senior citizen dilema

[Guest]

i had to go to the senior citizen center yesterday and i noticed an aquarium in the lobby for the old folks to admire. however, from reading posts on goldfish, i realized something is wrong. this is a 40 gal tank and it has 8 goldfish in it. 2 are very large(10" at least), 3 are medium size and the rest are small, plus it has a nice size algae eater(im not sure what kind). its black and about 6 or 7 inches.

my dilema is, should i say anything? i dont want to walk in and sound like mr fish tank expert(cuz im not for one thing). but i know that the fish cant be healthy in this tank. i dont want to insult whoever takes care of these fish, but they should be made aware that maybe some of these goldfish should be placed in other homes. if they are anything like the old folks from my church, they dont like being told what to do.

im concerned for these fish but not sure how to go about doing anything or even if i should do anything at all. i have to go back again next friday and if i do anything, it will be then, even if it means leaving a note on the managers office desk. any suggestions?

 

[justrelax]

i think it would be a nice thing to do if you said something. maybe approach it like.. those shouldn't really be in there, but how about some tetras.... something along those lines. it wouldn't be very hard to switch them out, and i'm sure everyone would be happier in the long run. good luck!

 

[Guest]

I think that you should. Try to find someone that you feel combfortable talking to and maybe try and print some proof.

You are correct about the goldies. They get very large and that is way to many for that size tank. I would say they need at least 20 gal. per fish. The black algae eater is most likely a common pleco and also becomes very large. The goldfish not only get very large but are also very messy which will cause toxic levels of amonia. Ask if they test the water.

You never know, they may appreciate the help or not. At least you know you did the responsible thing. Many people are mislead about goldfish so I would say something IMO.

 

[R&L]

Telling someone that they don't clean house like you like it or cook like you like can be touchy. The same is true with keeping fish. It could be an elderly person and that has always been their hobby and that is the way it always has been for them. I doubt that is the case though.
It is probably started by management and maintained by the "maintenance" personnel.
Neither probably are educated it that field. All they know is feed the fish and clean the filter. Probably don't even change any water, or have time to.
Even if he/they agree that they think there are too many fish, they are probably not able to correct the problem, but may be able to tell you who has the final say so, and i'm sure that another/bigger aquarium is NOT in the budget.
You may keep an eye on craiglist or aquabid, thrifty nickel, newspaper and see if maybe in the next few months you run across a used 20,30 gal tank and if its a good deal with filter and all maybe donate it to them.

There are several different ways. I say maybe another tank thinking, maybe their are more than one wing or waiting area that may not have a tank. By donating another tank they would be lightening the load in the one that they have bu splitting up the fish. You could ask have they considered adding another tank in another area, that you noticed that only some of the people may not get to enjoy the fish in that area.

If it were me i'd just ask someone stationed in that area whether it be a nurse or whoever and just comment on the tank and then ask who takes care of it. Then ask if maybe if they were available, that you had a few questions on how they take care of it. If it is the maint man, just ask what all he does to maintain it. You may even tell him/them that you keep tanks also. HE/THEY may ask you if you have any shortcuts, etc.... You never know how the conversation may go.
If it appears that he/they know everything there is to know, then well youve done all you can do imo.
I used to deal with alot of maint people in many building, including retirement home and most know A/C and electricity but are not on top of alot of the things they are forced to maintain. They REALLY have to be Jacks of all trades and i'm sure that aquarium maintenance was not on their resume'.

I hope this will give you a few ideas ohow to look at the problem. Not knowing anything about the size of the place or anything is hard to come up with a solution but im sure something could be mentioned tastfully. If they tell you to butt out and mind your own buisness, well i'd certainly oblige them. lol

 

[Guest]

I'd ask about the tank and volunteer my services.

 

[Voodoo Chilli]

Excellent advice from R&L!

 

[Guest]

ok, heres what i can do, i have till next friday, so i can print out some info and maybe some suggestions from this thread, that would help a lot. i would be willing to volunteer my help if they wanted it, but i will wait till i talk to whoever takes care of things and see whats going on. the suggesting of tetra's is a good idea, and so are the ideas on how to approach them and keeping an eye out for a tank to donate to them. i might know of one right now, a 30 gal with a hood and light.

if anyone can explain why it is not good to keep large goldfish in a tank like that in easy to understand language, i would appreciate it, but more importantly, the goldfish will. ill print it out and show them. i seriously dont know jack squat about goldfish.

 

[WaterPond]

Here is why goldfish can't be kept in small tanks:

They produce alot of waste which turns into chemicals that are poisonous for the fish. The Chemicals will end up killing them.

I hate seeing crowded tanks in public places. There is a fish and chip place in town where i live(best food ever) and they have a tank that is about 30or 40 gal. In the tank is two parrot cichlids(or watever they are called) that are almost a foot. Three bala sharks, all about ten inches a huge common pleco, about a foot and some. The last fish are three Redfin Prochilodus. This tank is not very big at all, and it hold almost or over nine feet of fish. Some can barely turn around. Yet, i have gone to this restaurant on occasion all my life, and every time i go, the fish are still there, none ever die. It makes no sense. At one time they had a Pacu in the tank too, but it was given to a local museum. Anyway, i thought it was so cruel.

 

[CaysE]

Whatever the case may be, if you're going to mention anything to them, be prepared to take on the task yourself. I would spell it out just like you're spelling it out here. You're a seasoned aquarist, you feel you can help improve the quality of the fish tank they have, you would be happy to volunteer your services, and you don't want to step on anyone's toes. That's really all you have to say.

 

[SCFatz]

I agree with CaysE 100%.

Also you never know...they may be glad you offered.

 

[Jchillin]

It would be helpful to know the species of goldies in that tank, that way you are better informed about the specific needs of them.

 

[jsoong]

I have a different tack - Instead of saying out right the tank is overcrowed, etc and demanding change, you might consider asking how the person maintaining the tank is able to keep so many fish healthy in such a tank. Say something to the effect that you are a fellow aquatist and interested in learning any secrets and tips.

Now if the tank maintanance guy happens to be the janitor, and have no clue how to look after fish, you have an opening to educate & offer your services. OTOH, if the tank happens to be maintained by an old hobbyist, you might learn some secrets (maybe there is a big sump hidden somewhere) and maybe steer him/her towards the need of a bigger tank?

 

[Guest]

i found a good article on goldfish i can use when i go, but thanks for the help anyways. here is a pic of the tank i am going to donate. all they basicly need is a filter, i have gravel. i will clean everything before friday, it has been sitting stored away and needs cleaned. regardless of what happens, i will print the goldfish article for them and offer the tank as a donation.

if they say 'no thanks', then i have a new 30 gal and i tried. plus i know more about goldfish than i ever wanted to know.

 

[R&L]

Looks to me as if you will have a well thought out plan by Friday. I'd be intrested as to how it goes as i'm sure others on here would be intrested too.

 

[Buffalo Bill]

Sounds like a good plan. It's always touchy when you walk into someone elses house and try to tell the they are not doing whatever right...It will definetly take some tact. Good luck, sounds like your on the right track. 8)

 

[confusion]

I'm wondering if the goldfish are particularly attractive in the senior citizen setting because they are big and bright, which I imagine is a big plus if you have sight problems, as many elderly folk do. Not passing judgement either way. I would just keep in mind that small fish like neons might not be a great option for that setting.

 

[Guest]

i never thought of that, good point confusion. and i will post the results of my visit to the senior citizens center this friday, tactfulness will be a priority.

 

[Guest]

my visit to the senior citizen center has been bumped up to thursday, the day after tomorrow. so far i have my goldfish info, the tank, hood and light, gravel, and i just got an airpump, tubing, a stone, and an assortment of plastic plants that will look nice in the 30 gal tank. everything will be sparkly clean when i go.

 

[Guest]

the senior citizen dilema is no longer a dilema. i went there today and struck up a conversation with an elderly lady that takes care of the fish with another guy that works there. i approached the subject carefuly and and it's a good thing i did. they feel they take very good care of these fish and gave me some pointers for my own tank, which i listened to with interest.

to them, it is ok to keep fish this size in that tank because they feel that they only grow as big as their enviorment. when i asked them about something i read, saying goldfish need lots of room in a good size tank, they said that it was not true. it was at this point i decided not to push goldfish articles on them. they told me they looked up goldfish information and gave me some tips on water changes.

they said to do water changes every two weeks, or at the very least, once a month and to let the new water sit for 24 hours, then add 'start right' and 'stress zyme' to it, then change 1/4 to 1/3 of the water. then, twice a year, remove the fish and place in another container, then remove everything from the tank, including the gravel, and clean all the slime off of everything with clean water. i should get a kitchen strainer and put the gravel in that and thouroghly rinse the gravel until it's clean, and dont use soap on anything.

when i asked about algae, they said that was what the big black fish were for(their words). they are pleco's and are pretty good size. they gave me some feeding tips and told me not to follow the instructions on the container and to only feed once a day, as much as they will eat in 5 minutes. while i was taking a close look in the tank, one of the medium large goldfish had completely white eyes. i asked what was wrong with it and they said it has always been like that, it is blind but knows it's way around and never misses a meal.

i knew i was done there, so i asked them if they needed any aquarium stuff, like an airpump maybe, or an old tank. they said that would be so wonderful, could i really do that? i said sure and gave them the 30 gal tank with the odd and ends. they were beaming like a light bulb, shaking my hand, and i said see ya, take care now.

i didnt tell them that the tank belonged to a girl that was killed in a car wreck about 7 years ago. her parents put it away and it just collected dust. they were more than happy to give it and the senior people were more than happy to take it. it was a good day today.

 

[JRagg]

A lot of that stuff they talked about was “old school fishkeeping” for sure. That’s the kind of stuff people used to do all of the time (and some still do).

They are taking care of them. Some of the stuff they do may not be stuff that is recommended here, but try to teach a senior citizen to pay bills online. It’s never going to happen. That’s the way they learned to do it, and that’s the way they’re going to do it. You tried though, and I’m sure they’ll enjoy the 30g tank.