Hello Everyone!
15 years ago I was an avid Aquamaniac. (If any of you have been in the fishkeeping community that long, you may remember said website.) I had two cycled aquariums and two (or three - it's been a while) uncycled aquariums. I had bettas, corydoras, tetras, snails, and many aquatic plants. I loved it, and they were among the most loved and cared for fish ever.
Then I got pregnant with twins, had multiple surgeries, my mother became severely ill, I got a new job, and we moved to a new region. Life changed and fishkeeping became something I planned resuming upon retiring.
Three weeks ago my job position unexpectedly changed and behold, I am now a classroom teacher and in my classroom there was an "established" aquarium. In it were (I figured this out over time) three adult platies (two female and one male), a male guppy, a corydora with swimbladder disease (who has since deceased because I got there too late), and two baby platies, one much larger than the other, evidently born at different times.
In addition to adjusting to my new position, I have been thrown back into the deep end of fishkeeping (pun completely intended!) by discovering that both female platies were a) livebearers and b) pregnant again. In my ignorance of livebearing fish in general and platies in particular (and with a million other things I was trying to catch up on) I have been just trying to keep my head above water (another intended pun).
My adventures of this weekend, and my quest for help will be in the appropriate section of the forums, but my experience of help, support, and encouragement from Aquamaniacs led me to search for an equivalent community online. Therefore, here I am, unexpectedly fishkeeping again! And not only that, I'm also trying to teach a group of students how to care for fish responsibly and ethically as well.
So, greetings community! I'm glad to have found you and hope to be both helped and perhaps even be a help at times.
-MooseMama
15 years ago I was an avid Aquamaniac. (If any of you have been in the fishkeeping community that long, you may remember said website.) I had two cycled aquariums and two (or three - it's been a while) uncycled aquariums. I had bettas, corydoras, tetras, snails, and many aquatic plants. I loved it, and they were among the most loved and cared for fish ever.
Then I got pregnant with twins, had multiple surgeries, my mother became severely ill, I got a new job, and we moved to a new region. Life changed and fishkeeping became something I planned resuming upon retiring.
Three weeks ago my job position unexpectedly changed and behold, I am now a classroom teacher and in my classroom there was an "established" aquarium. In it were (I figured this out over time) three adult platies (two female and one male), a male guppy, a corydora with swimbladder disease (who has since deceased because I got there too late), and two baby platies, one much larger than the other, evidently born at different times.
In addition to adjusting to my new position, I have been thrown back into the deep end of fishkeeping (pun completely intended!) by discovering that both female platies were a) livebearers and b) pregnant again. In my ignorance of livebearing fish in general and platies in particular (and with a million other things I was trying to catch up on) I have been just trying to keep my head above water (another intended pun).
My adventures of this weekend, and my quest for help will be in the appropriate section of the forums, but my experience of help, support, and encouragement from Aquamaniacs led me to search for an equivalent community online. Therefore, here I am, unexpectedly fishkeeping again! And not only that, I'm also trying to teach a group of students how to care for fish responsibly and ethically as well.
So, greetings community! I'm glad to have found you and hope to be both helped and perhaps even be a help at times.
-MooseMama
