R.I.P my poor babies

[Donna]

I got up this morning to feed Schnitzel only to be shocked finding him upside down...gone.

What the heck happened?! he was ok last week, in fact I was saying on my last thread how well he was recovering. That hit me hard. Poor Ellie's wailing her heart out in her bedroom and I feel really depressed!

I keep looking at the fishtank only to remember that it's now empty. so used to watching my baby swimming around, tending to his new plants etc....

He was acting a little odd yesterday though, when i cleaned him out, he got all cuddly. rubbing his head and side on my fingers, and I just took it that he's been a bit lonely on his own. I said to the hubby yesterday that as soon as I was certian that he was better, we'd get him a friend.

Not sure what to do now. Obviously gonna tear down the tank, scrub it and leave it for a bit. but not sure if I can just get more fish. those five were pretty awesome and irreplaceable to me. They will be sorely missed

 

[jsoong]

So sorry to hear about Schnitzel! I was following along on your threads & thought that he was cured & will pull through.

 

[Donna]

yeah, we thought he was recovering too.....guess he took a turn for the worse last night. I wonder if his cuddles might have been a cry for help either that or HE knew he was going. I feel so awful that there wasn't more I could do.

I keep looking at the tank and thinking, oh why's Schitzel hiding? (he's usually always in full view and wanting attention...odd for a fish but they were all like that) it takes my brain a few moments to realize that he's not there any more. haven't had time today to tear down the tank, also can't quite face doing it right now...

 

[HN1]

So sorry to hear of your loss.

 

[mattrox]

I'm sorry for your loss.

Fish keeping is a great way for children to learn about the cycle of life. While right now it is a sad time, the experience allows children to build resiliancy. It also teaches them that there are always opportunities for "a fresh start" even in times of loss. My advice would be not to completely give it away, have Ellie help choose a new pet. Goldfish, guppies, whatever it may be. She will learn that a new pet won't replace her old ones but does provide new opportunities for happiness.

 

[Donna]

mattrox: call me mad but we're already expecting a new arrival, we should have been able to bring him home yesterday but he's throwing a bit of a wobbler since his nestmate got sold and is going backwards a bit with his weaning....A PARROT! once he's settled in, we'll think about restarting our tank, it's going to be a crazy time getting the bird settled.

 

[mattrox]

All in good time then.