Moving big fish......

[blugrassboy]

i have to move and unfortunately, this involves moving my fish, problem is, they are HUGE!! i have NO idea how to move them!! i have a 3 foot arrowana (who IS NOT going to be co-operative), a 1 1/2 clown knife, marble pim catfish, and a 1 1/2 long fire eel......i guess as much to move the arrowana i could get a cooler and my fish net out of my boat and just scoop her big a** in, same goes with the others.....any suggestions to less-stressin" the fish or mybe another method???? thanks for all your help!!

 

[Fishyfanatic]

I hope you have a HUGE tank to put those fish in.

My suggestion would be to use coolers and/or rubbermaid containers. You can purchase large rubbermaid containers that can be half filled with water.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

For the fire eel, if you have something that acts as a big cave, could put it in the tank and see if he goes in, and transport it that way.

 

[blugrassboy]

that's a good idea loneblue, i'll try that. thanks.

yes, i have a big tank (hope it's big enough) a 265 gal.



should they be acclimated and in what? a garbage bag? thanks!

 

[Lonewolfblue]

That's how I transported my 2 fire eels from my 26G the 55G when they were about 10" each. They are now 11" and 12".

As for acclimating, when in the cave/container, you could pour a little of the water out, and slowly add the new water. When full, empty some more water and add new water slowly again. Do a few times til you feel it's well acclimated, then put the cave/container into the new tank til he comes out. Mine came out immediately, as they noticed new surroundings, and they started exploring.

 

[blugrassboy]

okay, what about setting up the new tank? i figure i should fill it up, let it run, and maybe bring some old rocks in from the new tank? (and of course check the levels). the rocks have tuft (or beard) grass on the rocks (is that bad?)........any other tips for setting up a new tank? i am going to add some de0chlorinator and some stress zyme......thanks!!

 

[Lonewolfblue]

You will definitely need to cycle the tank. Were the rocks from another tank? If so, then it would be ok. Not sure what tuft grass is. Also, for dechlor, Prime is highly recommended. Also, if you can't wait for the tank to cycle, I'd highly recommend getting Bio Spira. Just remember to keep it cold til you add it to the tank. It should instantly cycle the tank. People here have used bio spira and cycled their tank in anywhere from overnight to 2 weeks, and few had a bag of dead bacteria, from getting too warm during shipping.

 

[RoK]

Well, how far do you have to move them? If it's possible, take as much stuff from the tank they're in now (especially filter media), to use for the new tank.