Irresponsible fish keeper -.-

[pattyfurg]

My boyfriend got 12 neon tetras afew months ago (going against all my advice) and put them in an uncycled 4 gallon tank. He lost 9 of them and has 3 left.
I saw them today and they have NO colour!!
He feeds them every day and I'm guessing the filter must be cycled if they've been alive for so long so I'm not sure what could be wrong :/

 

[LyndaB]

These fish don't look good at all. Can you possibly take them and care for them properly (don't know what you have for tanks)?

 

[jcolon]

I'd say they're stressed ... Too few of them and it Doesn't look like they have
Any cover ... ie... Plants, DW, rocks etc. I'm surprised they haven't come down with an illness ... By the way they look.

How often does he do PWC's? I' m wagering that feeding them everyday is leading to unbeaten food that's fowling up the water.

A 4gal is too small for neons... At least a 10gal IMO... Can you take them as mentioned? They're alive but not happy judging from those pics... Fish don't lie... Loss of color is a pretty strong indicator.

 

[pattyfurg]

This is pretty much exactly what I tell him -.-
He does a PWC whenever "he feels like it" and absolutely REFUSES to give them to me!
I can't win either way!
Lol even if I did take them they could only go in my 67 temporarily and then they would have to go to either a 15 with my female fighters or a 30 with cories and both of them are uncycled.
I want to help them but it's pretty much imposible with him! Ugh!

 

[LyndaB]

I'd dump the BF. If you ever marry, this is how he will treat your children.

 

[FishyBusiness]

I'd dump the BF. If you ever marry, this is how he will treat your children.

I agree. Fish are pets just like dogs and cats and they require a responsible pet owner. Just because they're in a glass cage doesn't mean their disposable. I don't know you or your BF but he seems lazy. Maybe some fish napping is in order?? Those fish are barely living a very unhappy life, if the ones left survive...

 

[jcolon]

This is pretty much exactly what I tell him -.-
He does a PWC whenever "he feels like it" and absolutely REFUSES to give them to me!
I can't win either way!
Lol even if I did take them they could only go in my 67 temporarily and then they would have to go to either a 15 with my female fighters or a 30 with cories and both of them are uncycled.
I want to help them but it's pretty much imposible with him! Ugh!

I'd say you two will have a happy future together .... They say opposites attract! You care .. He ... Not so much.... Sounds like opposites to me.

Any chance of a covert rescue? A 4 gal is really only suitable for shrimp ... Your 15 gal ... Un-cycled .... STILL sounds better than what those pics tell me.
I'm wagering his "cycled" water parameters are worst than either of your unicycles tanks .. IMHO.

 

[pattyfurg]

I ask him nicely... He says no
I yell at him... He says no
I show him all of these comments... He says no

Ugh I'll keep trying but I might need to do some research on what fish they can go with.
One of my female bettas (the alpha sortof) absolutely HATES new fish in her tank. I'm thinking if I move all of the fish to a new tank and before she can claim it add the tetras and then return them after a while...
Would I need to buy more tetras so they're in a group? And if I buy some tetras before I put the sick ones in will they accept them?

 

[jcolon]

Yep ... I see yes relationship going places. Rest assured, he's acting like a normal guy. You may need to bat your eyes more and give him the whiny sounding "please ... do it for me". Not too many men guys tat can resist that.

 

[Chiroptera]

Ooh, he'd be out my door in a heartbeat. Bad behavior shows itself in small ways first.
That stubbornness is a bad sign, especially if you know the fish are sick. If he won't listen, there's a communication issue. I wish I could help, but that just sounds bad.
If he won't listen in any way, they'll die, and then rub his nose in it.

 

[severum mama]

Those actually look like gold neons to me- same fish, just a strain that has that coloration due to selective breeding. The red line is not very prominent in gold neons. I'm not saying they're being kept properly, but they do look normal to me.

 

[bud29]

Yeah, those do look like gold neons. I was thinking the same thing when I saw those pics, I thought the coloration was a little too strange for normal neons. But regardless of strain, they need to get out of there. It is way too small and if he only does PWCs whenever he wants to, that is especially bad since neons are so sensitive.

I agree with jcolon, it is hard for guys to resist when you bat your eyes and have that whiny voice. Try it; you may be surprised at what's can happen.

 

[pattyfurg]

Haha I'm pretty sure they're neon tetras because I saw them before they turned like this... I actually don't know what golden neons are haha :S well im going to be buying a new tank for my tadpoles i have now and I will buy tetras for it (15 gallon) and see how they are.
Truth is.. I don't really like neons so maybe I'll just get them nice and healthy and then just give them to a good owner :/

I think I may have convinced him but now he wants to put a GOLDFISH in that tank!!!
-.- I'm trying to keep my patience with him.... Tryyyyyiiiinng

 

[Aquatic_Adam]

Those actually look like gold neons to me- same fish, just a strain that has that coloration due to selective breeding. The red line is not very prominent in gold neons. I'm not saying they're being kept properly, but they do look normal to me.

I'm glad someone said this! They are Golden Tetras. They are supposed to look that way. Echoing Severum Mama, not encouraging your boyfriends fish keeping methods, but those are normal looking fish.

 

[DragonFish71]

I have to agree that they do look like golds.

And I have to agree to the Nth degree that the boyfriend is NOT worth keeping. Just some advice from a thrice married woman.

 

[pattyfurg]

Lol are they mean to look like normal tetras before this? Two of them still have a faint line of purple but other then that that's about the only colour they have :/

 

[Aquatic_Adam]

Yep! It's a color morph of Neon Tetra that has come into chain stores as of late.

 

[jcolon]

Lol are they mean to look like normal tetras before this? Two of them still have a faint line of purple but other then that that's about the only colour they have :/

Before we assume they are gold neons ... Which is possible, were they blue and red when he first got them? If so ... I'm sticking with my original assumption, they are stressed to no end. If they are gold neons ... They're till stressed to no end in a small tank, with no cover and "below standard" water maintenance.

A Goldfish? Your eye batting and whiny voice may not be enough! Time for reinforcement! Go to his mother for help!

 

[pattyfurg]

Haha he wants a black moore -.- I told him if he gets it I'm going to break up with him but he's convinced that because his friend has 3 goldfish in a bowl he can get one and it will be happy -.-
I told him to get shrimp but they're "boring" apparently -.-

 

[Billbug68]

Why don't you buy him a 20 long or something as a gift! then cycle some filter media in one of your cycled tanks and hope for the best! (not sure how your relationship is outside this issue but this seems like the only option other than fish-napping those buggers!)