What Got You Hooked?

[Figure_8]

After reading through one of the intro threads here it got me wondering.. So, how did you get into fish? Was it a sudden plunge after seeing some fish, or were you given one as a present as a child? Did you start off with one fish and stay that way or did it escalate rapidly out of control to the point where you now have more water space than floor space? In my case there was never really a point where I haven't had fish, so I can't really say there was a definite point where I 'got into them'. My father was a fish freak (community tanks, ponds, breeding setups in the shed), so I grew up with them, and adopted some of his as a young child. In hind sight though it was more a case of I could say they were mine, but he did all the maintenance, but I've had them ever since. I've kept the normal tropical community tanks (neons, coreys, guppies, mollies et) from about 15. Bettas have been a more recent attraction. I think maybe 5yrs now. I went looking for something for my kids... single fish - easy to care for - the usual story. I liked their fish so much that I had to get some of my own and as you do with bettas I ended up with over 200 in a very short space of time. Not that I have that many now... I down scaled things when having my last two babies, and haven't built back up - yet! I had a fling with marine tanks a few years ago, but came to the conclusion that I was going to totally bankrupt myself before I got things set up the way I wanted, so went back to the tropicals. I saw a giant gourami in the lfs at the beginning of last year which just blew me away. I have had a big fish fettish since LOL. One day I will get my giant gourami, but for now I have my new Oscar. He might not grow as big as an osphronemous, but he'll be big enough I think anyways, enough about me.. what about you? What was it that sparked your passion for fish?

[Bren MacFish]

We had a little washtrough pond out back and the kids kept winning goldfish in colouring competitions... then they had fry which we brought inside to watch them grow, then one betta lead to another... and another... and... is there an end to this madness?

[KillieOrCory]

Sequence of events: *On my 11th birthday I got given a pair of guppies in a bowl by my uncle and auntie. *Within the week, I went and bought more fish. *Fish moved to another larger bowl! *It got really crowded so I went and bought a small tank! *Mum told me off for buying things without her knowledge and she took me back to the petshop!!! *We came back with a 4footer I have been keeping and breeding fish ever since then. Interestingly if my memory serves me correctly, the least number of tanks I ever had was 2!!!

[splendidbetta]

We had the odd pair of goldfish when I was growing up, which would die after a a few weeks anyway... But I was never into goldfish, and I only got interested in fish after age 7. A few years ago, I popped into an lps and saw a betta that I liked, my first betta, which was a vt grizzle or marble, all different colors. As time went by, I got bored of him, as I wasn't that interested in bettas then anyway. He died. Then I discovered the internet, and in late 2004, while being bored, I decided to research bettas, and I saw all the fabulous bettas, and I decided to get a male and some females (vts). So that is where my passion for bettas started. I got to breeding, and now I also have a whole lot of fettishes about how my ideal, if not perfect betta should look :)

[Robbies Betta]

My first fish was prob when I was about 5. My brother and I had silver and gold comets (1 of each) and a black moor in our bedroom. I have no idea how they survived, but we had them for about 2 yrs, and the black moor for bout 3yrs. My next fish wasn't intil I got a blue VT for my 16th B'day from my bro and sis. he lived with 4 zebra danios in a tiny lil tank (big no-no) and because it wasn't heated, plus danio stress, he got bad velvet and died only a month after I got him after that I bout a lil fantail GF for the same tank, but with filter and bubbles. I also put 2 female VT's in with him (don't know what possed me to get females without a male ) That's when I started buying tanks and learning that bettas needed heated water, and soon I had WAY to many bettas (or so my parents kept telling me). I've been keeping and sorta breeding bettas for bout 3yrs now (boy that time has gone fast), and currently have only 4 females out of about 80 bettas that weren't bred by me ;)

[Leela]

What great stories! I started with Fighters in September last year, when my boyfriend bought me two for my birthday. unfortunately for those two VT's, we both fell victim to the 'they can live in tiny bowls' pet shop spiel, and both died within 2 weeks. SO then I did some more research, and better prepared, bought three more fish, Nibbler, Haro, and Fozzy. Unfortunately Fozzy has passed on but Nibbler and Haro are still very much happy little VT's, Nibs is a purple marble, and Haro a red/pink metallic crowntail cross (I think ). I love Nibbler to bits, he's completely crazy and probably a pretty ugly fish (sorry Nibs), but he's my little baby! Then after a quick trip to Pet City I discovered HM's and CT's, and have now become totally spellbound by these wonderful little bettas. I now have so many of them, 12 I think, and plan to expand with some breeding hopefully by April. We never had fish as kids, we were more horsey people, they were more than enough trouble. Cheers L

[Mishy]

I've always lived in a zoo... we've had everything from chickens, to budgies to lovebirds to dogs to fish... we've always had fish and birds. First it was the comets that mum loved then because they were so dirty and yucky my sisters and I entered colouring competitions and won some fantails... the expansion into tropical tanks has been a recent thing (september 04) and well... one tank is never enough is it? I now am a proud owner of a lucky 13 tanks...

[Chuckie]

I was hooked on a trip to England at 12 when my Uncle Len took me to an aquarium and I saw my first oscar and koi.

[Sutto]

Mouse: Is that the one in Morley? Ive always liked fish, ever since I saw Gambusia in a wier near where I used to live. I convinced dad to buy me a 2' one day and then it went from there. Ive always loved Oddballs (Especially Giant Gouramis - The one at Morley is amazing. Had the opportunity to buy one or more aswell but then I got offered the Vieja *drool*.)

[Jess]

My parents had always kept fish. They enjoy fish, but no where as hooked as I am. When I was 8 years old I was given a 30L tank that had frosted/patterned glass on the back with some black moors. As we lived on the Murray, I was always bringing home gudgeons and yabbies and shrimps home and putting them in my tanks. My Mum still has my first tank, I want it back but it is in use When I was 14 my father built me an 80L Octagonal tank, which I still have and use, its been re-siliconed 2 times since, but never leaked and is still powered by the same UGF and airfilter (which is loud) for the past 14 years!! It has been the past 4 years I have gotten into tropical fish more so then CW/Natives. The availability of so many different fish species in the city and information on the Internet has been a large contributor to my hobby growing :)

[Figure_8]

Mouse: Is that the one in Morley?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thats the one! amazing fish isn't it?

[Sutto]

Sure is... Its such an amazing and reactive animal. Ive seen one in a private collection and provided I could find them aand had the 6x2x2 I would buy a new one right now.

[Figure_8]

so would I! If only I had a 6ft tank I would have gotten one instead of the oscar. Don't get me wrong.. I love my oscar, but a giant gourami was my first choice - I just couldn't house him.

[stubbskm]

I had a oscar at 5 that lived in the pond in the garden. Dad would dig up worms and I would feed him. Lost him when the pond developed a leak and dad could not find him when they drained the pond. They did find him later when removing the plastic lining. But after he had eaten all the firemouth fry that my parents were planing to sell I don't think they saw it as a big lost. Have had a couple of more oscars, angels and goldfish since then, but did not own a betta until Sept 2004. Now the problem is trying to find enough bench space. And my parent, who don't live with me, complain that I have more than enough. I don't think they have seen the recent additons!! I also have a good laugh when friends visit my garage for the 1st time. It is surprising how offen OH S**T is the first thing they say.

[Canfeleq]

Like Mishy, I too, have always lived in a zoo. When I was a small child Dad was into tropical fish, mainly Angels, and we had the customary dogs and cats. Then in 1968 one of the first openwater diving schools in the country was established in a corner of the Terrigal Blue Water Sailing Club ( which my grandparents helped to establish back in the late '40s) The proprietors of Terrigal Dive School, Fran & Les Graham, Used to have a marine tank which was stocked with locally collected aquatic animals to introduce learners to the beauty and hazards of the various life forms to be found in the area. A lot of those animals were collected by myself and my sister, I was 7 at the time and Laurettee was 5 1|2. We were taught the correct way to handle such animals Urchins, Brittle stars, Fortesques (which are small, stinging fish) Octopus, including Blue Rings, stingrays and Lionfish. By the time I was 10 we were attending regular marine biology lectures conducted by Prof. Clarrie Lawler. The variety of life to be found fascinated us and I have kept fish ever since, both marine and freshwater species. When I first started keeping marines you could not buy them so you had to have a licence to collect from the wild, This sort of limited the number of species that you could have as we only get tropical marines here in mid summer so I switched to guppies. After that I had cichlids for a long time before going back to marines for about 10 years. Now it's Bettas and Cory's, not to mention the dogs, cats, parrots, doves, chooks, horses, as well as a blue tongue and a water dragon that have taken up permanent residence in the back yard. They keep me busy :)