Got Some Angles Today! *** 3 Lost, Only 1 Remains *** :(

[GouramiFanatic]

Well, I probably over did it, but I've added 4 new itty bitty Angelfish to my aquarium. They're tiny right now, probably about 1" - 1.5". The pet store had the tiny ones, medium, and the large ones, but I really want to see them as they grow so I bought the little guys. There are 3 Marbles (1 has a lot of black, the other has equal amounts of black and silver, and the third is more silver than black), the 4th one is a silver/yellow color. I only planned on buying 3, but they only had 4 left and I felt bad about leaving the 1 buy himself so I took all of them!

I acclimated them really slowly by sitting the bag in the water for 15 minutes and then I slowly added some tank water to help them adjust to the new water. After doing this for a little while I released them into their new home. The Gouramis were very curious, but there was no nipping at all. The Danios didn't seem to care at all and neither did the Pleco.

I'm not sure if this is a characteristic of baby Angles or not (I have no experience with these guys), but they don't seem to be very graceful swimmers. They'll move forward at a steady clip and all of a sudden they kind of wobble as if they're being knocked over a little. It's not as severe as it probably sounds, it's hardly even noticeable. None of them had any visual defects and they're all active so I went for them.

I will say that one of them is absolutely infatuated with the thermometer in the tank! It spends most of it's time swimming up and down right beside it and just staring at it. Anyone have anything like this happen?

 

[Guest]

good luck with the new aquisitions!!! remember though that the baby angels are very fragile and don't be surprised if you lose a few. I have only lost one african cichlid since i started but when i tried angels i always lost some babies... (thats why i usually started with like 8.)

 

[cJw]

Excellent! I love watching angels grow, but am afraid to buy 'em that small due to their fragility. Here's to hoping all four of yours are hardy and mild mannered.

 

[GouramiFanatic]

Thanks for the input. I basically plan on losing some of the new fish every time I buy them (kind of makes me feel better about it when it does happen). So far, they're doing great and everyone seems to be getting along. I was never really crazy for Angels, but when I saw these little babies I just fell for them! I'll try to take a few pics to share with you tomorrow.

I have a question though.. I read on a website (can't remember which one) that you can house an Angel in a 10 gallon tank. How is this possible / good for the fish when they get so large? I'd think a 29 gallon tank should be the min, maybe even bigger!

 

[aquanewbie72]

I will say that one of them is absolutely infatuated with the thermometer in the tank! It spends most of it's time swimming up and down right beside it and just staring at it. Anyone have anything like this happen?

LOL I had a red dwarf gourami that we used to joke was 'in love' with the thermometer. He would go hang out next to it, and swim up and down next to it, and actually kiss it. LOL He was so disappointed when I removed it and replaced it with a digital one. I never shared that story before because it was so bizarre.

 

[Guest]

yes i agree that a 29 gallon should be the minimum size for an angel.. they can get up to 6" and i don't think one could possible be comfortable in a 10 gallon or have enough swimming room.

 

[cJw]

A 29 gallon tank is a good size, for ONE angel, or a breeding pair at the most. Even in an angel-only tank, I don't know that they would get along too well with more angels than that around, especially if two pair up and decide the tank is theirs, and theirs alone.

 

[Guest]

my mother-in-law had 2 angels in her 29 gallon with 2 platies, 1 pleco, some tetra's, and i think maybe a few cory cats or loaches or something. It was a very nice setup and they all got along wonderfully.

 

[jrp1588]

i prefer to buy the adults myself. Hardier, you know their final look, and you can spot a male from a female if you know the signs well enough. I bought 3 baby angels once and all but 1 died.

 

[rich311k]

Nothing like growing them from babies. I agree that two well matched angels will work fine in a 29 gallon tank.

 

[GouramiFanatic]

Well, today I went into work expecting to find at least one dead Angel, but hoping that I would be wrong. Much to my delight all four Angel babies survived and they all looked great! None of them are showing any signs of being ill and they're all active and curious! They're so adorable. I never would've thought I would be gushing over how cute fish are, but these lil guys are just adorable!

I've uploaded some pics if you're interested in seeing them click here. While I've never officially named these fish (other than Count the Pleco who was named by a coworker) I'm open to name suggestions. I have no clue what names would fit an Angel.

 

[jrp1588]

very nice, Like the pleco as well...all they sell around hre are common plecos

 

[rich311k]

Great pictures. Very nice looking fish. That pleco is great.

 

[cJw]

Adorable angels is right! I wish someone would hurry up and breed a 'micro'-angelfish already. out: And while I'm wishing, breed 'em with a mild temperament so I can have lots in my community tank!

Oh - and that pleco is gorgeous, too!

 

[GouramiFanatic]

I'm very saddened to report that I lost of the babies today. The one that had grown so fond of the thermometer has passed away. When I went to work this morning they looked fine, but as the day went on this little one started swimming upside down in rapid circles until it couldn't even hold himself upright anymore. I didn't really have a chance to save it because it happened so fast. I only hope the other 3 can hang on through the weekend. I'll post an update on Monday.

 

[Zagz]

I'm so sorry to hear about your loss. I too hope they will make it through the weekend.

 

[rich311k]

I am sorry about the liitle guy. I have my fingers crossed for the others.

 

[An t-iasg]

LOL I had a red dwarf gourami that we used to joke was 'in love' with the thermometer. He would go hang out next to it, and swim up and down next to it, and actually kiss it.

I had a betta once that behaved exactly the same way with the thermometer!

GouramiFanatic, I'm sorry about the angel and I hope the others are ok.

 

[GouramiFanatic]

I ended up losing another Angel over this weekend. He's the darker one in the photo attached. At first I thought maybe he was hiding really well, but after I lifted the big heart shaped cave in the middle of the tank, I found his little body. So, of the four Angels I'm down to 2. The Yellow one and the mostly silver one. I feel awful that I'm losing them. I know that they're babies, but I still feel very much responsible for their deaths. It's so frustrating!

After I removed his body I ran all of the tests again to see if anything looked out of whack, here are the results:

Ammonia = 0ppm
Nitrite = 0ppm
Nitrate = 10ppm - 20ppm (I'm leaning more towards 10)
Ph = 7.0
Phosphate = .5ppm
Kh = 2°
GH = 3°
Temp = 76°

Does anything look odd to you? Why do I keep losing these little babies?

 

[GouramiFanatic]

I'm feeling so discouraged and upset right now that it's not funny. I came into work this morning to find yet another Angel had died overnight. This time is was the mostly silver one. So of the 4 that I got, only the yellow/silver one is still alive. I'm at work right now and it's currently sitting in the back right corner of the tank by itself. Earlier it was pretty active so I'm hoping it's just resting. It did have a little bit to eat this morning when I fed everyone.

I know that the babies are pretty fragile, but why is it they can look and act perfectly healthy for a full week and then die overnight? That's what happened to my most recent loss. Yesterday it was active and exploring the tank as if nothing was wrong. Why did he die overnight? One of my coworkers said it's because I have the temperature to low for Angels. It's at 76° right now and it has been for a week now. Wouldn't they have died sooner if it was the temp? I'm so confused and so very frustrated!

If something happens to this last Angel I don't know what I'm going to do. I'd love to have Angels, but if I'm sentencing them to death by buying them what's the point? Are all Angels this delicate or is it just babies? I was thinking of trying to get some larger ones if they're hardier.