Do you quarantine Starter Fish?

[badfish]

I will be starting up a tank shortly, and was told to set up a quarantine tank at the same time, my question is when would you add starter fish like damsels? and would you quarantine the starter fish? When you do quarantine fish, what should i be looking for and for how long. Should i buy some medicines ahead of time? how many at a time in a 10 Gallon quarantine?

 

[badfish]

anyone, because the guy at the LFS said that i dont have to quarantine my starter fish and this doesn't sound right from what i have read.

 

[Phyl]

Yes and No. No, you're not worried about them giving anything to your existing fish... BUT if they do have ick and infect your tank then your main is going to be fishless for 6w because of some starter fish.

No point in buying meds in advance since there's no way of knowing what if anything they'd have, anyway.

By starter fish are you talking about fish to cycle your tank? I personally wouldn't want to put anything into my tank (especially a hard to catch damsel) that I didn't want for the long run. Chromis are great first fish. Very hardy and fun to watch school. There's an article in the articles section about fishless cycling. Much better for the fish Good luck with your new tank.

 

[lando]

No need to cycle your tank using fish. There is great article on a "fishless cycle" in the Articles section at the top of the page. A QT is a very good idea. Once you get your tank started you can set up a QT tank for your first fish to be ready once the cycle is finished.

 

[peterac]

BUT if they do have ick and infect your tank then your main is going to be fishless for 6w because of some starter fish.

I am learning this lesson the hard way. I am so excited to get my new tank full of new fish but I have to now wait because I dod not qt my first set of fish and I think I now have parasite outbreak. Quarantine if possible.

 

[badfish]

what i meant to say is the first fish i would introduce to my tank, i am planning on doing a fishless cycle with liverock and maybe a shrimp or two. I have read those articles. My concern is that i dont want to start with a 20-30 dollar fish since this is my first saltwater tank. I agree that the Chromis would be a good fish to start with then i plan on adding a clown or two. Thanks for the advice.

 

[RMPD109]

I skipped QT on my first fish. Then my tank was empty for 6 weeks while I properly QT the second batch of fish.

 

[lando]

what i meant to say is the first fish i would introduce to my tank, i am planning on doing a fishless cycle with liverock and maybe a shrimp or two. I have read those articles.

Great! I would start QT fish from the begining. Having a fish in QT while the tank is still cycling can help ease the "empty tank syndrome".

 

[austinsdad]

Peterac's post speaks volumes. Excitement, fish going in fast, fun, and then big problems.

QT is the way. It'll help you enjoy the hobby so much more in the longrun.

 

[badfish]

will do, thanks for the advice.