An Unexpected Party

Patrick and I awoke this morning with great enthusiasm. “Could we provide our Dalmatian Molly with an aquatic companion? One who can share in the fishy fruits of our underwater kingdom? An Eve for our Adam? A Juliet for our Romeo? A Sam for our Frodo?”

Well we met and surpassed his wildest expectations, but let’s take it from the top…

Last night after vigilant observation we began to witness dramatic improvements in our little survivalist. His tail fins had clearly regained much of their former splendor. His activity level is also on the rise. He appears jubilant, eager, and ready to discover the limitless secrets of his ten gallon world. “Look at this trove, treasures untold. How many wonders can one cavern hold?” he may be wondering. It inexorably brings to mind the maverick curiosity and exploits of the mermaid Ariel so well documented by Disney.

Look at the difference!

At precisely a quarter after dawn we ratified another water test and with the ammonia clocking in at just above .25 ppm, we sanctioned a water change… 50 percent to be specific. This brought it back down to a solid .25 ppm. Confident that our regular changes were working we saddled the horses and headed for PetSmart.

 

I mentioned the ammonia reading to the helpful clerk and she assured us that if kept at that level the fish would tolerate it, and it should be safe to add another. But while she may have said "one fish", Patrick and I heard “two fish”, a Powder Blue Gourami and a Golden Wonder Killifish. The clerk also suggested adding some aquarium salt as it would help with stress levels and slime coats for the fish. Before we left we also purchased a Ghost Shrimp for two purposes. For one, he will eat much of the leftover food and waste that settles on the substrate (new fish word I learned), and two, he looks really cool.

Golden Wonder Killifish

On a strange note she mentioned that my drastic, daily water changes are bad for the fish and the tank cycle; that it would prevent beneficial bacteria from growing. I personally think she is dead wrong however, it runs contrary to all my research. It is my understanding that the said bacteria grows on surfaces and within the filter, not in the water. And I resolutely believe that the water changes are THE ONLY REASON the Molly is still alive today. Thanks for the fish lady but in the words of the late Jedi master Yoda, “My own council I will keep”.

Powder Blue Gourami

Anyway after adding the new fish and crustacean we witnessed an interesting development. The Dalmatian Molly it seems is quite territorial of his habitat. Every so often he nips at the fins of the other two fish. He even was caught up in a cat and mouse game with the ghost shrimp, who is surprisingly quick.

Ghost Shrimp

The battle plan forward is this: Closely monitor the ammonia level, for it can radically spike with the new additions. The goal will be to not let it rise above .25 ppm. This will have to be done with daily water changes until the beneficial bacteria colonize, hopefully in a week or so. The addition of salt with any luck will alleviate some stress on the fish while their dealing with the ammonia. The salt however was a bit of a gamble. It's apparently the subject of hot debate in regards to tropical freshwater fish. Whilst I found no conclusive answers, I did in the end find more in support of its use than against. So we shall see.

As usual I consider “overnight” the danger zone. If these fish survive tonight then I will feel very confident in our plan and the execution thereof.  Until then we are crossing our fingers and fins.

Stephen DiJulius

Current Fish Count: 3