when I buy a new fish (or two of course)

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stryder

Aquarium Advice Regular
Joined
Sep 21, 2003
Messages
68
Location
Vancouver BC Canada
The thing about a Qtank that I wonder is...if the fish are very healthy looking and eating on the first day in the QT how long do they conceivably have to be in the QT. Would it not be hard on the newbie to get it assimilated to the QT and then change its world yet again??

If a new fish is sick than obviously you don't want it in your main reef cause 1 you'll have a hell of a time catching it, and 2 it will possibly infect others.

Thoughts...?
 
stryder said:
The thing about a Qtank that I wonder is...if the fish are very healthy looking and eating on the first day in the QT how long do they conceivably have to be in the QT.
Just because a fish may look healthy does not mean it will remain so and in the long run, 4 weeks is not alot of time considering the many years you will be caring for them.

Would it not be hard on the newbie to get it assimilated to the QT and then change its world yet again??
It is far better to allow the fish to regain it's health by itself rather than being subjected to the daily bussle of community life and possible aggression. Even though you are speaking of your first fish, do not mistake the fact that it can still infect the main tank.

Cheers
Steve
 
To add to what Steve said, remember the reasons for the quarantine tank:
To give fish time to continue to de-stress from the many trips they had to take to get to your tank.
For you to see that no parasites or other signs of disease develop before you add it to the display tank
The life cycle of these parasites or signs of disease will typically show up within the first two weeks, so while your fish may appear healthy the first couple of days, you want to be sure that they stay healthy and eating throughout the quarantine period
Minimum recommended period is two weeks. Some folks keep them in QT for 4 weeks, but I would not recommend any less than two.
Remember while this may be your first fish, it will not be the only one. You want to take every precaution to protect your livestock (and investment) as you add more fish in the tank. That means using every reasonable effort to minimize the risk of adding disease or parasites in your display tank.
Ultimately you will decide what you are comfortable with, the only advice I can give you is to be patient. The consequences is not worth the risk. HTH 8)
 
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