I have conducted an experiment recently. I went to the store to get some fish. Some fish I had them catch with a net and some fish I had them scoop out the fish and some water using their little clear specimen containers.
What I theorized was that the stress off being caught in a net and the net touching the fish's slime coat would make them more stress prone.
Result: Every fish that was caught with a net spends half of it's time during the first week hiding (sometimes longer). Every fish caught by scooping them out with water (so that they aren't touched) acclimates almost instantly to the new tank, stays out in the open, is more active, and doesn't stress out when I turn on the light, if there is a noise or I bump into the stand.
From now on, I won't ever buy a fish unless they use the specimen container instead of the net.
Water chemistry was good in all cases, no ammonia, no nitrites, only 5ppm of nitrates. I use salt in my aquarium to reduce stress and I drip acclimate over several hours to make introduction into the tank as easy and stress free as possible, so as to make sure it is the net that causes the stress reaction and not something else.
I have tested this with 11 fish so far. Every one caught by net hides often, gets spooked easily, and is slightly more aggressive to the other fish. Then I have to turn off the light for an hour for it to calm down.
Every fish that I had caught by scooping them out in their water hasn't showed any signs of stress or aggression.
All fish were the same species. Each one looked different enough that I could distinguish them with ease, in case you're wondering. They were added in four small groups (to avoid ammonia spikes).
Has anyone else noticed this effect?
What I theorized was that the stress off being caught in a net and the net touching the fish's slime coat would make them more stress prone.
Result: Every fish that was caught with a net spends half of it's time during the first week hiding (sometimes longer). Every fish caught by scooping them out with water (so that they aren't touched) acclimates almost instantly to the new tank, stays out in the open, is more active, and doesn't stress out when I turn on the light, if there is a noise or I bump into the stand.
From now on, I won't ever buy a fish unless they use the specimen container instead of the net.
Water chemistry was good in all cases, no ammonia, no nitrites, only 5ppm of nitrates. I use salt in my aquarium to reduce stress and I drip acclimate over several hours to make introduction into the tank as easy and stress free as possible, so as to make sure it is the net that causes the stress reaction and not something else.
I have tested this with 11 fish so far. Every one caught by net hides often, gets spooked easily, and is slightly more aggressive to the other fish. Then I have to turn off the light for an hour for it to calm down.
Every fish that I had caught by scooping them out in their water hasn't showed any signs of stress or aggression.
All fish were the same species. Each one looked different enough that I could distinguish them with ease, in case you're wondering. They were added in four small groups (to avoid ammonia spikes).
Has anyone else noticed this effect?
