Adding Damsels as your first fish

H

heart & sole

Guest
Its not really a no no but is a pain trying to get them out and im sure im not the only one who has done this so share your story or in this case nightmare. It took me about 2 hours to get 3 damsels out of my tank after i had it all set up with LR.
 
mkzimms

mkzimms

Member
i dont agree with adding damsles to "test" the tank. they may be very hardy but there is no use in torturing fish just to get something in there asap. imo, just wait the extra 2 weeks for the cycle to finish... its the shortest you'll ever have to wait in this hobby anyway.
 
tomato clown

tomato clown

Member
They are actually easy to train IMO. If they get used to your hand in the tank while doing things they won't get all flustered and skittish when you "need" to get them out.
I've had mine in just over a week now and they are already taking flakes from my fingers. Yes it's not always a good thing to be doing, but it beats struggling for hours just stressing out the whole system.
 
cafero702

cafero702

Member
I cycled my first tank with damsels 2 or 3 of them died my lion fish ate another and i still have one left! He is now in my 140g and everytime i put my hand in the tank he bites me! it dosnt hurt but he wil bite my hand about 5 or 6 times while its in there. and i try to shoow him away and open my hand real big, it does nothing he just goes and bites my palm lol
 
notsonoob

notsonoob

Member
I would only add a fish unless you plan on keeping it.
The only effective corse for damsel removal is to nuke your liverock or starve em' a bit and put in a trap.
Cycling with damsels is a falicy for the impatient.
PS. Wait until they find the tender webbing inbetween your fingers...LOL. It doesn't hurt that bad, but can surprise you.
 
ruaround

ruaround

Active Member
Originally Posted by Heart & Sole
http:///forum/post/2602896
Its not really a no no but is a pain trying to get them out and im sure im not the only one who has done this so share your story or in this case nightmare. It took me about 2 hours to get 3 damsels out of my tank after i had it all set up with LR.
agree with the "no no"... hate the avatar... it should be a "no no"...
 
rabbit_72

rabbit_72

Member
I read a book and heard from the LFS to add damsels first, so it is those guys who give out bad advice to newbies. And everyone ends up unhappy, tank owners and fishies, except for the LFS. Live and learn, and don't repeat the mistake.
 
notsonoob

notsonoob

Member
Rookie gets drafted
Rookie shows up to training camp
Rookie gets razed...
Snapped on the posterior with a wet towel.
 
H

heart & sole

Guest
Originally Posted by ruaround
http:///forum/post/2604165
agree with the "no no"... hate the avatar... it should be a "no no"...

Lol please dont tell me your a vandels fan because that would be a serious "no no"
 
ruaround

ruaround

Active Member
Originally Posted by Heart & Sole
http:///forum/post/2604281
Lol please dont tell me your a vandels fan because that would be a serious "no no"

not a Vandals fan... just cant stand all the bandwagon jumpers around town!!! 10 years ago home games wouldnt sell out... now everyone "has been a fan forever"... lmao... where were they during the Big Sky days??? back when the Vandals PWND bsu...
and seriously you can let go of the Fiesta Bowl...

what LFS do you use??? i go to Garden Center West or DeathCo but ONLY dry goods...
 
K

kikithemermaid

Guest
Pardon my inexperience but...
what does 'cycling' a tank with damsels mean? Adding them before anything else and seeing if they survive?
 
H

heart & sole

Guest
Originally Posted by ruaround
http:///forum/post/2604320
not a Vandals fan... just cant stand all the bandwagon jumpers around town!!! 10 years ago home games wouldnt sell out... now everyone "has been a fan forever"... lmao... where were they during the Big Sky days??? back when the Vandals PWND bsu...
and seriously you can let go of the Fiesta Bowl...

what LFS do you use??? i go to Garden Center West or DeathCo but ONLY dry goods...

Never been the Garden Center West do they have a good selection? I usually go to "Fish Aquariums and Stuff" they have the best selection i have found or Zamzows on Overland but they are way over priced. Lol and never shop at the dreaded DeathCo...
 
rabbit_72

rabbit_72

Member
Originally Posted by kikithemermaid
http:///forum/post/2604334
Pardon my inexperience but...
what does 'cycling' a tank with damsels mean? Adding them before anything else and seeing if they survive?
Yep... more or less. We were actually told to use damsels to help the tank along. We were never told about ghost feeding or using raw shrimp. There is a lot of bad information out there for newbies.
 
sdoubt64

sdoubt64

New Member
i put a damsel in my tank as one of my first fish along with 3 chromis. my damsel grew to be about 3 or 4 inches in size and started taking over the tank. very territorial and killed my lawnmower blenny and all the chromis i put in. i had to call somone to get him out becuase i didn't know what i was doing. NEVER put damsels in a tank unless you have other aggresive fish to hold their own
 
notsonoob

notsonoob

Member
Originally Posted by rabbit_72
http:///forum/post/2604433
Yep... more or less. We were actually told to use damsels to help the tank along. We were never told about ghost feeding or using raw shrimp. There is a lot of bad information out there for newbies.
Yes, All in the books. At least most stores will give you a SMALL credit for their return.
Actually, it is supposed to jumpstart the nitrogen cycle, but as damsels are fairly hardy, that is why they are used. And that is supposed to be after a few days of running your tank.
NEVER...NEVER AGAIN!!!
 
ruaround

ruaround

Active Member
Originally Posted by Heart & Sole
http:///forum/post/2604342
Never been the Garden Center West do they have a good selection? I usually go to "Fish Aquariums and Stuff" they have the best selection i have found or Zamzows on Overland but they are way over priced. Lol and never shop at the dreaded DeathCo...
i like Fish Aquariums and Stuff... they have/had my Undulated Trigger in their aggressive show tank... i had that fish for 7 years and finally had enough of it ripping apart everything in the tank...
GCW has a great selection and is also priced pretty fair... Zamzows i agree is too over priced and the people maintaining it dont have a clue... DeathCo ONLY for dry goods... one can get some great deals with the "pals card"...
 
tat2tillidie

tat2tillidie

Member
Originally Posted by Tomato Clown
http:///forum/post/2603131
They are actually easy to train IMO. If they get used to your hand in the tank while doing things they won't get all flustered and skittish when you "need" to get them out.
I've had mine in just over a week now and they are already taking flakes from my fingers. Yes it's not always a good thing to be doing, but it beats struggling for hours just stressing out the whole system.
hand is one thing a net is another
 
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