternity._

_One of my humans spoke of days. I don’t count days. I don’t know how to separate something so big like time into smaller pieces small enough to remember. But separating things into smaller pieces seem to be what humans do best. For example, they did that to us, too. The water was dark, but when light broke through the darkness all I saw were human hands. In, and out, and in, and out. They didn’t seem to care which of my siblings they grabbed. But then again, as I will soon learn, humans don’t seem to care about many things._

_It was my turn. A big, five-ray fins wrapped around my walls and lifted me up hastily. They tore down the walls and I felt the water dragging my hapless body out from one container and into another. The bottom was hard this time. I know because it actually hurts when I bump my head. I could not feel my fins. I could still swim, but I couldn’t feel its weight. I couldn’t feel the push it usually gave me to propel forward. Something felt wrong. Why am I here? Does this mean I am supposed to be something else now?_

_What am I supposed to be then?_

Aaaaand that's all for the first three chapters :-D this is a very rough draft. I haven't edited it at all. So there are still parts that made me cringe. I've made some mental notes about a few changes I'd like to make, but my head says: "eh, why bother? I will never show it to anyone anyway". And that's true. I don't typically share my writings. Right now I'm just super tired and don't care lol bet I'd freak out tomorrow morning. But since this is a tribute, I want to make it perfect. And if I want to make it perfect, I can't be the only critique.

A bit about my writing style: I'm huge on repetition as you can see. I don't know why, but I just always find myself making a repetitive pattern in everything I write - poem or story. Sorry if it's annoying 

And that's all for tonight. As a thank you for reading, scanning or skimming through the huge wall of blabbering above, here's a picture of a derpy dog:


----------



## Tealight03

I really liked it. Thanks for sharing.


----------



## SydneyA

I read it and enjoyed it. I'm sure parts need editing but MY insomnia brain loved it. Children's book. Go girl. What a gorgeous dog.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

That's such a cool idea! If you ever need some editing help I'd be happy to read it in more depth or when you have more. Editing papers is a weird hobby of mine. I can be brutal as an editor but in as constructive of a way as possible. Not that you need that based off what I read, just throwing that out there lol


----------



## Olivia27

Hehee thanks people! And Katie I might as well take you up on that. Just gotta have a final draft first. I'm thinking that the day I brought home Nichi would make a good ending, because she's just a baby. So she'd have all the questions Merah had at the beginning of the tale, and I can punch in some one-liner to wrap up the entire story. Or at least that's how it goes in my head LOL 

I've started a similar project for Seren's tribute. It's supposed to be short but I'm touching page 5 already @[email protected] unlike the one I wrote for Merah though, Seren's story is from my perspective - written in a letter format. Like "Marley and Me", except I keep on saying "you" which refers to Seren. This one, I would actually finish up, edit and publish by April 16th - one month anniversary of her passing. Here's a sneak peek (about 3/4 of the first chapter):

_So he took me to the cups rack. He explained that all the Bettas in the glass jars are bred and raised here in the store, while the ones in plastic cups are not. All the fish in the cups rack are males. Bright, flashy bodies with long fins that skittered behind them as they danced their greeting dance. Long, silky fins that trailed a zigzag pattern like ribbons twirled in the air. Ribbons twirled before my eyes. Twirled for attention._

_I did not pay them attention. _

_You see, I told myself that the rule of thumb is that the next must be the exact opposite of the last. That’s how I got Memory. After a blue male, comes a red female. After a red female, supposedly, comes a male of some color. And so I turned to the store assistant and said:_

_“I’m actually here for a girl.” _

_That was not the pattern._

_“Oh, we don’t keep our females here. They’re in larger tanks, right this way.” _

_He took me around the corner, to a massive tank with the store logo on one corner. Just like the boys in the glass jars, that sticker means you were bred and raised here. You, and your many, many sisters. You were one face among what appeared to me as a thousand. There were *so *many of you. All short-finned. All shiny. All hungry. Altogether like a one-minded hurricane of little shiny faces, you and your sisters pressed your curved black lips to the glass. All of you. At once. The swordtails duck, staying off your path, fearing the almighty sorority. The jiggly, wiggly, jittery, very hungry sorority. _

_“Which one would you like?”_

_That’s the store assistant. I hummed some random reply. _

_I feel bad for him. Imagine standing around waiting some bug-eyed teenage girl to choose one face among all the dancing little charmers. All the dancing little charmers who look almost exactly alike. All are metallics. All are short-finned. All have itty bitty dorsals, sharp at the back end like the infamous shark fin. At some point I considered hauling you all home in a giant tub. But the girls were six dollars each. _

_“Uh… What about… What about the middle one right there?” _

_Trust me, I had no idea where is “middle” nor which “one” I was pointing at. But the store assistant nodded, and told me to wait while he grab his net and fish bag. By the time he was back, none of you were in the middle of the tank. _

_“Aw, no, where did she go?” I pretended I actually knew what I was talking about the first time. “What about… What about that one right there?” I did another random pointing to the back of the tank._

_“This one?” He netted one sparkly blue body among many others._

_“Yep!”_

_“Alright!”_

_And that was it. An era has begun._


Grammatical corrections welcome  

In fish world, I took lots of photos of Candy Cane today for his eBay page. Check out his link in page 58. He got eight photos now  I also did wc on all the smaller tanks, just because I forgot I've done one yesterday. Malachite improved slightly last night, but not so much tonight =\ ParaGuard, please please work your magic...


----------



## Euro

-slides in- I'm all here for betta fics, yo


----------



## Olivia27

LOL aaaand I ended up doing a massive photo shoot session just for Euro  ask, and ye shall receive. 

Let's start with the guests. Candy Cane first, because these photos are from yesterday LOL







"I am suspicious of you"



His eyes remind me to that of a porcelain doll



Now on to his not-so-bright neighbor, Ice! Featuring my favorite novel on the background LOL



It's such a shame how his caudal edges are messy =\





Tried to take a nice turning shot, but ended up looking like fish yoga LOL





No clearer evidence that he is indeed an EE



Sold guy is still here. He sliced his caudal during shipment unfortunately  hence the tannin



He's very interested in the novel LOL





And now on to the permanents. Merah first, because he's the most photogenic of all <3 



He's fat! Can you believe Merah is fat? When he first arrived, I always called him "paper thin"



That's it? No more photos? Okay, thanks for your time <3



Next up: the youngest of the bunch, and the hardest one to snap photos of. Guess who?





It's Young Lady Nichiyobi!  She has developed some orange on her anal and caudal now. She eats like a pig, but still pretty small. 



If you look closely... or rather, _if you believe, _you will see Nichi's brand new orange streaks on her once-cello anal and caudal



Booo!! (that's a fully grown Anubias barteri var. nana. Can you see how tiny Nichi is?)



Equally difficult to photograph: Heliconius Sapho



Also known as "that blue blur on the pic"



I love pictures where Sapho actually has a face <3 even if it has an annoying reflection on the background





Willow, my pride and joy <3 







I hate how she drops her vents on the bad pics but folds it on the good one >.>



Whew - I managed ONE photo of Silhouette where she's more than just a black blob on the screen! Does anyone notice her funky caudal rays? I love the three-ray one LOL



Last but not least, Mr. Morpho Cypris. If I were to be paid a dollar for every bad pic I take, then I might as well sit there and snap photos of Cypris all day. Look:





Whenever I need to find Cypris... I look below the N. Taiwan



I was about to crop this pic so you guys won't see the filter, heater and thermometer, but I'm too lazy lol



Nice vents, lil' guy



Aaaand that's all. Phew! Big gallery huh?


----------



## Olivia27

Sad news: I just lost Malachite. I knew I was gambling when I brought him home. He's not the most alert fish in the shelf. But he's beautiful, and I can't be sure if he's really sick or if he only needs warm water. When he perked up I was so sure he made a full recovery. But then he went right back to square one, and then boom! Dropsy. Only a few hours later he's gone. Until about two nights ago his poop remains normal-looking, and I still see no signs of external parasites. There are also no signs of any other lethal illnesses like Columnaris. No difficulty swimming right until the very end. What happened - goodness knows. 

On one hand, this is a pretty painful financial loss. This also sealed my fate with bringing in any more last-minute fosters. I can't afford them now, so the foster house has officially closed down. Only the bought-to-sells are left. But on the other hand, I'm glad he actually perked up for a short while under my care. Lest he knows how does it feel to have a big, warm room with plants and hidey holes in his short life. Sleep tight, Mal.


----------



## Euro

Oh no, I'm sorry for your loss :C


LOOK AT ALL THE BABIES AHHH, Willow is such a cutie, she seems so stubby and adorable XD


----------



## Olivia27

Thanks Euro  x now you know why I chose Willow over all the others for the plushie lol she's just the kind of fish you want to cuddle XD 

The two big Anubias nanas are back to where they're intended to be. After a quick PP bath of course. I got a bunch of Java Moss in the mail to add more green to the white sand. And then I should probably get more java ferns


----------



## themamaj

How is that pretty boy Ice doing?


----------



## Olivia27

Ice has one watcher in eBay, but I don't expect him to sell his first round. Only if I can include personality in the description! Ice is so darn adorable. He's not very smart, but that's exactly why he's cute XD super interactive too.


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## themamaj

I laughed my head off at your description of Ice. Candy Cane has some really showy pictures. It would definitely catch my eye if I was looking on ebay or aquabid. So sorry about Malachite. I'm glad he had some time with you to know what a good home could be. I hate to hear he lost his battle. I love love your stories. You think and write a lot like me  Would love to read more. All of your pictures are great! Look at Willow with that fin growth. Merah is still a favorite of mine. His fins are looking much better. He seems like quite the character with his cute poses! Such a pretty dog! Mine is sleeping on my lap.


----------



## Olivia27

Heheh I do write a lot. I have been journaling religiously since 2010. And some journals touch 15 pages! If I didn't switch laptops I'd probably still have all those entries. Not that I want to read the ones from my preteen years LOL 

I just shipped off the sold guy. So I'm down to only Ice and Cane as guests. Buuuut, I'm also currently watching a brand new Fluval Spec V on eBay that's only $32. This is the only "affordable" tank I can fit in my crazy narrow third shelf. I don't know if I would fill it with a Betta though. Maybe I will, just to balance the female-male ratio once I have my future giant - who is probably gonna be male. Cross that: it's definitely gonna be a male. Like, 90% chance. Tempera, Lil's PK girl, is admittedly very tempting. 

But I also want a pea puffer. Not now, obviously. They need a mature well planted tank and all those, so I do need prep time. If I do get my heart set on a puffer, I can get one sometime around spring next year. And when summer rolls around I can have a neighbor come in and do maintenance. This time I'm not changing apartments after summer, so the fishies can stay with someone checking in every other day or so. Worse comes to worse I can ask an LFS employee to look after the puffer. But like usual: I haven't decided yet. Just gotta see if I win the cheap Fluval first.

In another news my java moss and frogbit arrived today. Only the non lighted tanks don't get a share of the Frogbit. Turns out a pint is a lot! And the java moss all go into the 5.5. It's STILL having algae problems. I'm afraid of snails, can't have otos, Algaefix no longer works, Excel somehow doesn't help, can't exactly cut back light because of demanding plants (I only have it on for 8 hours too), so more plants it is. Hope they outcompete the green algae.


----------



## themamaj

Boy I feel your pain on the algae. I have a couple of tanks that I really battle it in, but like you the light necessary for plant growth. Nerite snails and trumpet snails aren't so bad. Mystery snails, ugg, have one that has grown to golf ball size and gross factor when comes out of shell. The up side is algae down in that tank lol. 

What a lucky find on the Fluval!!!!! I hope you win it. I love those tanks.


----------



## SplashyBetta

themamaj said:


> Boy I feel your pain on the algae. I have a couple of tanks that I really battle it in, but like you the light necessary for plant growth. Nerite snails and trumpet snails aren't so bad. Mystery snails, ugg, have one that has grown to golf ball size and gross factor when comes out of shell. The up side is algae down in that tank lol.
> 
> What a lucky find on the Fluval!!!!! I hope you win it. I love those tanks.


I love big snails. My issue is getting them to that size. Mysteries don't do well in my tanks for some reason. :-?


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## Olivia27

SplashyBetta said:


> I love big snails. My issue is getting them to that size. Mysteries don't do well in my tanks for some reason. :-?


You sound like you know snails :-D Is MTS one of those "big snails"? More importantly: do they eat green algae? I found one in my 5g. The ramshorn apparently died, but now I found an MTS instead ._. If I can muster the courage I will move it to my 5.5... but only *if* it eats algae and *if* it doesn't grow massive


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## Tealight03

Sorry to hear about Mal. You gave him a chance at least. 

The new guys are gorgeous!


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## ThatFishThough

MTS don't eat algae, I think. They like to sift through sand; good for sand-based tanks.


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## Olivia27

Thanks Tealight! Red *does* look great on a fish with the opaque factor huh? Here I thought I don't like *any* kind of red anywhere.

Thanks for the info @ThatFishThough. Bit sad how they don't eat algae  but that means I won't be handling any snail anytime soon, so that's great. 

Moooaaar plants are in the mail as we speak! Outcompete the algae! Goooo!

Edit: I'm also still working on my "make a jungle" project with Sapho's and Siloo's tanks. Grumble grumble. Need more $$$. Not enough shifts available...


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## SydneyA

The MTS stay fairly small. I have several. But I love snails. Sorry malachite did not make it. I'm about to lose my female crown tail in my community tank. Pretty sure she has a tumor. If I had some clove oil I would help her along. She has begun to pinecone despite several treatments. I'm just leaving her alone for now. 

Everyone else looks great! I too battle the darn algae. My plants look great, but my algae is lush and green too :evil:


----------



## Olivia27

Sorry about your CT girl Sydney  she's lived a happy life with you.

Still in the topic of snails. Does anyone know if snails *jump?

*Loooong BG story: Sapho has a ramshorn. I was j-u-s-t about to kill it, but then people reassured me that ramshorns make a great addition to aquariums. Plus, Sapho quite like his companion. And so I let it live. When the imports arrive I moved Sapho to an identical tank with no filter, as even the weakest current threw him around. Nichi took Sapho's old tank - and snail. Or so I thought. Each day I check, worrying if the snail will hurt Nichi (it probably won't) because Nichi is so very small, and the snail is the size of a dime. I never saw the ramshorn. Instead, I saw two very tiny baby "MTS" - which later turned out to be regular bladder snails (I've had one hitch hiked before so I know). Only one of those two baby snails are still around today. Pretty sure Nichi killed the smaller one. So I was like: "if I can spot THAT small of a snail, there's no way I can miss a dime-sized ramshorn. If I don't see it, it's probably dead!". But today, I saw the same ramshorn. Only it's not in Nichi's tank. It's with Sapho, in his new tank. 

How the $%^&*ing heck did that happen? I moved Sapho by cupping him. I swear if I accidentally scooped a big snail along with my fish I'd be the first to know (or scream). Did this thing jump?! Admittedly Nichi and Sapho's tank are right next to each other. They were separated by a black view blocker about an inch and a half thick. Did this thing climb out, carried on across the view blocker, and down into Sapho's room? My oh my, forget Marley & Me. We have Sapho & Snail. 

Now I did say I hate snails. But I can't help but notice that Sapho's ramshorn isn't well. Its body is almost cello, and is looking inflamed in some parts too. The shell is also often found laying sideways instead of upright. Poor thing. Should I leave the light on so it would have green algae to munch? Not sure if ramshorns eat algae. I don't think it eats rotten leaves either. It's probably starving. Someone pointed me out to the snail jell-o recipe, but TBH I'm not putting that much effort for a snail ._. not that I have the time and equipment necessary even if I want to.

I have a group project that basically went kaboom. We did zero planning until about a day before the presentation is due. Obviously the professor wasn't happy. I had a closing shift last night, but thanks to this cursed project I couldn't sleep right after I go home (1:30 AM). I made this ugly book-like thing from a shipping box, and then still had to study for an exam this morning. I finally went to bed at 3 AM. At 8 my alarm rang, and the day starts all over again. Oh and have I mentioned it was raining when I walked home from work last night? 

There's also the case with my summer project. I still want to set up that 120g. Like, come on - it's a free 120g! I just *got* to set it up. I thought about a sorority again, even if I already dropped the idea last month. "Just three months, and then I'll break it down" I thought. But then: "Yeaah, break it down how?". I can't ship fish back home without following strict quarantine procedures. Even if I do, they'd probably end up with either breeders or exporters. I kiiinda prefer if they'd go to a regular hobbyist who's simply looking for a scaly friend. But that's not happening back home. Oh well. I'll figure something out.


----------



## Olivia27

From today's window shopping trip! Who knew RTDT exists?


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Oh wow hes gorgeous! As for the snail LOL that it ended up with Sapho again!


----------



## SplashyBetta

I've never seen a snail jump out of a tank but they're happy to crawl lol. Guess he missed Sapho! 

My ramshorns love green algae!


----------



## Olivia27

Ohh okay, guess it's time to grow green algae then. Might be a good thing too, since my marsilea hirsuta is yellowing on some leaves  that might just be a lack of nutrients though. My life has been crazy. I always forget to dose ferts. I'm a bad plant owner ><

I was thinking of moving it to Cy's algae-ridden 5.5, but I'm terrified to imagine it crawling all the way back down to Sapho's LOL Cy and Sapho are three shelves apart. I'm totally not looking forward to seeing a snail out of the water when I wake up in the morning x___x


----------



## Olivia27

Okay, I can't have the Fluval Spec V. Apparently its total height, including the little black "stand" at the bottom, is a good 12". I bought it to fit my third shelf - which is only 8.5" tall. Petco and PetSmart both said the Spec V is only a little over 6" in height. Guess they didn't consider total height =\ oh well. I'll just keep the third shelf for equipment. I should have plenty of space to get much cheaper 5gals in my new apartment anyway.


----------



## SydneyA

It's possible the snail did climb from one tank to another if they are close and have no lids. I used to have one that escaped all the time. Little jerk.


----------



## Olivia27

That's it! Little Jerk. That's what I would call the ramshorn! LJ for short  Not the dime-sized one. Unfortunately I'm pretty sure it died this morning. But worry not - for The Dime Snail left a legacy: *one* baby Ramshorn. It's currently living with Cypris. Pretty sure it hitch-hiked to Cy's tank while I was moving some plants last night (eeww I touched it ew ew). I assume either Nichi or Sapho ate all the other eggs. Unless Dime Snail is a modern snail and would prefer to have only one child. Or: unless its siblings are still well hidden in Nichi's. Eeeewww.

Anyway. LJ went straight to work. I noticed a lot of tiny pathways around the green algae. That's great, but I sure hope Cypris has enough sense to eat snail eggs should it ever pop out. 

I'm looking to remove the single bladder snail in Nichi's tank, speaking of. Don't have too many reasons to keep a bladder snail. But I haven't seen it since yesterday >.> hmmm. 

In another news: I finally found my perfect bookshelf tank. Laugh all you want, but it's been right before my eyes all these time. It's my 3g KK! They're a decent size, cheap, easy to find, and only ~6" tall! I can have a shrimp tank with that! ... Or two  mwahaha. I am unstoppable XD 

So! Final plan for next semester: two 3g shrimp tanks and a 10 on a separate shelf for a giant. I miiiiiight add another female just to balance the male-female ratio, but for now I don't think I will. Seven sounds like a big number already.


----------



## ThatFishThough

How about a Giant Female? My petsmart occasionally gets some in; I could keep an eye out.

Edit: it's be like $5 plus shipping.


----------



## Olivia27

No space for another 10  unless someone pointed me to an affordable, less-than-eight-inches tall 8-10g. I looked up custom tank makers too. The amount of $$ they ask for even the smallest tank is mega ridiculous. I would understand if I'm asking for a 75g or larger but a $100+ for a 10g?? Yeah, no. 

Lies. 

I know I will have lots of space next semester. I can already think of at least two different places I can set up a 10 in. But OMG, eight Bettas? I need to do some serious, serious thinking first.

In another news, I have removed the bladder snail and the dime-sized ramshorn. LJ is nowhere to be seen, but I still see clear patches between the green algae carpet. Everyone ate Mysis today. I only have a little bit left so maybe we will have Mysis breakfast tomorrow.

I have some interesting plans for my summer project. But nothing is for sure yet, so I won't announce it until a closer date. I got a lot of things to worry about ATM


----------



## Tealight03

Seven is ok depending on how much time you have.


----------



## Olivia27

Yea my limit is seven ATM. The male giant in the 10g is not a mere plausibility. I'm in a giant spawn waiting list  but to have eight (current six plus male giant plus female giant) sounds a little too much. We'll see though. We'll juuust see.


----------



## Olivia27

Early morning gallery! I got a *lot* to do today. But just because I'm lazy I will start it off by snapping photos LOL first these guys, and then I will go to my Petco and take pics of blue marble boys for someone on here. Last I checked we got plenty of "blue butterflies" that are really not that. They do, however, have a splotch of royal blue on one of their fins. That's enough for Petco's supplier to slap a "butterfly" label on them apparently *shrug* I know if the store's fish person is around she'd probably take 20% off for that, but I rarely see her anymore  crossing all fingers and toes she didn't quit. She's the reason behind my Petco stepping up their game. Without her they'd probably plummet back to Merah's era. I don't want to bring home another Merah =\ 

Anyway. Let's start with the guests, as per usual. Here's the one with five watchers on eBay:



I have been secretly teaching him to read 



Ice reads too! 



OK, if anyone asks: Ice is a delta. And he is. But behind closed doors I'll say this: he's a mess. I charge more for him on eBay for the sheer fact that he's closer to platinum white than Cane. But really it's Cane that should cost more.



And now: Silhouette! I have yet to take a pic where she actually has a face. Love her purple tail in this pic though <3 



Willow looking see-through



Ack! Each time I snap a pic of her with her vents down... it's always blurry 



Sapho pondering the philosophy of life. Or just why I never clean the outer tank walls



He's almost a solid royal blue now. I'm sad  



In three days, Nichi would celebrate her third month in life. I can no longer call her "a baby" then 



This is not a blurry photo. This is just how 90% of Nichi's photos turn out.



And now, the king of all bad photos: Cypris



Like, seriously? Is it the tank? I took a lot of clear, high-res photos of Seren in that very tank for months. But then Cypris moves in and I either get a ton of reflections, glares, or just a blue-black blur. I was wondering if the light is too strong, but it's the same light I had since the very start! To the tank's credit though Cypris is weird. He likes to slither between the plants' roots and java moss clumps, like a really fluffy snake. A blue-black figure moving quickly in a dark green background is not the easiest object to photograph.

Speaking of "easy to photograph"...



Count on Merah to bless me with the best photos of the bunch. Always. This guy holds his pose, patiently, until my camera focused properly.


----------



## Sadist

What cuties!


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Aw! I'm glad Merah is doing so well! All of them actually!


----------



## Olivia27

Thanks people  

I just went to Petco, took surveys for extra credits, paid my electricity bill and ate lunch. Now on to writing a short paper. 

But before that, my rant in five words: Petco, Y U Do Dis?!





Someone wave a wand and make my apartment larger!! ><


----------



## SydneyA

Oh, did you buy him? So pretty!


----------



## Olivia27

I wish lol I don't have another $50+ to blow on a brand new setup


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

you and your blue butterflies lol


----------



## Olivia27

LOL I still haven't got one technically! Unless Sapho decided it's a good day to be a butterfly once more. And Cypris... ugh he's more of a bicolor now lol what little blue specks he has on his fins look more like a toddler's glitter painting than an actual BF band


----------



## Nova betta

oh he looks like my new guy! I can't let a blue butterfly go!


----------



## Olivia27

I know, @Nova betta I'm jealous of your avatar boy >< one day... One day for sure, I will have a blue BF. For about a month, lol, before he/she turned into a solid. Again >.> *eyes Sapho*

Just finished short paper 1 out of 2. Can't find the guidelines for paper #2 so decided to email the prof. I have been marked down several times in the past because I follow my own guidelines LOL so let's not have that happen again. Not sure what to do now because I probably won't get an email back until early tomorrow. There's an extra credit paper, but I don't know if I want to do it ._. hmmm...

In another news, who's a Noodles & Co. fan? I go there soooo much I should probably blame them for my thinning bank account. But then again I probably shouldn't. I just had a decent-sized chicken caesar sandwich, side salad, potstickers, plus fountain drink (free refill) and paid $8.60. As a comparison a blueberry muffin and a grande honey latte in Starbucks is a good $7.80. Are they encouraging me to eat more?? >< the food is awesome too!


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Love Noodles & Co!!!


----------



## Olivia27

Yaaasss I knew they have a fan club. 

And the professor replied. Welp. Back to work I go. Only if I didn't finish my muffin so quickly... ><


----------



## Aqua Aurora

Olivia27 said:


> Thanks people
> 
> I just went to Petco, took surveys for extra credits, paid my electricity bill and ate lunch. Now on to writing a short paper.
> 
> But before that, my rant in five words: Petco, Y U Do Dis?!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Someone wave a wand and make my apartment larger!! ><


You know he'll leech blue over the white in time like your other body (trying to lessen the sadness of not getting).


----------



## Nova betta

Olivia you should go get the blue butterfly!


----------



## themamaj

Olivia27 said:


> Okay, I can't have the Fluval Spec V. Apparently its total height, including the little black "stand" at the bottom, is a good 12". I bought it to fit my third shelf - which is only 8.5" tall. Petco and PetSmart both said the Spec V is only a little over 6" in height. Guess they didn't consider total height =\ oh well. I'll just keep the third shelf for equipment. I should have plenty of space to get much cheaper 5gals in my new apartment anyway.


So is that spec still on ebay????


----------



## themamaj

Aqua Aurora said:


> You know he'll leech blue over the white in time like your other body (trying to lessen the sadness of not getting).


Oh he is a beauty!


----------



## themamaj

Nichi has really changed. I love Silhouette's purple in her fins. My son had a black guinea pig for 6 years named Silhouette. We named her after the Kenny G song haha! I have been browsing on ebay just to see new color and fin combinations. It is so funny, every time I look I stop at Candy Cane and think wow he is a really pretty fish and laugh he is yours! He shows well. Does Ice have a cloudy eye or just angle of picture?


----------



## Olivia27

Aqua Aurora said:


> You know he'll leech blue over the white in time like your other body (trying to lessen the sadness of not getting).


I know. I... I know. Right, me? *sniff sniff* 



Nova betta said:


> Olivia you should go get the blue butterfly!


Now THIS does not help LOL



themamaj said:


> So is that spec still on ebay????


No, the auction closed yesterday and the price jumped up to $52  some people are just... *sigh*. If the highest bid is $32, bid $33 for goodness sake! Grrrr! 



themamaj said:


> Nichi has really changed. I love Silhouette's purple in her fins. My son had a black guinea pig for 6 years named Silhouette. We named her after the Kenny G song haha! I have been browsing on ebay just to see new color and fin combinations. It is so funny, every time I look I stop at Candy Cane and think wow he is a really pretty fish and laugh he is yours! He shows well. Does Ice have a cloudy eye or just angle of picture?


Isn't Ice's eyes odd? He sees fine so there's that, and even if it's cloudy eye it should go away on its own if he has good water quality. I do 50% daily so I _should_ keep my parms at zero-zero-zero. But those eyes are still not as bright as Cane's. Miki had one too. I wonder if it's something the breeder fed them :|

In another news, I just finished paper #2. Now I want more coffee.

EDIT: got more coffee LOL who knew it's national caramel week? Also: there is a possibility I bring home another guest. He will already have a home though, so I doubt he'd stay long. That's the reason why I went to Petco this morning after all. Looking forward to having another guest hehee


----------



## Nova betta

I really think you should get him!


----------



## Olivia27

I can, if he doesn't stay. Meaning he'd be sold off on eBay or somewhere. But to keep him as a permanent... =\ I just don't have the funds. Still paying to make a jungle in Silhouette and Sapho's tanks. Even Siloo's super-plain, super-basic setup was $50. I just burned $30 for electricity bill, $15 for food (oops) and... gosh darn, I forgot to pay Lil! AAH!! *goes to PayPal* welp, there you go, the $45 jungle fund. Whatever left (not much really) from my paycheck is for emergencies. 

But hey, he does look like the kind of fish that might bring in a few dollars. Decisions, decisions~


----------



## Nova betta

I'm a really good enabler lol. He's beautiful!


----------



## Olivia27

OK it's snowing now (curse you Michigan weather) so I'm not going anywhere, but I'm definitely getting that blue BF to resell now LOL thanks Nova Betta. You made me spend money I don't have XD 

Speaking of, is anyone looking for an EE? Got some pretty unusual ones in. In my eyes, at least. There's another one - a copper sally - that I didn't have a chance to snap a pic of. Gorgeous guy with gray/copper body, red fins and a thin white BF band. Will take photos tomorrow morning when picking up blue bf guy. Here are the ones I actually have photos of:



^^^ he's an EE I swear. Just a bit miserable. But otherwise he's healthy



^^^ I'm careful with classifying this one. Pastel yellow EE? Is that what pastel look like? There's this term called "blond" in the Bettas4all colors and genetics page. Looks like might be it? Either ways, he's pretty unusual (to me)  adorable too. He spend a good few seconds flaring at his own poop LOL too bad my camera took way too long to focus


----------



## Tealight03

That blue butterfly is really gorgeous. Too bad butterflies don't keep their pattern!


----------



## Olivia27

I do hear there's a _chance _they can stabilize. But then again, don't bet your money on marbles. 

I am now sad. I'm hungry. But this is my view outside:



Do I walk across the snow and eat at a dining hall (and then walk back)? Or do I order a take-out? ._. Currently I'm just sitting here, feeding the fish, asking myself how important is it to eat LOL spoiled Bettas. They don't have to worry about student meal plans and whatnot.


----------



## themamaj

Student meal plan brings back memories! I agree snow in April uggg. Freeze warnings here tonight. Ready for summer! 

I think you are right that he has unusual eyes and obviously very smart since he is in college and reading lol. Me and my "eyes" for cute bettas! 

Dumb question but are butterflies not stable coloration? That blue one is really stunning so I bet you could do well with him online. Really like the second EE. He looks like a "Flurry" to me


----------



## Olivia27

Oh what I would do to have butterflies as a stable pattern :'( but they're not, and they're likely to change. The Betta Territory colors and genetics page talked about this thing called Variegated Fins (Vf) that codes the butterfly geno. But apparently they're still part of the marble geno? Because they do change. But I *think* this Vf thing breeds true. So you can actually predict what will happen if you do a BF-solid spawn, for example, whereas with marbles it can be whatever. Maybe? I don't have the article in hand. I should go back and read

Speaking of changes, there's a copper BF HM boy at my Petco that is stable. He's been there give or take a month now (  ) and his BF band is still wide and clean. Each day I see him I was like: "why aren't you blue? Be blue!" >< oh anyway stay tuned for tomorrow's gallery. I'm taking photos of local Petco's stock under people's requests  

Ugh heard there's a blizzard in Chicago tonight too. I hate the weather. Phone says it won't warm up until next Thursday. Looks like I'm gonna have to walk home through the snow tomorrow night. Stay safe you guys!

I just did pwc on the two foster tanks plus five permanent tanks. Sapho didn't join the party because I did his pwc yesterday already. And then I gulped down a big mug of white tea, and my eyes went droopy. I was like YESSS no insomnia tonight! Nope. Still wide awake. 

*sigh*

Edit: also, when I say "Bettas4all" above, I mean Betta Territory. Not sure why or how I mixed them up


----------



## Tealight03

Ohh pic of the copper bf please. Stay warm.


----------



## ShelbysFish

What did you end up doing about your food situation for dinner? haha.

So annoying, winter is supposed to be over!! Come on weather, get with it.


----------



## Olivia27

Sure! On tomorrow's gallery:
- all the HMEEs, including the copper one I rambled about above
- a cute multi PKEE with biiiiig pecs, opaque turq body and incomplete red BF band. If you guys remember Tsunami, that CT boy I sold overnight to a forum member, this is a PKEE version of him
- the copper BF
- green DTPK (this guy's been sitting there waaaay too long)
- stable red BF HM with lots of irid
- whatever else caught my eye

@Shelbysfish: I didn't eat dinner lol not worth it. I'll eat tomorrow morning


----------



## themamaj

Can't wait for the gallery!! Sorry about insomnia. I struggle with that too as I am up at 12:45 taking pictures of fish lol.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Looking forward to seeing them all and also really not looking forward to how tempted I'll be by them :]


----------



## Olivia27

*Petco Gallery*

OK, I don't have the best photos. Too many people are around today so I gotta be quick. 

First off, the EEs:

The guy from yesterday:


Copper Sally


Multi guy <3


Blue bodied red sally


Turq BF PKEE


Turq DTPK with red wash


Red HM with lots of irid. I spoke too soon, he's totally marbling as we speak


And this MG HMPK. Poor guy  there's another one like this with turq body instead of royal blue. Both are miserable. If someone put him in a spacious, warm room, he'd be gorgeous


Just a bit of a blooper. This guy is definitely not a DT. He's also miserable 


And this is the (so far) stable copper HM. I reeeaaally need a better pic of him. His cup is stacked on the front side of the shelf below other cups so can't really take photos discreetly



I didn't plan to take pics of this guy, but he lives next to the copper HMBF. He's SO cute! Light pink body with orange fins <3 


EDIT: also, an announcement. Prism Bettas is offering a Mystery Sorority Package. $100 for 6 randomly chosen high-quality imported females. Also includes "free" Priority shipping from IL but really if you do the Math that means the girls are $15 each and shipping is $10 LOL still a deal though! Usually Prism Betta's females are $35-$40! You don't have to start a sorority. If you have enough hospital tanks, you can keep one, sell the rest and make your money back


----------



## Olivia27

OK guys I'm going to pick up the blue BF boy real soon. Since nobody asked me to pick up anyone, he's the only one I'm bringing home this evening. If anyone wants a new scaly friend I can go back tomorrow  So excited! He's gonna need a nickname too!


----------



## themamaj

How much are your DTPK? I am keeping my eyes out for one. Not sure what coloring I like best. Seen a few enticing ones on ebay. Multi is very pretty! Did the miserable guy respond to you at all? If you go back do you mind to see if you can get another picture of him? Also love the red marble boy. Your store has some very pretty ones!!


----------



## Olivia27

Pretty sure DTPK is $15. In fact, I think everyone in my gallery is $15. So they cost the same as an eBay fish really. I did go back for the blue BF (he's here now OMG!) but I took pics of the other miserable MGPK instead. The royal blue one is in a pretty bad shape =\ reminds me of Malachite when he's still in his cup. But then again it's a gamble between "he just needs warm water" and "he's very very sick". If I bring him home - which I really shouldn't unless he secured a home - I would skip all the heat and salt routine and jump straight to Paraguard. Whatever killed Mal sneaked up on me. Not gonna let it happen twice.

Anyway. I'll go get more photos of him tomorrow  in the meantime here's the other MGPK


----------



## Olivia27

Double post alert. I also took a better pic of the copper BF HM.


----------



## Tealight03

They are all so pretty. Closes screen and runs away...


----------



## Olivia27

Lol Tealight that's pretty much me right now with this guy on my desk. There's minor biting on the caudal but nothing serious. He ate some Omega One already, but he's still unwilling to flare or even drop his vents (he has nice ones!) so no "professional" photos until then


----------



## themamaj

Oh he is so gorgeous.


----------



## Olivia27

Another double post. Sorry! 

I'm so smitten with this guy <3 so, so, SO pretty! Love his vents, anal, topline, color distribution, peduncle, head shape, caudal, sheer fact that he is a royal blue... *faints*

But to be fair: that's one ugly dorsal lol

It looks like he used to have a white (or partially white) face. But now all we see is a couple white spots lol. Not complaining though. He looks better the way he is atm 

Someone suggest a nickname~ currently my dysfunctional brain is stuck between Cobalt (as in the color: cobalt blue) and Denim lol


----------



## ThatFishThough

Cobalt. :3


----------



## Tourmaline

Well, if it's love at first sight.. Would it really kill you to keep him?  There's a _chance_ he's stable. 

Totally being an enabler but he's gorgeous and you know you love him.

I also like Cobalt for a name.


----------



## themamaj

Love name Cobalt. Dorsal may not be perfect but his butterfly color distribution sure is. I can see where his face probably had been white. Looks cute with white spots. Really really nice vivid blue.


----------



## Olivia27

Whoa whoa wait! We have _just_ met, people, can't call it "love" just yet XD 

Seriously though. If I keep him: 1) he can't have an actual tank until after summer. 2) I would have to tell @OUOhYeah that: "well... Erm... You're pet sitting *four* boys now". 3) shipping fee to and from Ohio would increase. 4) he's definitely marbling. Already saw a hairline leach from the edge of either his dorsal or anal (can't find it in the pic lol). 5) I really gotta decide first if I really do like him that much. My lack of connection with Cypris was enough evidence that impulse buys aren't a good decision. And 6: Tourmaline would have to make another sig pic lol

So I guess at this point it's a wait and see. I gotta wait for him to recover first before I list him anywhere anyway

Edit: three votes? Cobalt it is LOL


----------



## themamaj

He's growing on you....


----------



## Tealight03

I like cobalt and also think you should keep him.


----------



## Olivia27

Bunch of enablers you are lol well I'll think about it


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

I'm going to enable you too  what's one more blue butterfly guest for the summer?


----------



## Olivia27

We need a new forum rule: "do not expect to meet a non enabler" XD 

Cobalt dropped his vents! Water imraised to 82 from 80 when I left for work this evening but that's still within the okay range so I'm not complaining.


----------



## Tourmaline

Sorry. xD Well, at least reason number 2 for not keeping him is off the list. And 6 is just an excuse! 

This site is full of enablers. I've only experienced it myself once, with Meeko. I'm glad I don't post pet store Bettas or I'd have 15 by now. x.x


----------



## Tealight03

We are a bunch of enablers. But he's so pretty!


----------



## Olivia27

Yup he is <3 and lol Tourmaline I think I'm one of the bunch that made you tun back and grab Meeko lol karma XD 

So. Dumb question. Does Cobalt look like a long fin-short fin mix to anyone? I took this pic last night and noticed that his anal is a bit triangle-shaped like a PK's. And I was like: "wait, you're a PK?". 

He DOES have the typical stocky PK body. But his dorsal is sooo HM, and his caudal has some length to it, too :0


----------



## SydneyA

Hey you got him! Yay! And don't ship him, I'm still fish sitting and what's one more? He's amazing. I agree that those EEs are more unique. So often they are pinks and purples. I'm a terrible enabler.


----------



## Olivia27

Hmmm should he stay with the ladies then? Because you get the girls and Katie get the boys xD I do wonder if he's gonna weigh more, too. My boys have the typical skinny HM body. 

WAIT. I haven't said I'm keeping him >< gotta decide first~


----------



## SydneyA

I have a question. How did you successfully treat Popeye? My black half moon king has it on one side. I know it's from me being sick and not doing enough water changes so I have guilt too. I have keneplex powder I am treating the ten gallon with and he looks a tiny bit better but no worse. How long will it take?


----------



## Olivia27

SydneyA said:


> I have a question. How did you successfully treat Popeye? My black half moon king has it on one side. I know it's from me being sick and not doing enough water changes so I have guilt too. I have keneplex powder I am treating the ten gallon with and he looks a tiny bit better but no worse. How long will it take?


Popeye takes a while to heal because there are several things that need to be addressed at once. First is the swelling (accumulation of fluid behind the eye ball), and then the infection itself (opportunistic bacteria jumps in), and then the cloudiness of the eye (cornea damage). So in addition to Kanaplex, you also need ES. And water change. Lots of it. I like to drop tannin as well because they're anti-everything. They won't do much by themselves, but I suppose the antibiotics can always use an extra hand. People usually recommend tetracycline to treat popeye. But no matter how much I Google, I can't find any article that confirms the tetracycline group is more effective against mycobacteria compared to kanamycin (probably what you're dealing with atm). So carry on with the kanamycin IMO but if there's no improvement - even the slightest - about 7 days from now, give him a 3-day break (with ES and wc still going on) and switch to T.C.

Article: http://www.fishchannel.com/fish-health/disease-prevention/popeye.aspx
This one is less reliable (low pH causes infection??) but I like the list of causes above. Not trying to scare you off but it's always good to know: http://ezinearticles.com/?How-to-Prevent-and-Treat-Popeye-in-Your-Betta-Fish&id=1100151


----------



## SydneyA

Thank you! I will grab some Epsom salts. Do you know how much for a ten gallon tank? I'm encouraged that he is extremely frisky and his eye is slightly better. Definitely not worse. Just when I get my rose petal's tail all healed from chewing it. (I finally just took out the filter he cannot stand any water movement and I do big water changes) we end up with a case of Popeye. 

Oh and Kitt bit my husband. He said, "I don't even see a fish in here". He was feeding pellets for me and kitt rushed him and attacked. He's a secret shark I swear. I love him.


----------



## BettaStarter24

Olivia you're keeping him lol ;p


----------



## Olivia27

The fish being active is awesome news! Because that gives reason to believe the bacterial infection is either minimal, or even nonexistent. There's another article (well, blog, so I don't quote it) that claims in some cases warm water + lotsa wc + just ES (half a tsp per gal) cures popeye. 

@BettaStarter: Aaaand the professional enabler has arrived XD nowhere to hide now lol


----------



## SydneyA

It took me ten minutes to catch him to put him in the "hospital tank" but my heater died so I put him back in his own warm tank. He's also eating well. So fingers crossed. Thank you for the advice!


----------



## Olivia27

Np!

And the rant of the day: there are TWO ramshorns in Cy's tank. NOT good. One must go. And this means I have to take a deep breath and stick my hand into the tank. Grrreat.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Lol where do they keep coming from? I've considered adding a snail of some kind to my tanks but I dont want those kinds of problems. Having just one seems unlikely by all accounts I've seen.


----------



## Olivia27

I assume they're the offspring of Dime Snail. And when I moved some N. Taiwan from Nichi's to Cy's, they hitch-hiked. I just removed the smaller one - because it probably eats less algae so I owe it less LOL I'm just crossing my fingers they haven't mated. If they have, then I hope the one I left alone is the male. If not, then Cypris better be a snail egg hunter. I'm honestly surprised most of mine are gentle with snails. I keep reading posts about people's Bettas snacking on the snail's antennae and stuff, yet here I am with a bunch that just ignores the little jerk. If you get a non-pest snail like the horned nerite, and get *only one*, I t-h-i-n-k it won't multiply. Ramshorn, bladder and pond snails are considered pests because they multiply like crazy =\

In another news: Cobalt is def a long-fin. He was just folding his anal so it appears Plakat-shaped. He's still skittish and moves around a little too gingerly (if barely), so Paraguard it is - just in case. Cypris is developing some faint yellow on his black fins. Is he turning MG? Because I totally won't be complaining LOL.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Their color change is really interesting isnt it? Helga is starting to be more samurai than Rea and my boyfriend is starting to have a harder time telling the two apart.


----------



## themamaj

Did you tell me you got some more pictures of double tail? Cobalt is selling me on butterflies. May have to scout some locally and see what's around here.


----------



## Olivia27

themamaj said:


> Did you tell me you got some more pictures of double tail? Cobalt is selling me on butterflies. May have to scout some locally and see what's around here.


? Which double tail? Is it the turq PKDT on Petco? It's snowing heavily today so I'm not leaving my room until it's time to go to work lol I can snap more pics on Monday

Edit: the MGPK you asked about yesterday is not a DT if that's who you're referring to


----------



## themamaj

Yes was talking about miserable turquoise one. Curious if he was interactive with you at all. Like other one you posted as well. Wow heavy snow in April. What a concept. How much snow do you have now?


----------



## Olivia27

Ohh turq PKDT! He's actually alright, just been sitting there too long. Gonna have to check on him again on Monday. Last I remember he's quite a character  another thing I gotta make sure though: is he really a DT? Because now that I look at his pic he barely has any tail separation at all =\

We have a good couple inches. It has JUST stopped snowing, but there will be more snow to come. How awesome.


----------



## Olivia27

EEEP first bubble nest! <3

And first poop if you look closely lol


----------



## ThatFishThough

See? He loooooooovvvveees you!

 Keep him!


----------



## Olivia27

All in good time 

In the meantime, enjoy Cobalt's female version (minus the black head lol) 
http://m.ebay.com/itm/live-Tropical-Fish-FEMALE-BREEDER-BETTA-FEMALE-G27-/281998683814?nav=SEARCH


----------



## Olivia27

All in good time 

In the meantime, enjoy Cobalt's female version (minus the black head lol) 
http://m.ebay.com/itm/live-Tropical-Fish-FEMALE-BREEDER-BETTA-FEMALE-G27-/281998683814?nav=SEARCH


----------



## Olivia27

Happy National Pet Day! If any of you is supplies-shopping PetSmart has a 99c shipping event - no minimum. Plus 10% off sitewide and a cute fancy goldfish as the brochure photo!


----------



## Olivia27

*Mini Petco Gallery*

Went back to pick up my 10g today :-D took some pics of the Bettas too. 

Here's the turq PKDT with red wash, who turns out to have basically zero tail separation. 



This solid turq guy is totally not a DT, but he's labeled as one. He lays on the bottom of his cup all the time =\ but he does move if I disturb the cup. Not sure if depressed or sick...



And this guy. Gee I wish I take more pics. He's pretty unusual!



OK this one is an emergency. I can't bring him in without a guaranteed home, but I seriously want to =\ if you have space, totally let me know. He's a turq with red wash HMDT with really big fins. Unfortunately he's labeled as a "rose petal", which made him $20. Due to recent (today!) financial plan changes I can _technically_ afford that, *but* I still cannot afford the time. I don't have the typical 3-4 weeks needed to go adopter-hunting. He will recover quick, though. Probs within a week or just a little over. So - again - if you want him let me know. He can't go for free I'm afraid, since I'll be spending money meant for next semester's school stuff, but you won't need to pay full price either. $10 would do. 





Quick note about Cobalt: I suppose I've sorta been keeping you guys in the dark about Cobalt's status. Well, honestly, right now I still don't know. He is gosh darn gorgeous, I'll give him that. But he's also not very interactive. He keeps himself entertained, and will find my finger only if it's time to eat. Say he's a human, he'd be one of those friends that stare at their phones as you tell them how your day went - going "oh, that's nice" every once in a while. There IS a chance that he's still recovering, or just more time to come out of his shell. But physically speaking, he's A-OK. So yeah. I'm not sure what to do. All guests must go by the end of the month or I'd have to juggle studying and fish shipping (finals week starts on May 1st). So I suppose I'll give him - both of us - until the 15th (middle of the month, pretty good date) to decide where we want to go next. See if he likes staying with me. Because if he does, I got pretty much everything figured out. Shout out to my awesome pet sitters for accommodating my uncontrollable Betta bug x

EDIT: miserable royal blue MGPK wasn't on the shelf anymore. His plausible brother, the turq MGPK, is a bit more active today though


----------



## Nova betta

Is that white one a EE?


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

That first pic is definitely the PK"DT" version of Prism lol. The boy with the SBD is pretty too... I really wish I could get my 20 going and divide my 10 again and have space in general.... He reminds me of Prism too.

I think Cobalt is too perfect for you to pass up, both because I think he's beautiful and because I know you well enough to know that the third and perfect blue butterfly isn't going anywhere. Thats my 2 cents lol


----------



## Olivia27

Nova betta said:


> Is that white one a EE?


Yup, definitely an EE.



OUOhYeah2016 said:


> That first pic is definitely the PK"DT" version of Prism lol. The boy with the SBD is pretty too... I really wish I could get my 20 going and divide my 10 again and have space in general.... He reminds me of Prism too.
> 
> I think Cobalt is too perfect for you to pass up, both because I think he's beautiful and because I know you well enough to know that the third and perfect blue butterfly isn't going anywhere. Thats my 2 cents lol


LOL don't we all want more space? And Cobalt... well. We'll see x) He'd probably end up being Sapho's identical twin, too. Gotta keep that in mind.

EDIT: just ordered a Hydor 50w for my brand spanking new 10g. Guess how much? $17!! WOOO!


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

The 50 watt went up on Amazon for a day or two and I was so upset lol, but then they put it back so then I was calm again.

They may end up similar, you're right. Different shades of blue? lol I mean, you never know? I didn't expect Cypris to turn black.


----------



## Olivia27

You're right, Sapho is turq and Cobalt is royal. But then again every turq turns to royal under LED lighting - which is exactly what Sapho's lights are XD

I did expect Cypris to turn a blue-black bicolor. That's what happened to all the cello marbles with even a _tinge_ of black that has left my door LOL But never will I ever ever _ever _expect him to turn MG. He's gaining more yellow now!! I swear if he turns full-on MG during summer you need to tell me. I'm gonna throw a party with his picture on a massive banner LOL


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Hahaha I'll definitely be keeping you updated! But thats what I mean! They surprise us all the time! Like I didnt expect Helga to get more samurai, and Queenie is almost a lavender/purple iridescent color in the body now.


----------



## Olivia27

These past few days has been a roller coaster ride. I lost my card holder on Sunday night - after (almost) passing out in the middle of my shift. Some girl found it and called my number but I can't pick up because I'm at work. So I gotta meet her and pick up the card holder during my between-classes gap time on Monday. This is usually the time I use to go home and do wc. So no wc on Monday except for the foster tanks. I feel bad =\ I wanted to catch up today, but then my team member reminded me we have a meeting with our professor to see if our project gets approved. GREAT. That's another gap time gone. Now I'm waiting for my carpool to go to my student-teaching site. And then I would have, like, an hour to shower and change, and then I have work from 7:30PM to 1 AM. No wc until Wednesday it seems =\ even on Wednesday I'm gonna have to rush, as I got a TRUCK ton of stuff to get done. Four book reviews, two write-ups, one reflection, some team project materials to upload... 

... My parents want me to quit my job. They thought I work for "the experience". Because we're such a wealthy bunch there's no way any of us would ever work for money. Bull. I totally work for money. I don't love my job, but it's an easy job and it pays fairly well. In an easy school week I can rack up to 19 hours a week and still get everything done in time. Even in a busy school week I'd still have 14-15 hours per week. That's some $$ right there. There is no way on earth I'm quitting. Even if I do, I would find a new job. I just hope they won't force me to quit. Because I know they can if they want to. I wish I never told them I work =\ *sigh* I don't wish we get along, but I do wish they'd at least leave me alone

In fish world, Ice and Cane are still here. Ice is one very picky eater. It was probably a mistake to start him on Mysis. Now he's barely eating pellets >.> he did eat some this morning, but yesterday and the days before he's been spitting them out. Yeah right, if you're gonna live under my roof, little guy, you're eating what I feed you. The rest of the house eats OO. So will you. 

Cane is a real darling. If you want a firecracker fish that is mild enough for a divided tank, Cane is your guy. He's very interactive, but still not curious enough to bully that other wiggly figure on the neighboring room. Anyone who buys him would love him.

Cobalt, Merah and Sapho has been on a bubble nest building contest. I would happily declare a winner if I could just stop ruining them on each water change ._.

And through all this mess, I still want to bring in the HMDT with SBD. This is tbh a bump post just so people would see him. Consider it, guys. He's gorgeous.


----------



## Sadist

I wish I had room for the swim bladder boy.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

College jobs are also good for resumes because it shows you can handle a real-world workload balancing school and a job. And i don't care how much money anyone has, having more is always nice lol. I don't "need" a job while I'm in college but I choose to anyway.


----------



## themamaj

Bless your heart. Hope you feel better and get the card thing worked out. I am really amazed at all you do with school! I greatly admire your work ethic. You don't see that much anymore.


----------



## Olivia27

Thanks people x and don't worry Sadist, I do realize most people here are touching maximum capacity already.

So I got out early from my student-teaching site AND got my project approved. We finally got all planning down so it's starting to look like we're gonna be alright LOL hopefully. Quote of the day from my 2nd graders:

Kid1: do you speak Spanish?
Me: no, not at all
Kid2: she speaks Chinese! Do you speak Chinese?
Me: Oh, I'm not Chinese
Kid2: are you sure?

Don't you just love kids  

In another news, being home by 5:30 means I can do wc for all the smaller tanks, plus foster tanks, AND actually eat dinner before work. Suppose that means I won't pass out this shift XD


----------



## themamaj

Olivia27 said:


> Thanks people x and don't worry Sadist, I do realize most people here are touching maximum capacity already.
> 
> So I got out early from my student-teaching site AND got my project approved. We finally got all planning down so it's starting to look like we're gonna be alright LOL hopefully. Quote of the day from my 2nd graders:
> 
> Kid1: do you speak Spanish?
> Me: no, not at all
> Kid2: she speaks Chinese! Do you speak Chinese?
> Me: Oh, I'm not Chinese
> Kid2: are you sure?
> 
> Don't you just love kids
> 
> In another news, being home by 5:30 means I can do wc for all the smaller tanks, plus foster tanks, AND actually eat dinner before work. Suppose that means I won't pass out this shift XD


LOLOL love kids!


----------



## Olivia27

Lol this is another one from my classmate's students:

Kid: Miss Annie, how old are you again?
Annie: I'm turning twenty
Kid: do you have a boyfriend?
Annie: no?
Kid: ohh but you will never have kids if you don't have a boyfriend NOW!

I find that both scary and hilarious lol

In another news, here's Cypris and his (hopefully visible) yellow tint. The caudal hasn't caught up as much, but it's certainly spreading on the anal and dorsal


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## Olivia27

Oh great. So attached pics upload as thumbnails now?  why, I have no choice other than Photobucket then? Uuugh

General news: my ceramic log arrived today. It's going to Merah's after getting a vinegar dip. The plants are shipped, should be here by Friday. I'm excited  the season has reversed back to normal. So - ahem, again: if anyone wants anyone (*cough* SBD fish *cough*) from my Petco I can probably pick them up today


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## OUOhYeah2016

I'm getting really annoyed with having to click on the pictures now too. It's harder on a phone especially. 

Also definitely looking forward to seeing Cypris's progress for myself :] Merah's too. I'm actually a little disappointed that Mushu and Merah won't be next to each other at all, I'd love to see the two of them side by side since they are rather similar. But alas, Mushu goes to Chicago on Friday.


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## AstrosMom

I work for a nursing home and rehab center; and the elderly, just like little kids - probably ask me once a day: if I'm married, if I have kids, and where I live. It's so funny. They think if they see a younger girl, she needs to have rock on her finger and a house full of children IMMEDIATELY. :lol:


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## Olivia27

I'm excited about Merah as well. His progress seem to have slowed down, so I wonder if his original caudal size really is only that big :| but hey, Mushu and Merah can still do a progress race ;-) what I'm not at all excited about is Sapho's marble progression LOL he's turning solid! Nooo! 

@AstrosMom, that is both scary and hilarious (too) XD I was so sure we're past the "girls must marry ASAP" mentality but apparently not.


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## themamaj

So with photobucket will pic turn out normal size?


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## OUOhYeah2016

Mushu's progress has slowed down too. I think he may be RT or FT because his edges aren't evening out at all. I guess time will tell for everyone.


----------



## Olivia27

*Gallery*



themamaj said:


> So with photobucket will pic turn out normal size?


I assume. We will see. 

Here goes:

Ice is SOLD! Yaaay! I wonder if I should message the person and tell them he's a picky eater LOL don't suppose most eBay sellers do that



Excuse the background. Cane is still available. I'm starting to feel like dropping his price to the point of loss just because I'm freaking out. 



Aaaand Cobalt. 



A part of me still wants to sell him TBH. But after seeing his marble progression so far (more black in the body instead of more blue into the fins)... Meh, why am I stretching this out LOL you guys already know. He's staying. He might or might not ever be a part of the crew, but that's alright. He can be my display fish. I'll get him a nice big ten gal to put out in the living room next semester. I'll plant it like crazy, perhaps put a driftwood in to make a fake tree, and perhaps even throw in some pygmy cories just because he's gentle. I don't believe I'd ever have guests LOL but if I do, or if my brother does, they can go ooh and aah on Cobalt's tank outside. Everyone else is off limits XD

Mostly because my tanks are now full of algae. My schedule is too crazy to switch the lights off in time  so sometimes the lights are on 10-11 hours. Merah's tank now has diatoms. Great. I may move Cy's ramshorn to clean it up. Just take a deep breath...



This is Bad Photo Day. But here's Cypris looking MG



Willow looking pink



And Sapho looking faceless



Worry not! That is not a worm. Literally, that is just poop. Siloo has a digestive issue of some sort, apparently, so she needs ten times longer to poop. When she's like this I tend to skip breakfasts, but she's alright.



Nichi is no longer a baby! Waaaah  look at that ovaries bulge though! You can see it from the moon!


----------



## Tealight03

Cy is so pretty! They all are.


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## OUOhYeah2016

I love Cy as an MG even if it wasn't planned for lol.


----------



## Olivia27

Thanks people! Cy blew kisses to you all 

And now, introducing the biggest evidence of my nonexistent impulse control: 

No Nickname Yet!



Has it ever been easier to take a Betta photo?  LOL and yes, he's floating wih Ice for now. Ice won't bother him, and he's flaring up a storm (even while sideways lol) so that's good. 

Ice will leave tomorrow, and someone expressed interest for Cane in the forum *fingers crossed*. I did give his actual price instead of the eBay starting price though so we'll see on that. Anyway point is: it _does_ look like I will get both guests out of the door by the end of the month. So I decided to bring this guy home. Even if I didn't manage to get him adopted before I go, he can join my permanents in their trip to the pet sitter's. So yeah! Wish him a speedy recovery folks


----------



## Tealight03

Aww poor guy. Hope he recovers soon.


----------



## Nova betta

UGH Olivia! I'm jealous of cobalt! I love my blue Butterfly but he's starting to marble! he's still gorgeous though. Curse you marble gene!


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## Olivia27

LOL and one day I'll look at someone else's blue BF and go like "Cobalt used to look like that!" XD

EDIT: so New Guy pooped. He also ate *one* brine shrimp. But he's still sideways. Oh well, too early to expect anything anyway. He's also still open to name suggestions by the way LOL he's hating it being called "new guy" all the time


----------



## Nova betta

DO you wanna trade LOL! I'll give you Royal and you give me cobalt.


----------



## BettaSplendid

I am very glad you are helping him. 

He is gorgeous and so kind to pose so readily for you. 



Hope he recovers quickly.


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## Olivia27

LOL nooope  Cobalt has a perfect 50/50 blue-white ratio. And the color separation is so clear I'm gonna die XD

@Betta Splendid: haha I don't think he has a choice. Hope I'll take a pic of him in a better pose soon


----------



## Nova betta

LOL I wouldn't trade royal for cobalt! Royal's to cute! He has this pink mark on his head it's adorable! But cobalt's blue ratio to white is to die for! Until he marbles...


----------



## Olivia27

Yup, until he marbles. Oh well. 

In another news: New Guy is now Technicolor. "Techno" for short. If you've seen Katie's (OUOhYeah2016) Prism and Tourmaline's Apollo, Techno is literally what happens if you copy Prism's color and paste it onto Apollo's body. It's crazy LOL


----------



## Tourmaline

Do you think he'll color up to the same color as Apollo? When I first got him he was more like Prism, kinda greenish, the next day he was blue. They'd be twins if he colors up that way.


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## OUOhYeah2016

I think is really funny that we all have such similar fish


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## Olivia27

Welp it does look like he's gonna have more red soon! Love how his anal has an orange tint though. I don't like reds but orange and yellow is welcome lol I'm interested to see what will he marble to - or if at all.


----------



## Olivia27

Good morning from Techno and Ice! I'm so glad I managed to snap a non blurry photo of Techno flaring sideways LOL he's such a character



I don't know if I can make a case on Techno being a DTFT. I mean, yes, I also see some biting on his caudal, but those creases! But then again I would be saying it as if it's a good thing. It's not. But isn't it unusual? I wonder if it would attract more eyes his way if I say he's a DTFT. Hmmm...

In another news Cane is now up on AquaBid. Finally. I've been meaning to do so for a while now but never got around to it LOL here he is -> http://www.aquabid.com/cgi-bin/auction/auction.cgi?fwbettasd&1461424051


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## ThatFishThough

He is a DTFT. So cool! I wish I had more tanks! I saw a really cute VT at PetCo yeatersay; he looked like those Crystal Red Shrimp.


----------



## Olivia27

Soooo someone inquired about Ice. Two hours before his auction ends. Bidding war alert? I don't know. I'm bracing myself to lose some $$ as we speak, as Ice's starting price was a lot lower than what I got him for. I should remember to not use the "crazy low starting price" strategy next time >< I don't have good enough photos (or good enough fish) to start a bidding war out of that

Techno's doing alright. Ice did a great job riling him up. He kept flaring and pooping, so here's hoping he'd recover fast. Also: Ice isn't going anywhere until Monday. His auction closes too late today. So it looks like Techno is gonna spend two more sleeps with naughty little Ice teasing him from outside the walls.

Today marks Cobalt's seventh day with me! Yay! Boy, isn't he a master nest builder. I've never had any boys that build nests as diligently. Sapho and Merah has stopped. And I think Cypris is too young. Nichi keeps growing. I really should measure her one of these days. Siloo is getting better me thinks. When she first arrived sometimes that poop hanging episode can go for two days. But now it barely goes overnight. Not even sure if her digestive issue is something curable though. Willow is still Willow. My crazy little Willow. I swear this girl never rests. Like Seren...

Speaking of Seren, today marks the first month since her passing. I managed to finish her memoir but haven't edited it yet. We'll see if I can get it done.


----------



## Olivia27

Cane is sold! Someone placed a bid at the very last minute. So I will send out both boys on Monday. Gonna miss them <3 

Cobalt *still* won't flare. It annoys me. I genuinely want to know if he has excessive branching or not, if he's HM, OHM or just Super Delta, or if he has any bent rays. I cupped him just now and paraded him around the house. Floated him with Cane. Cane used to flare even just for a second, but now he just ignores everything. Put his cup right next to Techno's. Didn't work. Floated him with Willow. Didn't work either. Sometimes he'd do this lazy half-flare thing where he just opened his gills a little bit, but that's all about it. Grrr >< 

Why am I curious? Well, in the middle of my effort to learn Betta genetics, I've been pulling up imaginary pair potentials out of my gang. If Cobalt doesn't have any bent rays he'd probably make a good pair for Nichi. He's a PK geno carrier with too many branching and skinny dorsal, she's a 4-ray HMPK and a DT geno carrier. He's a butterfly, she's a random marble. Some basic reading reveals that the butterfly pattern geno is dominant, so there _may _be more BFs than just marbles in the lot, but then again you'll never know. In another world if I do spawn this pair it would be for form anyway. But how does one go about pairing two fish with considerable size difference? Nichi is literally a quarter Cobalt's size. While she's more feisty than he is, heck knows what will happen in a spawn tank. Welp, I guess I'm glad I'll never have to find out. 

Maybe one day when I don't have to go home every summer anymore I can try my hand on breeding. For now I'd just keep on drawing imaginary matchmaker lists LOL


----------



## CollegeBettas

So I found your journal through Techno's adoption page. I didn't realize you were also a college student! I keep finding more and more on here. 
I wish I had another tank so I could get another betta, but my dorm next year is already going to get smaller for next year (I am losing 2 feet in width, which isn't that much, but I am also studying abroad in the Spring).
Has Nichi been a pain at all? Her brother Eric has been a pain in the butt. He keeps getting in trouble (first he somehow jumped or squeezed through the divider and then he got stuck in a tube under the airstone in his temporary tank). He has a new tank coming in the mail, but I have no idea where it is going to be.


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## Olivia27

Yup education major here. Nichi is an angel with a shining halo. She's SO easy  I didn't realize you got one from Susie as well. Does he have vents? Lol. I think Nichi looks cute without XD 

I have all of mine on a shelving unit. I can't imagine how else would I fit 6 tanks =\


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## CollegeBettas

I am an education major too! What do you want to teach? I hope to teach Pre-K or Kindergarten. Eric has vents, but they are different sizes and kind of curly.
I have one of those cube shelving units that one of my friends gave me, but I don't thank it will hold enough weight for a fish tank. I will have to see if my 3-gallon will fit on it because I may keep it on there. I was originally going to keep my 1-gallon in one of the cubes, but then I put in on our TV-less TV stand. I would put the 3-gallon there, but my roommate hated it when I had the 1-gallon there.


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## Olivia27

I'm an Elementary Ed major with a focus on Language-Arts and a minor in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. Mine is a wooden shelf from Bed Bath & Beyond. Holds a 5.5 glass just fine


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## CollegeBettas

Nice! I am also Elementary Education with ESL. I am pretty sure I am going to also minor in Psychology because my college doesn't have a Special Ed program. 
I think the cubes can hold small tanks, just not my 10-gallon. I can't wait to move into a house and be able to have a lot of tanks everywhere.


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## CollegeBettas

What heaters do you use in your QT tanks? Mine doesn't turn off so I have to monitor it very closely.


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## Olivia27

I have a crappy one too. Aqueon 7.5w Flat on all of them. Now that the temp stays above 70F at all times I actually leave the heater unplugged during daytime. Water stays between 75-76F. With the heater on, it will overheat all the way up to 90F.

EDIT

Quick update on Techno. He's on ES now. He won't eat anything still, but I don't mind too much for now. Life in a cup can hurt appetites. Tonight is his last night in a cup though. Once Cane and Ice leaves he will have the KK all to himself. Let's see how he handles that.


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## CollegeBettas

Okay, I have a similar one then, the same things happens to me. The heater is usually on at night, and maybe another hour in the middle of the day.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Olivia, idk if you want me to reply to your adoption thread for Techno or if you want to update it, but I'm more than happy to ship him out to an adopter. You could get the adopter to pay you and then you could just reimburse me for shipping when you pay me for the fish sitting anyway. I've still got everything except I'm gunna need some more styrofoam.... lol


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## Olivia27

Oh yaaay! I was gonna message you and ask lol I actually have some leftover styrofoam liners! I can put them in with the boys


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## OUOhYeah2016

Sounds like a good plan :]


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## Olivia27

I just went to Petco again. I need another KK and heater in the event of Techno joining the great migration. And so, naturally, I took photos. Is everyone sure they don't need a new scaly friend?? Look at these babies!

Purple body! Eeep!







Gotta love CT females



This is the guy from last time. Bit annoyed how I never got a nice clear shot 



Green-white marble HM with red fins.



Colors, colors everywhere!



Finally a clear photo of the EEPK from last time


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## Olivia27

Techno's making progress. He's still sideways 95% of the time, but today he held this pose for a good couple seconds (photo taken right before he floated up again)



And this: the magic of summer. The heater's been unplugged since morning.


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## OUOhYeah2016

I love the EE and the green-white marble !!!! Excuse me while I go cry because I want them


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## themamaj

Where are you finding the betta genetics info? Wanting to learn more myself. 

Oh that Cobalt. I have never paid much attention to butterflies but that boy is divine! If you change your mind about him I have open tanks  haha. Been debating about another fish. Go back and forth between yes or no maybe I should slow down. Depends on what day you ask me lol. Our local stores got new shipments last week but haven't had time to look. Now you have me intrigued on those gorgeous blue and whites or maybe a really unusual double tail plakat or some beautiful HM. So maybe I should say not officially looking but always open for suggestions! 

Glad to hear Cane and Ice have new homes.


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## Olivia27

It's mostly lurking around the spawn log and breeding sections honestly. But the basics are here -> http://www.bettaterritory.nl/BT-AABcolorgenetics.htm

Betty Splendens is also an awesome, awesome blog. But I can't find their Betta colors genetic page now that I'm on my phone >.>

Lol as days go by I think I'm glad Nova Betta made me go back and grab Cobalt. He's staying for sure


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## Tealight03

They are all so tempting. Must refrain.....


----------



## themamaj

How are you getting pictures to come up regular size?????


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## Olivia27

Mwahahaha! Photobucket!


----------



## Tealight03

I might need to start using photo bucket.


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## themamaj

Olivia27 said:


> Mwahahaha! Photobucket!


Lol I am a bit slow to learn all the new technology. I Googled it but lots of options of sites. Where do I go to do this?


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## Olivia27

Oh just go to photobucket.com and create an account. And then whenever you upload a photo there they will give you HTML, BB and IMG links that you can easily copy paste for instant upload. For forums like this, it's gonna be the IMG link. For more basic sites like AquaBid it's gonna be HTML. So yeah, it's a two-step process. Upload to photobucket, and then copy paste link from photobucket to the reply box.


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## Sadist

Oh man, I haven't used photobucket for 10 or more years. I wonder which email I have it tied to.

Gorgeous fish at the store! I wish I had room for that crowntail girl. As if I needed a third crowntail girl 

MammaJ, I'll go hit the stores in a bit. I have to fold laundry and get the hubby's socks started. If I see a girl double tail or plakat double tail or super colors, I'll let you know!


----------



## themamaj

Sounds great Sadist. Thanks for photobucket info.


----------



## Olivia27

I got another PKDT boy in, but he's nothing special IMO. But then again I don't like solid reds. Can't remember if his tail actually has some separation though. Buuuuut what I really want lately is a PKDT_EE_. A female one. Therakanbetta has a yellow Sally one up for sale. I'm SO glad I'm going home soon or I would probably be $80 short by now LOL

My history class is starting in 20 minutes. And then I gotta go home, print labels, and ship out the imported boys. This is gonna be my first time shipping without a heat pack. It feels so weird. I have a feeling I'm gonna be extra nervous like when I shipped my first foster. Eeeeep ><

Techno was on tannin starting from last night. Not that he absolutely needs it, but I have two tea bags left and I'm going home soon. He has a few curls on the tips of his dorsal anyway. Little guy was totally upright for almost five seconds this morning. I'm so proud <3

For some reason I woke up at 7 AM and never did go back to sleep. So before I left for classes all my tanks are already sparkling clean, the plants fed and the fishies full. Looks like I can sleep early tonight xD


----------



## Olivia27

Been up all night imagining what my room next (academic) year is gonna look like. I'm definitely moving Sapho and Nichi out of the bottom shelf. Law of physics doesn't allow siphoning to work when the tank and the bucket is on the same level ._. I looked at Craigslist, and there's this gorgeous pair of identical end tables someone's letting go for $25. If deals like this stay around until after summer that's definitely what I'm gonna do. Move the supplies to the bottom shelf, and then put my fives on either two identical tables or one long table. I can't get another shelf. I'm afraid my impulse control cannot be trusted with extra space LOL with Cane and Ice's sales comes Silhouette's tank light. Finally. I have a gorgeous crypt (think it's lutea...) in her tank that I _do _want to grow well. Can't do it with just ferts and two fingers crossed. Cobalt will move to a 3g KK next year. It's the only affordable tank short enough to fit my third shelf. He does look mellow enough for a smaller tank. The problem is, one 3g KK cannot fill up an entire shelf. Soooo... 

... There will be another 3g KK next to Cobalt's. Not sure yet what will I do with it. I want to try my hand on shrimps, but I also have a 10g laying about that will probably be a better option (holds cycle more steadily etc). What will I do with that 10g is yet another mystery. Currently things are up in the air with the giant spawn I'm signed up to. There's chance that it's gonna turn into a giant x non giant spawn. If that happens, theoretically, giants would only make about 25% of the spawn. If _that _happens, I'd probably just get a non giant (female, to balance the male-female ratio in the house) to fill up the 3g KK next to Cobalt's, and then get a single male dwarf gourami in my 10. I wanted to do a shoal of honey gouramis in a 20 Long at first, but then realized that my brother - future roommate - doesn't even know I have seven Bettas to begin with. "Let's not surprise him with a "massive" tank on top of all that", I thought. So a 10g it is. And there goes my honey gourami shoal plan. I was SO close to getting a pea puffer... but then I learned that snails aren't their snacks. It's actually their staple food. I can't handle that. As much as I'd love to beat my phobia someday, I just don't have enough motivation to do so right now. Besides, dwarf gouramis are more readily available. Thaaaat said, I'm fully aware of the Dwarf Gourami Iridovirus (which is totally not restricted to only dwarf gouramis speaking of! _Bettas are on the list too. _It's an Anabantoid thing - but honeys somehow don't have it). It sucks how there's no cure for it, *and *there's no way of telling an individual has it until a couple months or even years into their lifespan. It sucks. Majorly. How is it that we're so powerless against fish illnesses? There are sooooo many things out there that we can only shrug and sigh at. Is it because people don't do enough research, or is it for the simple fact that these tiny creatures are just fragile? See, I have no interest in the medical field be it for humans or animals _until _I have fish. Scrap that - I *still* have no interest in the medical field be it for humans or animals even after I have fish. But I learn as much as I can anyway because if one of my babies fell ill, there's no one I can call. .... Except if Lil won't mind. But you get the idea.

Anyway. Yeah. Point is: I have mostly zero idea of what's going to happen fish-wise in the menagerie. But regarding my 120g summer project, I'm sad to say that I probably wouldn't take it up. As summer silently creeps closer and closer, I begin to remember how does it feel to live with my parents. And boy, if I can sum it up in one word, that word would be "unpleasant". While a low-tech 120g planted set-up sounds like a dream, it's not worth the constant harassment and snide remarks. I don't want them to gawk and comment. They've gawked and commented enough. So... Yeah. No summer fish for me. Might be a good idea anyway. I get stupidly attached to fish super quickly. I don't want to get attached to one I can never keep. I will eventually settle in The States for good. There's no point in having another pet back home. I'm already struggling to fly _one _over *shrug*

Today's update: Cane and Ice are on their ways. Had to ship Cane through the main post office 30 minutes away because I ran into the very clerk that denied my prepaid label from PayPal. I honestly knew Priority Express mails can't go in the 7x7x6 box, but since most clerks just let it slide, I tried my luck anyway. Buuuuuut that clerk was on duty. GRRRR. Like, is there even any good reason why I can't mail a specific kind of mail with a specific kind of box?? It's just bureaucracy I'm telling ya >.> anyway. Techno finally got his own tank now. He's improving slowly, but he's visibly improving. Can't wait for him to swim normally x 

(( quick rant and then I'll shut up for good: I absolutely hate it when people walk in to the forum, ask a question, receive an answer from one of our friendly experts, and then just slap that answer off the table. These people kindly volunteered their time, knowledge, experience and not to mention fraying patience to answer the same questions again and again, YET there will always be people who walked in with their noses held high just because their phone has internet (or their so-and-so has kept fish for x years). Dude, we know you have Google. We have Google too. We know you know someone who knows fish. We have those people too. But the fact here is that YOU do not know what you're doing, and that's why you voluntarily came for help. Don't go all "this is my question, fetch me the answers I want to hear" on us. It's kind of like those annoying people on Facebook that go: "I want to go eat out but don't know where" and then as people comment with restaurant suggestions they go all "nope, too this, too that". ARGH. *rant over* *rant #2 begins* is there even ANY good keyboard covers anymore?? Aaaargh I keep peeling the paints off mine! I know I type a lot, but come on! *rant actually over* ))


----------



## Nova betta

Olivia27 said:


> Lol as days go by I think I'm glad Nova Betta made me go back and grab Cobalt. He's staying for sure


haha I take that as a compliment!
I'm really glad you got him though! Has he started marbling?


----------



## ThatFishThough

I still hold up the offer of looking for Giants in my area. Yesterday there was a Turquoise Giant Female (Marble) at WalMart. :3

Edit: also, my LFS has Pea Puffers for $5.99 if you ever decide you want one.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Olivia27 said:


> (( quick rant and then I'll shut up for good: I absolutely hate it when people walk in to the forum, ask a question, receive an answer from one of our friendly experts, and then just slap that answer off the table. These people kindly volunteered their time, knowledge, experience and not to mention fraying patience to answer the same questions again and again, YET there will always be people who walked in with their noses held high just because their phone has internet (or their so-and-so has kept fish for x years). Dude, we know you have Google. We have Google too. We know you know someone who knows fish. We have those people too. But the fact here is that YOU do not know what you're doing, and that's why you voluntarily came for help. Don't go all "this is my question, fetch me the answers I want to hear" on us. It's kind of like those annoying people on Facebook that go: "I want to go eat out but don't know where" and then as people comment with restaurant suggestions they go all "nope, too this, too that". ARGH. *rant over* *rant #2 begins* is there even ANY good keyboard covers anymore?? Aaaargh I keep peeling the paints off mine! I know I type a lot, but come on! *rant actually over* ))


LOL is all I can say to any of that ^ It happens so often and honestly it has made me less likely to answer people's questions.

...I had some other comment I was going to reply with about some other part of your last post, but I have now lost it lol. I'm sure I'll remember eventually


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## Olivia27

Nova betta said:


> haha I take that as a compliment!
> I'm really glad you got him though! Has he started marbling?


He has, but not in the way we predicted. The black on his head is spreading into the body. His fins are still perfect ;-)



ThatFishThough said:


> I still hold up the offer of looking for Giants in my area. Yesterday there was a Turquoise Giant Female (Marble) at WalMart. :3
> 
> Edit: also, my LFS has Pea Puffers for $5.99 if you ever decide you want one.


Naw I absolutely can't have Pea Puffers now - unless somebody waved a wand and made my phobia disappear. Giants.... I don't know, I really gotta think things through. The thing is that I only have two open tanks: a 3 and a 10. No way can a giant go into the 3. If I have a giant then I can't have a dwarf gourami. But if I have a giant then the 3g would have to be exclusively a shrimp tank because I'm totally *not* having nine Bettas. Sooo yeah... lots of thinking to do. But then again none of these plans will be executed until after summer anyway. Thanks for the offer though! You're very lucky you have giants readily available in a chain store.

EDIT: @Katie maybe you're going to recommend a cool cheap keyboard cover? LOL


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## OUOhYeah2016

Idk lol I think the last time I recall we had the same one? I've never had a problem with mine


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## Olivia27

Yea we had one with the same color LOL not sure if they're the exact same one. I got mine for cheap from a local book store. It's called KB Covers? Gee, I don't even keep my nails long at all. I'm losing paint in the letters L, N and H... and the space bar has a gaping hole of missing paint too ><


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## OUOhYeah2016

Mine is KB too. Is yours soft and stretchy? Cause mine is and I have never had a problem losing the paint


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## Olivia27

Yeh it's soft and rubber-like. Eeeep >< maybe my nails secretly have super strength ._.


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## Olivia27

Late night gallery! I just don't want to go to bed yet LOL

Let's start with Techno. Like I said, there's been slight progress. He can swim forward, but if he tried to turn, he'd end up floating sideways instead. He also still struggles with diving. Poor guy.





See? Like this



Cobalt's little yellow eye makes him look constantly surprised



Theeeere's your one-eighty caudal.



And all the ruffles



Merah, being photogenic as always in his diatom-ridden tank. I just added two more crypts to the background. But as you can see it's still very open. I'm moving another bunch of crypt from Siloo's either tomorrow or Wednesday. Just because I'm procrastinating. 



That floating (uprooted) bunch of crypt is what I'm talking about. Maybe once the Stingray came in I can replace it with an Anubias minima. Excuse the reflection. There's zero way of getting decent pictures of this tank at night time.



Sapho got two gorgeous Anubias nangi as floating background plants. They're in there somewhere, behind the fish.



Sapho's whole tank. Excuse the rotting hygro leaves in the bottom. I will vacuum them all out on Wednesday. Initially I wanted the blue hygro to arch over the blue flower cave decor, but the stems aren't long enough to create that effect =\



Aaaand my four-leaf clover (_Marsilea hirsuta_)_. _Excuse the hygro blocking it from view._ Marsilea_ is the vine-shaped round-leaf thingy. If you look really closely there's *one* clover that actually has four leaves at the back left corner. But all the new growth only has one leaf  hope they fill in... 



Also, awesome imports of the day (by Betta Ibc Huang):
- MG HMPK (almost spade tail?) $10 + $7 import fee
- Platinum White HM $15 + $7 import fee << @themamaj you said you're open for suggestions  
- Grizzle (?) HMPK $10 + $7 import fee
- Bicolor Spade Tail (betting my lunch money that's an actual spade tail) $13 + $7 import fee

I would be happy to message Huang if anyone wants to import. As you can see he charges way, way lower than what most AB sellers charge.


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## ThatFishThough

I died inside, for two reasons.


1. That "Lunch Money" Spade.

2. My one Netrite as decided to lay eggs EVERYWHERE!


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## Olivia27

Ew ._. is the Nerite together with the Bettas? They'd happily eat the snail eggs if so. 

In another news, ladies and gentlemen, _Cobalt flared._ OMG. All those mirrors. All those floating. All that parading around the house trying him with different fish. And finally what made him flare was a copy of _Challenger Deep _tilted to a certain angle. This boy, I swear >.> 

I just rushed to my phone and took these crappy pics. He's officially an RT. So other than excessive branching, his only other fault was a stubby first dorsal ray. That dorsal has more width than I initially thought!



He apparently feels threatened by award-winning literature. I swear to you folks: my fish might as well be more sophisticated than most dogs XD


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## ThatFishThough

Haha! Loving him!

And yeah, the snails in the sorority. X.x


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## Sadist

So funny what they flare at! My orange boy only flares at cheezits.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Sadist said:


> So funny what they flare at! My orange boy only flares at cheezits.


This may be one of the funniest things I've heard of a betta flaring at :lol:


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## Olivia27

LOL Sadist that's awesome. I actually thought briefly about bringing Cobalt to my final project presentation :lol: I'm doing a presentation on _Challenger Deep _so I thought it would be cool if the class can see the little guy react to it LOL 

I really need to put Cobalt in a proper photo tank now that I know what makes him flare. He's goooooorgeous *faints*


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## OUOhYeah2016

Wait you should do it! If I had an excuse to bring Fawkes or Prism to class I'd do it.


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## Olivia27

I only have 3.5 minutes to do the presentation unfortunately  not enough time if I gotta explain what exactly is "flaring" and why he's doing it. If it's a ten-minute presentation I'd totally do it though LOL plus, I have a feeling I'd get more questions about Cobalt than about the novel XD


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## OUOhYeah2016

I feel like that's not a bad thing lol


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## Olivia27

*Gallery*

So Techno has his own tank now. I found that he has more control over where he wants to go, but he still keeps floating up and then sideways when motionless :-( he seems to be very aware of this, however. So I often find him anchoring himself against something. Like the thermometer:



That said, I also found myself taking more and more photos like this



I tried to make Cobalt flare at the novel again, but he seem to have changed his mind :lol: he only flared for a microsecond or two. Too fast for the dim-witted iPhone camera to catch. Nevertheless, here's your daily dose of Cobalt







Poor dear, he seem to have a minor injury on his head



So two days ago, I found a not-ramshorn snail in my 5.5. I'm not entirely sure what it is. It's white and light gray, and a bit flat. Kinda like a pond snail but not brown. Either ways, the following day that alien snail had a truck ton of babies. It didn't help that Cypris never bothered those young ones. So I took Cypris out, put him in a KK, and dosed the tank with Cupramine. I don't know how long does it take for copper to kill inverts, but I'm planning to do a massive water change later today, and then put the carbon back in to absorb all the remaining copper. And then maybe another large water change tomorrow, and then Cypris can move in either the day after or late tomorrow. Either ways, this means Cypris is now in a KK. This means I can get photos like these:







And my favorite:



It annoys the heck out of me how I took the best pic before I fixed the background. So you can see the ugly power outlet and heater cord behind :evil: I really should learn how to work Photoshop one of these days. I need to crop the fish out and paste him onto a better background LOL

Nichi is such a big girl now. She's too fast to measure, but I'm sure she's over an inch by now. One thing I have just noticed about her is that she looks hilariously worried from front view





And now some side view pics: with a lot of reflection! Yay! I was gonna crop the reflections out but I'm too lazy LOL



Yea Nichi is fat. She gets one or two more pellets than the rest of the house during "power grow" phase. I wonder if that phase is over now.



EDIT: also, is it possible for a fish to be afraid of another? Cobalt has a lot of bent rays, so I thought of giving him a daily flaring session. I pushed his KK close to Techno's, and without a doubt Techno flared. Cobalt charged at the tank wall, flaring (only for a microsecond as always), and Techno literally jumped backwards. The second time the encounter happened Techno ended up jamming his head under the heater. This is the same fish that laid there all night flaring at Ice and Cane (both of whom has been delivered today, speaking of!). Previously I tried to float Techno with Cobalt, but Techno almost jumped out of his cup - even without Cobalt flaring :| you learn something new every day, don'tcha?


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## Sadist

Yes, Mr. Fish acted that way when he was stressed and scared. One time, he tried to jam his head under a rock, sand flying everywhere. It's a wonder he didn't kill himself with the impact.


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## Olivia27

Aww  I'd see if I can flare Cobalt with someone else then. Maybe Cypris, now that he's part of the living room gang. Someone's gotta be brave enough to take on a fat, stocky long fin!


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## BettaSplendid

They are all so lovely! Tell Techno he is doing good! He is getting better! Just keep getting better, bit by bit, Techno. You're in good hands and safe, even from Cobalt.


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## Olivia27

Heheh, yeah, I need to convince him that big fat blue clown isn't gonna hurt a fly ;-)

Meanwhile, here's my dog Diamond. Just because. 



In our backyard



My laptop wallpaper



The night of his fifth birthday. He got switched to Taste of The Wild High Prairie as a birthday gift 



This is 99% of Huskies on Earth in response to "come"



My school email profile picture LOL



My desk last year, when I lived in the dorm. You can almost see my old girl Memory in the 5.5 <3 and that painting is what I got on last year's international Secret Santa held by my Husky owners forum. It was a lot of fun


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## BettaSplendid

Give me cheese. LOL.


That is one seriously gorgeous doggie- with eye brows. Love.


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## OUOhYeah2016

Diamond is beautiful! I'm happy for you getting to go back home and see your dog.


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## Olivia27

Thanks people ^_^ he's my little fluff ball. 

Late night Techno-only update. This is the first time Techno ate an actual meal (of brine shrimps). He refused at first but after a lot of coaxing he finally took a bite - which became the first of many. So that's improvement right there. But on the down side of things I notice he's hanging on the surface a lot. I mean... I know he probably can't help it, but it still sorta worries me how he doesn't move much. Here's a one-minute video:

https://youtu.be/IyrFs3QPxEk (( sorry, can't figure out how to embed it ))

I can't really decide if that's just an extension of his SBD (he's upright you see) or he has another underlying issue, so... after a lot of mulling over... I dosed half a mL (3 drops) of Paraguard. 

So far, it seems like Techno can:
- stay upright, as long as his fins are all splayed out 
- dive, but not if he simply points his nose down. I wish I can catch it on camera. He basically did this downwards turn thing that allowed him to dive.
- control where he wants to go. Most of the time.

However, Techno can _not:
_- move anywhere without great effort. This may be why he chose to just hang around motionless. It's too tiring to move.
- stay down. He can dive, but he would immediately float back up.
- swim forward mid-tank. Literally he tried that just now and his rear end was pointing upwards. It almost looked like he's crawling across the tank floor with his vents as feet

Here are photos. As you can see he mostly sticks to the glass to anchor himself. Sometimes he still floats sideways, but he can quickly correct that now. 

(( also, he has developed wild type spots all over his dorsal - and the red is spreading to the edges of his ruffled caudal ))


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## themamaj

Cobalt...what is not perfect about that fish?! Boy he is so gorgeous. I am glad to know what to look for now in butterflies. I really like his contrast of darker blue and white. He really has a nice balance of coloration. 

Cypris looks fabulous in his flare! You can see his yellow coming out so much more. Really stunning.

Love all the pictures. Hope school is going well. I'm sure you all are starting to get close to finals here soon. When do you get to move into new apt?


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## themamaj

What great pictures of your dog. I love husky eyes. They just draw you in.


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## Tealight03

Well Techno sounds a little better. His swim bladder still looks big I think. Hope he continues to improve. 

Diamond is gorgeous! Hope you can bring him soon.


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## Olivia27

Heheh thanks mamaj! My boys are too cute  when will I move in? Erm... *gasp* I forgot my exact move-in date! O_O I know it's late August sometime. Eeep. Better go make sure >< 

@Tealight: isn't it! I never knew swim bladders can swell like that TBH. I never noticed it before. And about bringing Diamond... yeah, fingers crossed everything goes the way I planned. Just talk to parents swiftly, take care of papers, pack up dog, go. I have a feeling the first part is going to be problematic... But we'll see.


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## themamaj

Is there a way to load a lot of photos at once on photobucket?


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## OUOhYeah2016

Mushu went through a similar phase. Keep up with the ES. He seems to have SBD that isn't necessarily getting better or worse but changing up on you. Just be patient. Prism actually has a slight bulge that's his swim bladder but I usually keep AQ in that tank because of his biting so it really doesn't go away but it also doesn't affect him much.


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## Sadist

Gorgeous dog! It seems like Techno is doing better even if he isn't 100%. Hopefully, you can get his swim bladder healed up and get some food in him to make him stronger.


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## Olivia27

Quick rant: AAAAARGGH $#^&@$%(@&!!!!! Just when things can't go any worse...

How to cruise through the day of your final project:
- wake up at your alarm
- go back to sleep
- wake up late
- skip breakfast
- go to your first class which is also working on a separate final project
- mess up the Google doc for the group final project
- leave your phone at the desk
- arrive at work
- buy lunch
- leave lunch at table and run back to class because _where is my phone????
_- meet classmate that says "the professor has it, he went that way"
- walk around building without finding anyone
- borrow classmate's phone to call professor
- leave a voicemail because professor isn't picking up
- walk back to work 
- receive an email saying professor will leave the phone at his office building's lost and found. Building is ~20 minutes walk away from work, and ~10 minute walk + 10-minute bus ride away from home. All that cuts back gap time between end of shift and start of final project event, which I have planned to use for tank cleaning.
- sit at work eating lunch wondering how unlucky can someone be 
- receive email saying your essay "didn't meet requirements" and must be re-done
- cry

In another news though, Techno pooped this morning. So at least he's not constipated.


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## ashleynicol3

So the best part of your day was fish poop, then? That's a rough one!!! Hopefully tomorrow goes better for you! (Been lurking around your journal for a bit but hadn't responded yet, so hi! :waves


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## OUOhYeah2016

That sounds like an absolutely terrible day we can all relate to. Glad Techno is improving still though.


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## Olivia27

Ashley, that actually made me laugh XD yep, the highlight of my day is fish poop. How sad is that LOL. I'm still happy though! He pooped! Yaaay!


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## ashleynicol3

YAY poop! LOL


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Olivia27

OK Techno's appetite carried on. This is great. He's super easy to feed. Attacks the tweezers and all. I saw him swimming forward mid-tank, but mainly he still hangs on the surface. Baby step by baby step I guess. 

In another news I got my phone back, and now on my way to the final project event I've been freaking out about since forever. We'll see how it goes.


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## CollegeBettas

Gosh, today was a bad day for everyone. I got left at work and one of my friends was late to choir because her alarm didn't go off and almost missed her test this morning for the same reason.
I am glad Techno isn't having a bad day though. He is so cute. I wish I had room for another.


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## themamaj

Cute picture


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## Sadist

He looks better! Is that a little nest he's trying out against the glass?


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## OUOhYeah2016

Yay Techno! lol idk if I've mentioned this, but Techno was in the running to be Prism's name so I'm rather invested in his well being. Plus there's a chance he's coming to live with me :]


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## Olivia27

Ooookay! Today is a big day. Techno ate Omega One for the first time. He's swimming very normally today so I decided to see if he can hold down pellets just fine. Pictured is the little guy swimming mid tank with no buoyancy issue :-D excuse my fingers. I seem to get reflections no matter what I do =\

@themamaj: yup he tried to build a teeny tiny bubble nest lol
@Katie: aw nope you didn't mention that! He can be Prism Junior as a nickname XD


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## OUOhYeah2016

Haha Prism needs to stop biting his fins and maybe he'll be back in my good graces. I may have started to threaten him that he'll be replaced if Techno comes to live with me.


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## Sadist

I'm glad he's doing better! Maybe that giant poop was pushing on his swim bladder and causing issues.


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## Olivia27

LOL Katie he should get his act together after that threat  That may as well be true, Sadist. It does look like the brine shrimps is acting as a fast-forward button. Bit nervous to see if he's gonna stay normal tomorrow. Did I introduce pellets too early? Did I not? Gee. We need some sort of a "Betta SBD Google Doc" just so we can see how people interact differently with the disease and how quickly (or slowly) did their fish recover. In fact, we need some sort of a Google Doc for every common diseases out there. Like fin rot. Holy goodness isn't _that _one popular. I know how daunting it can be for a beginner owner to come across this huge wave of information, trying to figure out which one is "more right". TBH I think there's no one method that is "more right" in treating SBD and fin rot. Some people here still feed peas. Not my cup of tea, and I won't ever recommend it, but I also know it won't kill. And hey, apparently it also works in some cases (minor? major? See - that's why I want a type of Google Doc - or just a forum thread). Some others treat fin rot with antibiotics right off the bat (again not my cup of tea). How does that work - if at all? My only problem with this Google Doc idea is that people may or may not end up fighting LOL "peas?? Why you cruel heartless cold hearted snob!!" or the reverse: those who insist that peas are #1 best method: "my so-and-so is a breeder for x years and they have been feeding ALL their fish peas! It's VERY beneficial! It does this and that and this and that! RAAWWRR!" :roll: I can _so_ imagine that.

Bit of forum life ramble: TBH sometimes I'm surprised I log in to the forum and didn't get a generic message saying I've been banned. I've been giving online dog training advice for 4-5 years, I work in retail as we speak, and I'm studying to be a teacher. I swore I got my "customer service" voice down. But people in here... Man, I just can't sometimes. Maybe it's only because the society as a whole sees fish as lesser than, so it brings out the worst out of people. Maybe. Either ways, I find myself losing my customer service side completely. I don't say hello. I don't say welcome. I don't end my message with emojis :-D to indicate friendliness. Heck, I swore the last time I got tangled in a mini drama I was about to say: "it's not your opinion, you're just wrong". Now I will not say it's wrong to bluntly use the word "wrong", but yeah, I also agree that's not very friendly at all. There's TBH one right now that I was THIS close to replying sarcastically to. But I do realize I won't be able to provide any constructive criticism or helpful suggestions along with it, (which means there's nothing to make up for the meanness) so I just take a deep breath and walk away. But _darn it_, I really want to go like: "FREEZE! Don't move! You have zero idea of what you're doing!! Research, and do NOT move before you're done!"_. _Just because my childish side is screaming: "they're asking for it". Lately this has become a trend in my forum experience. The amount of posts I want to reply to just because they're figuratively, implicitly asking for a verbal beating (through my childish eyes anyway) is a _little _too many. Most of the time I have pretty good self control (_most_ :roll but for the times I let my fingers slip, darn... I'm really surprised I'm still here typing away ATM. I do consciously try to contain myself to the journals section, however. Except if the OP is someone I know is receptive of suggestions. So... Point of this whole block of text is: I do realize I can be gosh darn mean sometimes. I can't say I'm sorry for the times I am able to make up for the meanness with actual contribution, but I swear I'm working on it. Not by trying to be friendlier (I just can't....) but by trying to mostly stay out of the way ^^" not that my random know-it-all posts would be much missed in the questions sections anyway LOL I'm not that mean in person, honest O


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## OUOhYeah2016

Olivia27 said:


> Bit of forum life ramble: TBH sometimes I'm surprised I log in to the forum and didn't get a generic message saying I've been banned. I've been giving online dog training advice for 4-5 years, I work in retail as we speak, and I'm studying to be a teacher. I swore I got my "customer service" voice down. But people in here... Man, I just can't sometimes. Maybe it's only because the society as a whole sees fish as lesser than, so it brings out the worst out of people. Maybe. Either ways, I find myself losing my customer service side completely. I don't say hello. I don't say welcome. I don't end my message with emojis :-D to indicate friendliness. Heck, I swore the last time I got tangled in a mini drama I was about to say: "it's not your opinion, you're just wrong". Now I will not say it's wrong to bluntly use the word "wrong", but yeah, I also agree that's not very friendly at all. There's TBH one right now that I was THIS close to replying sarcastically to. But I do realize I won't be able to provide any constructive criticism or helpful suggestions along with it, (which means there's nothing to make up for the meanness) so I just take a deep breath and walk away. But _darn it_, I really want to go like: "FREEZE! Don't move! You have zero idea of what you're doing!! Research, and do NOT move before you're done!"_. _Just because my childish side is screaming: "they're asking for it". Lately this has become a trend in my forum experience. The amount of posts I want to reply to just because they're figuratively, implicitly asking for a verbal beating (through my childish eyes anyway) is a _little _too many. Most of the time I have pretty good self control (_most_ :roll but for the times I let my fingers slip, darn... I'm really surprised I'm still here typing away ATM. I do consciously try to contain myself to the journals section, however. Except if the OP is someone I know is receptive of suggestions. So... Point of this whole block of text is: I do realize I can be gosh darn mean sometimes. I can't say I'm sorry for the times I am able to make up for the meanness with actual contribution, but I swear I'm working on it. Not by trying to be friendlier (I just can't....) but by trying to mostly stay out of the way ^^" not that my random know-it-all posts would be much missed in the questions sections anyway LOL I'm not that mean in person, honest O


ALL THE YES ^^^ I dread when "new member" pops up to answer a question from another "new member".... Sometimes they might have some idea what they're doing, but a lot of the time I just have to stop myself from doing the same thing. It takes a lot for me to not be like "STOP" or "No actually you have no clue what youre talking about" !!! Other times I want to report the thread and say hey mods I could use some backup here, but then I'm like wait, they'll probably suspend me for being mean or something...


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## CollegeBettas

I have the same problem with giving advice. I want to give advice so bad and I will usually type something out. I have to stop myself from posting because I don't know enough. I want to be helpful, but without knowing about something, I look dumb.


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## SydneyA

I just took some time catching up on your journal. Are you hoping to bring your dog back with you this fall?

I love all the pics and cobalt is gorgeous! When do you need your mobile fish sitter to arrive? I'm still alive,I swear, lol.

We cured the Popeye! It did not get better until I added the ES, thank you for that advice! It got worse before it got better but he's 95% normal looking now. I'm still mourning my gorgeous boy who jumped. It's a mystery how it happened, but so sad. I taped some cardboard over the hole and just moved one of my other guys who needed more room. I don't yet have the heart to fish shop.


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## Olivia27

SydneyA said:


> I just took some time catching up on your journal. Are you hoping to bring your dog back with you this fall?
> 
> I love all the pics and cobalt is gorgeous! When do you need your mobile fish sitter to arrive? I'm still alive,I swear, lol.
> 
> We cured the Popeye! It did not get better until I added the ES, thank you for that advice! It got worse before it got better but he's 95% normal looking now. I'm still mourning my gorgeous boy who jumped. It's a mystery how it happened, but so sad. I taped some cardboard over the hole and just moved one of my other guys who needed more room. I don't yet have the heart to fish shop.


You're back! Yaaay! @themamaj is waiting for you in your journal  she just got an axolotl herself. And more YAY for the pop eye! 

I honestly don't have an exact date yet. But I do know that it's got to be between May 1-5 (May 1 is Sunday). My boys except for Cobalt are being shipped between May 1-3, depending on how early I'm willing to let them go :-( what about we just pick a day between May 1-5 that works best for you?

Also, Silhouette and Willow are gonna be traveling in actual tanks instead of a KK ^^" it's not massive I promise. Both are heavily planted, heated, unfiltered, lighted 3g KK. Nichi is the only one who's going to sit in a 1.4g KK (+ mini heater) because her real tank is 5g, and I can't make you haul a 5g in a two-hour car ride :roll:


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## SydneyA

I don't mind the 5 gallons if they are half full or less. I have a good sized van and the assorted tanks can just line up in back, plants included. It's about an hour and a half so no worries if you want the 5 gallons used. 

I did see she got an axolotl! She pmed me with some questions and I hope I made sense. I am just getting over the stomach flu and when I messaged her I was a little loopy. I can't catch a break, lol. 

I posted some pics of Buttercup in my journal a few days ago. She's growing!


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## Olivia27

Oh yaaaay! I can actually take out 50% of the water, bag Nichi, and let her bag float in the tank so she won't get thrown around too much during the journey. There's.... There's this really big (well, dime-sized) brown ramshorn in that 5g that I just found today O_O so if you can take that yucky thing out and keep it that'll be great LOL 

Sorry about the stomach flu  it's just one thing after another for ya, huh? Hope you get well soon


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## SydneyA

Snail eradication is my specialty.


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## Tealight03

I can sympathize with your rant. I mostly stick to journals now. I got fed up with people telling the OP to not do what I suggested and do what they are suggesting. I mean we all have different ways of doing things. My way works for me. It may not work for you and that's ok. But that doesn't mean my way is wrong. 

Ok end of rant.


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## Olivia27

Great LOL just let me know which day between May 1-5... or I'd just message you my finals week schedule so you'd know what times on which days I'd be home. Either or. We'll see x)

EDIT: aw sorry you experienced that Tealight


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## Olivia27

Fiiinally installed Siloo's tank light. Wooo! Tbh my first thought was: wow, this girl has a face! XD 

In Techno news, I think I jumped my guns after all. Poor guy had trouble turning again, so back to brine shrimps we go


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## Olivia27

GRRRR insomnia we meet again. Doesn't help that I had a pretty weird afternoon ._. Now I keep wanting to pick up laptop and write a journal entry. Argh ><

But anyway. Here's Techno this morning. Aaaaall of that is his dorsal. This guy has a l-o-t of fins. I'm surprised he's not biting tbh!


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## NickAu

> Snail eradication is my specialty.


Mine to, I entice them to come to me rather than look for them see this post, #*1475*


----------



## Olivia27

Lol Nick how is it that the moment I saw your username I knew your post is gonna be about snails lol oh and hey while you're here, teach me how to embed YouTube videos to the forum! The generic embed link provided doesn't work


----------



## NickAu

To embed a youtube video find the video you want 

Eg.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0FFElyMzTA

Now wrap everything after the = in youtube tags.

K0FFElyMzTA

[&youtube]K0FFElyMzTA[/youtube]

Remove the & ( I had to put it there so it didnt show the player)


----------



## Olivia27

Yaaaaaay thank you!


----------



## Sadist

I lured some snails onto some lettuce (that was in there for my otos). I found out I still have gammarus shrimp, too! Everyone had a treat as I shook the shrimp off the lettuce. Most of the snails stayed on the lettuce, and they're gone now!


----------



## BettaSplendid

NickAu said:


> To embed a youtube video find the video you want
> 
> Eg.
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0FFElyMzTA
> 
> Now wrap everything after the = in youtube tags.
> 
> K0FFElyMzTA
> 
> [&youtube]K0FFElyMzTA[/youtube]
> 
> Remove the & ( I had to put it there so it didnt show the player)



This needs to be stickied somewhere. I see this question all the time!


----------



## Olivia27

OK guys. I think this is it. Techno no longer poops a gigantic poop this morning, and he's back to swimming normally. I tried him on pellets again for breakfast. If he stays all normal until tomorrow morning he'd be officially up for adoption. 

Now there's something wrong with Techno on every single aspect form-wise, but I'm starting to consider putting him on eBay. My thought process is this: if someone knows to buy fish from eBay, and is willing to drop $30 for shipping alone, they're probably pretty experienced. This forum is full of great aquarists, but you folks are just as impulsive as I am LOL so most of us, a very huge amount, just simply cannot fit another one. So I really gotta advertise Techno outside the forum somewhere. I don't want to advertise him on a Facebook group =\ most people there are just blah. People who don't even know how to sex adult Bettas trying to breed, people who make sororities in a 4g... *bangs head on desk*. No. Techno is so not going to people like that ><

Anyway. I'll see how he is tomorrow. If he's all good he might go on a single trial run on eBay. Meanwhile, if you have friends or family that isn't part of the forum but is experienced *and* has room for another one, let me know xx


----------



## SydneyA

The only fish people I know are on here, lol. The Popeye is Gone! Totally.


----------



## themamaj

Yeah normal poop! The things we get excited about!&#55357;&#56838;

Glad to hear no pop eye too Sydney.

Good idea on stickie you tube. Nick your fish and tank and gorgeous!


----------



## SydneyA

Omg, you are right. I can't answer some of these people's questions in a decent manner. I just want to yell at them that they must be dense and have been told the same thing 6 times. Just Friggin do it! Why ask if you are going to argue as an admitted newbie? Complete morons and you just lose patience with it! I ranted in your journal. Maybe I should rant in my own journal, lol but this did pertain to an earlier comment you made.

I hope you have an easy day!


----------



## Olivia27

Yay for no more pop eye! And welp, sorry you encountered one of those folks Sydney ^^" there are also kind, genuine ones out there but they're rather hard to find :roll:

In another news, it looks like Techno is begging to meet his twin Prism after all. Last night when I come home I found him vertical on one corner of the tank - head up and tail down. He has trouble folding his fins, and is sinking like a rock. I lowered his water line, and went to grab ES. When I come back he's laying flat on the ground with his head poking upwards. Just... Why 

He either has bacterial infection since the get-go but went unnoticed since the constipation already made him look lifeless anyway, or I accidentally missed a wc day and opportunistic bacterias jumped in. Thaaaat said I do not remember ever missing a wc day >< so goodness knows what's going on. He's a lot better this morning but still sinks from time to time. Crossing my fingers he'd recover quick. He was SO normal yesterday morning! :'(


----------



## CollegeBettas

Maybe he just wants to stay with you. Everyone needs a difficult fish, they make life interesting. My difficult fish, Eric, has made life very interesting. I think it is funny that they look very similar too in coloring.


----------



## Olivia27

Yeaa I really can't keep Techno. If Katie wants to keep him that's another story though LOL. I have Merah and Silhouette as difficult fish anyway XD him and his stagnating regrowth progress, she and her digestive issues.

I put Techno through a photo session today. The little guy gave some real nice poses. Afterwards he sunk to the bottom of the tank and sat upright on his tail  But at least he's healthy enough to pull off cute poses like this!

(( the better ones will be posted later when I get to my laptop ))


----------



## CollegeBettas

He is so stinking cute. Maybe I will just cave and get him. The tank I got for Eric was a good price and it works well, so I could maybe get another one. My only problem is I don't know how much extra room I will have next year. I think I am going to start planning how my room will be set up now.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Haha his twin is a problem child too! And good old Fawkes loves to throw crap into the game and go from 100% fine to biting after already having survived fin rot and his incident with my boyfriend's sink drain...... Plus I have miss Saphira's handicap and my sorority to monitor. I don't need another problem lol. I'll me more than happy to meet him, but he's definitely finding an adopter eventually.


----------



## Olivia27

Lol do it @CollegeBettas do it do it XD I keep thinking of drawing a comic of your boys Katie LOL but I can't draw so I just think about it XD but anyway in my imaginary comic Fawkes would go like: "Prism, look! I bet I can bite more fins off than you can!" And then Prism would go like "you think??" And took a chunk off his caudal. And then at that point you showed up in the panel with :evil: face and the boys just shrugged with a question mark above their heads lol


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

Brb crying lol! Thats about how I imagine that went down!


----------



## Olivia27

OMG you know what, I'm going home super soon and one of my best friends draws like a boss. I can bribe her with Mentos to draw Chibi-style comics of all our fin babies LOL your sorority should be a fun one to draw too. I can imagine Saphira rolling up her vents to form fists and just wave those fists whenever someone happens to pass by LOL and then Lavender would pull her aside and point to a black board that says: "Sorority Rules: 1) Don't fight 2) don't fight 3) don't fight" XD oh oh oh and then Helga would be pictured clinging onto Luna's tail with happy eyes and really big teeth, and Luna would just turn around and give her a >.> look. Queenie and Rea can hold each other's hands and skip through the woods LOL

Also, does anyone have Noodles & Co. near them? Who wants free appetizer? Just tell them you filled out their survey and show them this code:

EDIT: I also have another survey code I haven't filled out. If you go to tellnoodles.com and enter the code: 030 004 200 048 210 074 72 it would take you to a satisfaction survey. At the end of the survey you'd get a validation code like attached and you can just cash it in for a free appetizer. Their potstickers are to die for!


----------



## Olivia27

Aaand the better pics from today's photo session!





Aaaarg forgot to tilt the phone before hitting screen shot


----------



## Olivia27

OK OK last one, I swear, last one. I was googling chibi fishies for the base design of the comic project mentioned above ^^^ and came across these gosh darn adorable designs. One is a koi and the other is, supposedly, a shark. They're SO CUTE OMG so so so so cute!!! EEEEEP! I so want a huggable chubby chibi Betta drawn like theeeeeeese! Imagine Willow drawn like that! *dies*

edit: google pinched these from DeviantArt


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

I love how much thought is going into this lol, and thats exactly why Saphira is my best friend's favorite.


----------



## themamaj

Techno looks like a dream betta in those pictures. I hope he snaps back into shape for you. I know how frustrating that can be!


----------



## NickAu

Still waiting to see embedded you tube vids Olivia


----------



## Olivia27

Whoops sorry Nick. Your advice won't go to waste I promise  just gotta find something fun to record and publish XD


----------



## Olivia27

OK I have a big announcement. Techno is leaving on Wednesday O_O I ran him on eBay late yesterday. I was so sure there will be zero interest so since he's improving anyway I thought I might as well put him up now. Welp good thing he's doing great this morning because just a few moments ago somebody hit the Buy It Now  this is the first time I sold via BIN. Techno is just that charming I suppose! Well anyway there's no going back now. Little guy is no longer sinking this morning so that's good... But I do feel like I screwed up. He literally just had a step back on Saturday. What was I thinking =\ now what if he has another step back tomorrow? Ugh ;____; sure hope he'd stay this way.


----------



## ashleynicol3

Hope he continues to do OK and no backsliding. Maybe his new home was meant to be!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Olivia27

That's what Katie said too LOL Techno is doing reaaaally well tonight - and he's on pellets all day. Looks like things worked out after all. BUT! Today is somebody else's special day. And since I promised Nick to practice embedding YouTube videos, I figured to do a very short random clip of Baby Nichi. Today marks her first full month under my care! 

EDIT: Sydney, if you're seeing this, THAT is the god-awful snail I want you to keep ;___;






Does it work? Does it not? Here's the original link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mrKZbCcXo8

EDIT 2: AAAAHHH it works!! But the quality is crap =\ what the heck, I suppose it's because I chose "standard" when uploading it from my phone.


----------



## themamaj

Awwwwww so cute!


----------



## Olivia27

The snail or the Betta? LOL. Speaking of snails... It finally happened, people. I accidentally touched a snail. I know there's a smaller bladder snail in Nichi's that I have been wanting to remove since forever. Well, while I was picking off dead Frogbit leaves just now, I finally found it. It's hiding right underneath the leaf I picked up. I'm honestly surprised I didn't scream and cry ._. Maybe I really have gotten better? But still, from now on, ALL DEAD LEAVES WILL BE REMOVED VIA TWEEZERS!!!! *screams and cries*


----------



## themamaj

Yeah accidentally scooped up mystery snail one day smoothing out substrate. Sent chills up me. I think more the element of surprise but not fond of touching snails. 

Happy to hear Techno got a home! Hope he continued to do well.


----------



## BettaStarter24

Speaking of snails any tips on how to eradicate pond snails from my 20g? They came on my ancharis from Petco. I've added AQ salt to the tank and spent a good 20 minutes squishing the ones I could find


----------



## themamaj

I feel your pain. Vacuum tons in one my tanks. I hope to get an assassin at some point.


----------



## Olivia27

BettaStarter24 said:


> Speaking of snails any tips on how to eradicate pond snails from my 20g? They came on my ancharis from Petco. I've added AQ salt to the tank and spent a good 20 minutes squishing the ones I could find


Wanna go full-on snail-phobic mode? Scoop fish out, put 'em in temporary KK, and dose that #%*€+ with copper. I use Cupramine to treat my 5.5. Cypris has been chilling in his KK for almost a week now. Snails officially pronounced dead two days ago. Now to figure out whether or not to vacuum snail remains... ><


----------



## BettaStarter24

It's not like I'm afraid of them I just really don't want hundreds of little snails crawling in my tank, the amount of poop on the plants astounds me. If the aq salt doesn't work I'll try the cupramine if I can find it. Will that hurt my cycle?


----------



## CollegeBettas

I don't have any experience with snails, but from what I have read, you can stick a piece of lettuce in the water and eventually the snails will stick to it and you can throw it out. Then there is also the assassin snail, but that could take a while.
I am so glad Techno has found a good home, even if it isn't with me. It's probably a good thing I didn't get him though since I am not sure I will even have rooms for the tanks I already have. I think I will have to loft my bed again in order to have enough room next year.


----------



## Olivia27

Shouldn't hurt cycles. People use copper to treat velvet all the time. @CollegeBettas I do appreciate you considering him though! I remember my dorm years. It was a nightmare .____. Apartments for the win!


----------



## NickAu

Nice snail Olivia. Proud of you for not screaming like a girl.

Now you be careful of those bladder snails they have teeth and bite.


----------



## BettaSplendid

CollegeBettas said:


> I don't have any experience with snails, but from what I have read, you can stick a piece of lettuce in the water and eventually the snails will stick to it and you can throw it out. Then there is also the assassin snail, but that could take a while.
> I am so glad Techno has found a good home, even if it isn't with me. It's probably a good thing I didn't get him though since I am not sure I will even have rooms for the tanks I already have. I think I will have to loft my bed again in order to have enough room next year.


This really does work. Zuchinni is what I used. I thought I was scared of snails too, but quickly realized they are not gross at all. The Malaysian Trumpet snails go into their shells when disturbed so you can pick them up without feeling their bodies as all. Then I got brave and picked up pond snails. Nothing bad happened. All fear gone. LOL.


----------



## SydneyA

That's a fast moving snail. I will put him in my ten gallon. Love all the plants! And the betta too, lol. I could not get the embedded video to play on my tablet. 

When I show up on the 3rd it will likely be around 10:30-11:00. I am bringing my husband and 4 year old. My husband is for lifting heavy things. I still have lifting restrictions, oi.


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## Olivia27

Nick that is not helping >< I woke up this morning and spent 10 minutes scanning the carpet before I put my foot down LOL _what if the snail climbed out of the tank???

_Believe it or not Splendid one of my childhood pets was a garden snail I named Maya. Things change I suppose ._.

10:30, gotcha. I'll make sure to put the tanks out in the living room before you arrive to make your life easier LOL they're plastic so really not all that heavy, but scratches easily ._. your 4-year old would love Willow LOL she's pink and has a heart-shaped tail XD


----------



## Olivia27

I don't want to go to work! 

Tonight is my last night shift in the semester. Chances are I'd have more next fall, but at least it won't be for another four months. I just really really don't want to go to work tonight ><

Currently I'm sitting in my living room, slacking off while watching Techno and Cobalt. Techno is showing off his gorgeous ruffled fins. Zero trouble twisting and turning. Cobalt is perfecting his bubble nest. Cypris is behind me, doing his own thing, and the rest of the gang is in the bedroom. I just ordered another batch of plants. When will I ever stop? :roll: 

I just submitted a final paper. Now I got another final paper to work on. I've been doing research since yesterday, but kept getting distracted LOL I reeeaaally should start writing soon.

After that paper is done, though, I have zero other stuff left. I mean... I got a quick, easy presentation next Wednesday. And then two actual sit-down-and-write exams. One I will surely study for, one I will surely not. After that all I got left are sending the fin babies on their ways ( :-( ) and then packing up. I *hate *packing up. I wish I can just push a button and then have my entire stuff collapse neatly into my luggage. All the birthday gifts that are almost a year late... all the stuff people back home want us to buy from here... all the snacks, all the clothes, all the books I really shouldn't keep but don't have the heart to get rid of... 

Ugh.

Moving is gonna be SO much fun next fall. The downside of having apartments is that you gotta carry your bed, table, chairs and bookshelves with you. And the tanks. I'm gonna have to carry them all. Have you ever stopped at a red light and saw a teen crossing the street with a planted, fully set-up glass aquarium in her hands? Well, you have three chances to see that this August - because I have three tanks left behind that I will have to carry. I can't carry all three in one go, so it's gonna be three trips. What fun!


----------



## CollegeBettas

Oh finals. I have my first final in 45 minutes. It's for Music for the Child, so I am not too worried about it. I have two more after this one: one Friday and one Monday.
Do you live off campus? I have to live on campus for another year since I go to a private school.


----------



## Olivia27

Ugh yeah my roommate last year turned me off roommates completely. So I jumped to apartments. We're only required to stay on-campus for a year but they "strongly recommend" us to stay two years. Noooooooo way. No way. Can't have seven fish in a dorm room! 

I only got history and physical sciences left. I'm all done with my actual classes LOL like School-Family Relations, Children's Literature (got to do presentation for this one next Wednesday) and Literary, Language and Teaching. The last one is my Second Language Acquisition class. Totally my favorite.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

lolz finals. It's currently my finals week but every one of my classes was a project or paper, no sit down exams. All I have left is 10 pages on my study abroad in Northern Ireland which I'm about halfway done with and its due Friday. I know so many people struggling right now and I sorta feel bad for them but then again I really don't  One of them is my roommate but all she has left now is the same paper about Northern Ireland so I have faith in her finishing everything


----------



## CollegeBettas

Oooo! Children's lit was my favorite. I took it last semester. Finals are supposed to start Thursday night, but I just had one because my professor teaches at an elementary school so he didn't want to give a final during finals.


----------



## NickAu

> Nick that is not helping >< I woke up this morning and spent 10 minutes scanning the carpet before I put my foot down LOL _what if the snail climbed out of the tank???_


It wasn't meant to help LOL, Yes I know I am a meanie.
If your snails are trying to escape its because the water conditions are not great, Otherwise you have nothing to worry about.


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## themamaj

Best of luck to all of you going into finals!


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## Olivia27

Thanks mamaj. Today yet another one of my class has officially concluded. In addition to that, Techno has been delivered. It's that time of the year where mails tend to arrive a day early I suppose. I've been getting a lot of overnight delivery with two-day delivery price. Now only if eBay buyers send update photos and all...

I woke up this morning to my brother's text saying: "I will start moving my stuff to your apartment tomorrow. What time are you home?". I immediately freaked out. Do I break it up to him that I have _seven _fish tomorrow, or do I hide all the fish like usual and just tell him once we move in together in the new apartment? Cobalt and Cypris can easily move into the bedroom, and then I can just close the door and go like "erm yep all your stuff goes into the living room!".

Speaking of Cobalt and Cypris, they're the perfect sparring partner. I was curious if Cypris can ever be a super delta with training, and Cobalt has some bent rays to straighten up. None are afraid of the other, and the competition extends to bubble nest building



Looks like Cy's strategy is density, while Co's strategy is overall area LOL

Two days ago marks Merah's fourth month under my care. It was an ironic day for me. I remember bringing home a fish with no tail, setting up his teeny little tank, thinking how much he paled to Seren in comparison. She's fast, nimble, vibrant and full of life. He's paper thin, all roughed up and cowering. As of two days ago, however, he has officially outlived her. How does that even happen?

But then again, that pale paper thin fish has blossomed soooooooo much since that night that started it all. We need to make a new movie. Screw The Night Before Christmas - we have The Night _After_ Christmas. Either way, happy fourth month little guy x looking forward to celebrate our first anniversary.


----------



## SydneyA

Aw. I know what you mean. I had hoped the two I lost, especially patriot, would have been with me for years. I have lost 3 bettas in three weeks. One my old girl in the community tank, then the jumper, then Mr. Mystery death. They keep us guessing it seems.


----------



## Olivia27

Random gallery. I rarely snap good pics of Willow so felt like it's worth sharing





Silhouette showing off her silky smooth topline and strong peduncle



Nichi at her vanity table



Man, has she grown...



Have I ever taken a clear pic that shows just how large Sapho's dorsal is? It literally drapes over his peduncle when relaxed. 



And this. He was asleep <3 aaww


----------



## Olivia27

Journal rant of the day: airline companies. 

So we went to see the apartment's management staff on Friday. We were previously informed our move-in date is going to be the 26th, but then my brother mentioned that my lease for the current apartment ends way before that. They told us it's totally fine to keep our stuff in the current apartment between the end of the old lease and start of the new lease, but our move-in date is totally not the 26th. My current lease ends somewhere between the 17th and the 21st, and that is also the time when they want us to move in. We have already booked our return ticket on the 25th. So we went to ANA's website to change reservation dates, and... wait for it... the change fee is $600. That is before the difference between ticket fees which has soared to $537 because we booked the original reservation back in December. So that's $1137 for some sharp-dressed clerk to click a few buttons on the screen. 

Are.

You.

Kidding. 

Me?????

We were well aware that we can't get away without a fee of some sort, and we're willing to drop as far as $100, but $600 is just outrageous. I mean... Come on. Just... Come on =\ 

Did you guys know that a guy in The UK legally changed his name because of the same reason? His girlfriend's dad booked him a flight ticket using his Facebook name, which was not his legal name. When the airline company wanted a crazy amount of money to correct his name, he went and legally changed his name. I believe he actually said: "they want (insert amount of money) just to hit the back space button. It only costs (insert lower amount of money) to change my name". 

Anyway. We can't afford to change our reservation date. So I emailed a professional mover company to do all our moving for us between those dates. Hopefully they won't charge anywhere near $1137. _And _hopefully they would move my tanks with utmost care. I swear if they even scratch my fives I would explode. I've invested a whole lot on each one of those tanks :-?

So yeah. Pet sitters, I will be back in MI by Aug 26th. *Usually *I don't arrive overly late. Like, between noon to six. But for precautions sake, and also just so I can breathe, if you guys can arrange for my gang to reach me by the 27th instead that would be great xxx 

It's getting real. My apartment is full of boxes. Half of my brother's stuff are already here, and I have no more KKs in the living room. Cobalt and Cypris are still in their KKs, but for the sake of convenience and space they're placed in the Betta shelf along with the rest of the gang. Cy's 5.5 reads 0 ammo 0.25 nitrite 5 nitrates as of yesterday, so I'm not moving him in. Doesn't look like I'll be moving him in until after summer by now. I still spar Co and Cy for a few minutes each day, but Co has grown sorta accustomed to his neighbor. He flared sparingly, while Cy went full-on territorial mode. I don't know if it's just Cy that doesn't appear intimidating. I do need Co to flare more than just a couple seconds per day =| those bent rays. Me want them straight. 

I really should take a picture of Merah flaring. He's been on a daily dose of flare session since two or so days ago, so he's pretty flare-happy now. His caudal rays are all sorts of messed up. None are straight. It's actually kinda fun to try and find the one most crooked. Look kids, this is an obtuse angle right here. And that one is an acute angle. Yes, he's carrying Geometry in his tail! :roll:

I have trouble trying to make the rest of my gang flare, though. I'm super tempted to put Sapho in a KK side-by-side with Cypris. Or maybe Cobalt, for a double deal. Part of me is saying the stress of moving him around is not worth it, but another part of me wants him to have exercise to make up for all those fins. Plus, a fully flared Sapho would be a sight to behold. None of my girls flare either. Willow shows interest to the mirror, and flaps her gills a little bit, but then she just swims away. Nichi doesn't even notice the mirror. Siloo acts like Willow, except she doesn't even bother opening her gills. Gee. 

I just finished and submitted my Children's Lit paper. I was supposed to do 1500 words, but I ended up with 2479 instead  oops. Hope they're alright with that. Tomorrow I have a five-hour shift, and then I will have to start studying. And then packing. Ugh.


----------



## Tealight03

Hope everything works out. When I moved, the movers wouldn't even touch the tanks. I hope you don't have that problem.


----------



## OUOhYeah2016

That sounds like a lot to deal with! I'm sorry the end of your semester isn't going as smoothly as had been hoped for.


----------



## Olivia27

Yeesh Tealight I sure hope it won't happen to me >_<

Today's reports:

I'm all kinds of messed up. 

First, I sent out Cobalt instead of Sapho to Ohio today. And then as I thought: "time to do WC today", I realized that I just did one last night - because I thought yesterday is Monday. It's a true miracle how I arrived at work in time because if I thought today is Tuesday, then I don't have to go anywhere until 3 PM. And then on top of all that, somehow, the boys' tracking # isn't working. I haven't started studying for my Science exam this Wednesday either, because I'm busy with work, fish and my Children's Lit final write-up and presentation preparation. My History paper only garnered 87% - the grade just came out today. I received a Skype message from a good friend saying he just broke up, so I'm also on Cheering Team duty. I ran to the bathroom just to reply, speaking of, because we're not supposed to be on our phones while at work. I haven't started packing yet. My brother, on the other hand, already labeled all his stuff with Post-Its saying things like: "backpack", "luggage", "snack bag", and others. Is crazy how behind I am in packing. I don't even know what am I gonna pack yet. The professional mover people just disappeared into thin air - not responding to my email. They last wanted me to fill out an inventory form on Saturday. I added a note about my situation, and haven't heard back since. Grrrrreat. 

But the good news is: Starbucks gave 50% off Frappuccinos for Gold Rewards members every 3-6 PM from mid-April to May 3rd. I got a grande S'mores Frap for $2.50. Yay!


----------



## Olivia27

*Journal spam in progress*

Should I have fish at home or should I not? The only reason why I dropped my plan to set up my free 120g back home is because I don't want to give the parents (or the very nosy extended family) reason to comment and gossip. But then again if you think about it, it's just me that gets annoyed. It's not like it's illegal to drop comments even if they're unsolicited. Another it's not like: it's not like they're being derogatory anyway. They have plenty other areas to make derogatory comments on. Can't imagine what derogatory comments one can make about maintaining a tank LOL 

So if I can just suck it up... there are lots and lots and LOTS of awesome breeders in Indonesia. AND, I won't have to pay stupid import fees. EEEP. The problem is: there are lots and lots and LOTS of awesome breeders in Indonesia. AND, I won't have to pay stupid import fees.

One side of me still wants to do sororities. Just because I can have a lot at once. But that side is much smaller compared to my other side that kept thinking about the insane logistical difficulties a sorority would give me. Problem is: I can't just leave a sorority for 9 months and expect everything to be nice and dandy when I come home next year. It's just delusional. Sororities will have to be broken down by the end of summer, and boy oh boy, isn't shipping live fish in Indonesia difficult. A really cool forum member here said he knows an exporter that leaves 2 hours away from me. So if I can just drop off my fish his way he can ship them off to... Maybe to you guys ;-) who knows. But then again, it's a two-hour drive. For a fish. Well, fish_es,_ but still. Another option is to divide the tank. Immediately this option falls apart due to my lack of ability and confidence to make dividers. Plus, would the tank still look pretty divided twelve times? Because knowing me, *that* is probably how many fish I'd end up buying LOL Another option is to have a lone male Betta with peaceful community fish. I like the sound of this one. The parents can look after it too while I'm gone. Won't be too complicated to maintain. BUT it means I can only get one. Aaaaand I'm too much of a baby to accept that LOL I mean... check this out. How can you pick just one? -> https://www.facebook.com/groups/KomunitasCupangHias/permalink/825537624247244/

What to do, what to do~ :roll:

EDIT (before I make another post)

I reaaally don't like the USPS branch in my campus. They literally deny my package for the slightest, littlest reasons. I've been getting package weights wrong since the beginning of time. Each time I get it wrong they just punch in the difference between the actual price and what I already paid to the computer, and then I pay by card on-site. Boom, done. Today I was turned away because apparently that's not possible. Only the main post office (15-minute bus ride away) can calculate postage differences. Multiple times before I was also turned away because I printed my prepaid label from PayPal, thus using the Commercial Based Price which is restricted to registered businesses blah blah blah, I think you have all heard of this one from me before. I get even more irritated when people comment how they have never ever had that happen to them. Just me then. Just me and that *bleeeeep*ing USPS branch. Grrr >.>


----------



## Olivia27

Feeding Willow:

Willow: WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD
Me: *drops three pellets above her head 
Willow: WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD
Me: you dummy, look up!
Willow: RAAAAWWRRRR!!! *lunges at one pellet, all other pellets sink*
Me: ...
Willow: WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD

Rinse and repeat


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## Sadist

Haha, silly Willow! Most of mine somehow manage to notice the food falling around them (usually when their fins bump it and make it move differently). They go hunting the bottom when I don't put more food in.

This may be difficult to stomach, but if it was me with that tank, I'd do my best to wait and set it up after I graduated and had my own permanent home. That way, you can do whatever you want with it and never have to rely on someone else to take care of it. At least, that would be the theory, and I'd set it up right away and have to deal with what to do when I move.

Edit: I'm so sorry the USPS is giving you a hard time with everything! I think you got the office with all the meanies.


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## Olivia27

No, no, that's very true about the tank. It's just hard to suppress the impulse to have fish at home, but I also know it's not fair to just leave them to my parents when I go back to school. Breaking it down by the end of summer isn't fair either, since they'll have to drive me to the exporter person. Welp. All the more reasons to learn how to drive. I'm probably the last person anyone knows that doesn't drive at this age ._.


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## Tealight03

Olivia27 said:


> Feeding Willow:
> 
> Willow: WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD
> Me: *drops three pellets above her head
> Willow: WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD
> Me: you dummy, look up!
> Willow: RAAAAWWRRRR!!! *lunges at one pellet, all other pellets sink*
> Me: ...
> Willow: WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD WHERES FOOD
> 
> Rinse and repeat


This is exactly what Killian does to me. I have to feed him one at a time otherwise I'm turkey bastering pellets off the bottom of the tank.


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## Olivia27

Heh heh, glad to hear Willow's not the only one

Sometimes I really wonder about my university's security system. We have a lot of people who shouldn't come in coming in. Just now a lady sat right in front of me and shook my hand. Then she shoved this pamphlet to my hands and goes like "Hi I'm from Phillippines, asking donations,". I gave the pamphlet back and told her I don't have any money. She pressed on saying "just a dollar," and "to help orphaned children," even if I repeatedly stated that I don't have any money. Finally she rolled her eyes, got up and left. Like what the heck? How can we not have any way to prevent people like this from entering the building? Now that I think about it, I even had a similar case happening in another building. I think I gave a dollar that time just because she won't shut up and I just want her to leave. Probably how we had so many home invasions and armed robbery reports in our dorms lately =\


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## Sadist

That's scary!


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## OUOhYeah2016

Jeez... do you guys have keys or ID card access? I guess either way people can still hold doors open...


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## CollegeBettas

That's terrifying! We have ID card sensors to open doors. We are in the middle of a bad neighborhood too. There used to be shootings just outside the school when my parents went here. My friends don't even lock their doors most of the time. I lock my door when I leave the dorm, but if I am across the hall or downstairs, I don't even bother locking up. The worst thing that happens here is kids being found with weed or when my friend tripped and broke her collarbone on the library lawn.
Squirt and Eric are the same way. Most of the time Eric won't even notice I fed him.


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## Olivia27

We have ID card scanners too. They're just never activated =| and Katie is right, people are always happy to hold the door open. 

So Cypris, Merah and Cobalt arrived safely in Ohio this morning. That said Cobalt's inner bag leaked. On *both* corners >.> so I will either need to find a thicker fish bag, or triple bag from now on. I'm not 100% satisfied with my current fish bags anyway. They're too narrow. Makes it harder to catch the fish in the tank. I hate cupping them and then pouring the cup into the bag. 

The rest of the gang will be picked up early tomorrow. It's crazy to think that today is my last water change day until I see them again  

In another news my moving issues has been sorted, and on top of all I spent about $700 less than what I would've spent if I changed flight dates. So that's good news. I got a final presentation in about four hours. In the meantime I plan to visit my LFS one last time - mostly just to look really - and then go buy something for potluck. 

The question is: WHAT do I bring to potluck? ._. Hmmm...

Oh, also, I ran out of body wash. But is it worth it to buy a body wash when I'm going home in four days? Should I pack it and bring it home? Is it a waste of money to buy a small bottle, and then buy a big bottle after summer? What about using shampoo instead? Why am I being so cheap when I would happily drop $60 for plants? 

The things this hobby does to me :roll:


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## Olivia27

My Facebook planted tank group shared some really funny memes about last week or so LOL here are some


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## CollegeBettas

I am do glad I can take my fish home. They do have to endure a 4-6 hour drive though and whatever time it takes me to unfill and refill their tanks.
For the body wash problem, I would just buy a full one because you can use it next year, or at home. I bought more pods for the washer, but I will only use a couple of them this year.


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## OUOhYeah2016

I'm so happy they're here safe and sound! and lol buy body wash! Can't hurt to have extra. You not having any water changes is a weird thought right? that's how I felt in Northern Ireland and that was only going to be for a week.


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## Olivia27

Alright, I have bought body wash lol $2 so expensive grumble grumble lol


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## SydneyA

I would have just used shampoo. I'm cheap, lol. See you tomorrow!


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## Olivia27

:'( 

I'm currently in class waiting for other people to finish their presentations. Mine was over a couple minutes ago. I'm super unhappy with how it went. I started off awesome despite the panic attack, but then the professor waved a "one minute left" sign and I was only halfway through. I freaked out there and then. I just blazed past my points from then on, not even providing a conclusion. But then everyone after me went overtime too! >< and it's fine! Aaaargh!


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## BettaSplendid

olivia27 said:


> my facebook planted tank group shared some really funny memes about last week or so lol here are some


hahahahahahahahahaaaa!!!


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## Olivia27

Glad someone saw the memes lol 

Well, as of an hour ago I am officially fishless. I have a very busy few days ahead so probably won't post until I get to Indonesia. Even then I would probably be posting about my dog and kois all the freaking time lol


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## OUOhYeah2016

Looking forward to the updates from Indonesia! Have a good and safe trip!


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## Olivia27

Oh never mind, I can't shut up. Someone duct tape my fingers lol

Soooo excited. I just aced my History final, and Sydney reported that she just arrived home safely with all four tanks intact. Plus one, LOL. Remember the teeny MGPK in my Petco? Let's just say that he went home to a very experienced hand  

Tonight my brother move in, with his towering mountain of stuff. Like seriously, he has A LOT of stuff. Including an electric piano with stand and 40-kilo dumb bells. Just... *sigh*


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## SydneyA

I hope my hands are experienced but thank you. Here is the new guy that I guess is already acquainted with olivia.


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## Olivia27

Last night in East Lansing. It feels weird waking up to only two empty tanks, and a whole lot of empty shelves. I thought of siphoning leftover cruds today but then remembered I sent everyone away with their gravel vacs in tow. There's a huge poop at the front of Willow's 2.6g >.> welp. It's gonna fertilize the plants I suppose. Everything is packed up now. I'm exhausted but the bus leaves at 9 AM tomorrow. The brother better not snore all through the night again. Grrrr

Also, I'm maybe, possibly, getting my 8th. A cello (for now) King. Maybe Giant. We'll see if he's still there today >_<


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## Olivia27

Yaaasss wifi on the bus! On my way to Chicago now before we hop on a flying metal can tomorrow before noon. It's gonna be 12 hours to Japan, and then about 2-hour transit period, and then another 9 hours to Indonesia's capital city Jakarta. I don't even live in Jakarta. So after another night I'd have another flight home. So that's a grand total of ~22 hours of flight. Nooooot looking forward to that, but here's what I *do* look forward to:

http://www.bettafish.com/showthread.php?t=688577 <<< I'm taking fish #8!!

I have found my Andante! He unfortunately has minor fin rot on his caudal, but Euro's taking care of him so he's in good hands. Gee, I've been preparing that name for goodness knows how long now LOL Andante con Anima. To commemorate all the seven years I fruitlessly spent trying to learn the piano. I still very much suck, but those Italian music terms got me anyway <3


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## OUOhYeah2016

Yay he was still there!!!

Also wave to my favorite skyline in the world I just happen to call home for me! I miss it and it's actually kinda bothering me that I don't know when I'll be back. But anyway, Safe Travels!


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## SydneyA

Congrats on the king! Everything is good here. Still weird to see willow here when she's been your avatar so long, lol. Safe travels!


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## Olivia27

Thanks guys! 

Aaaand I'm in Chicago now. Just paid $156 (yes, one hundred and fifty six) for an Uber ride from the Greyhound station to the hotel. The road was crazy busy which stretched a short trip to a whole hour long. Plus, there weren't many Ubers on the road so they added a surcharge price... which is three times the normal price. 

Thank goodness I have money in my PayPal balance or else I won't be able to afford Andante O_O my brother will pay everything from this point on >.> $%^&^#*@%&#&[email protected]*!!!!!!!


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## Sadist

SydneyA said:


> I hope my hands are experienced but thank you. Here is the new guy that I guess is already acquainted with olivia.


I missed this picture in my busy life! What a cutie!


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## ThatFishThough

Bump! Updates? From anyone?


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## SydneyA

I'm talking to her now. She's still alive, lol.


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## Tourmaline

How's the fishsitting going? Everyone okay? I miss seeing chubby little Willow.


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## SydneyA

We has a power surge that must have damaged the heater and I lost her lovely butterfly male to overheating. Luckily the girls are still doing great!


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## Tourmaline

Aww, Cobalt? Poor guy, SIP buddy. I'm always so paranoid about my heaters for that reason, it can happen to anyone. Glad to hear the girls are fine, though!


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## ThatFishThough

Nuuuuuu, Colbalt! ;-; SIP, Bud.


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## OUOhYeah2016

I have Cobalt and he's fine. Sapho is the one that Sydney had that died from overheating. 

Olivia's king that someone bought for her and was holding till she got home died unexpectedly. I lost Merah less than a week after receiving him. Then Sapho died. Unfortunately Cypris is having issues currently... I think it's an infection but I'm doing everything I can for him. Her girls are okay the last I heard and Cobalt is marbling but perfect.


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## ThatFishThough

Ohh, okay. SIP Sapho.


I can't keep track of everyone LOL.


ETA: I saw a Blue Butterfly. I kinda wanna surprise her with another one, but I don't want to "replace" Sapho. And I don't know how to ship.


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## Tourmaline

I thought it was Cobalt since Sapho had already lost his butterfly band a while ago. :s I have no idea who has who. 

That's a lot of death to deal with.. I hope she doesn't lose anymore. And I hope Cypris recovers, he's in good hands.


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## Tourmaline

What ever happened to Olivia and her Bettas?


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## ThatFishThough

When will Olivia be back? How are the fish doing?


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## themamaj

Ditto. Missed her journal!


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## Tealight03

Miss her journal. Hope she just got locked out of her account when they changed the passwords.


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