Hurricane Matthew

When I wrote my blog last week on how to care for fish during a power outage, I had no idea that Hurricane Matthew would wreak havoc on the town in which I live and that my fish survival skills would be put to the test.


Hurricane Matthew, as you undoubtedly know by now, tracked further inland than originally forecasted. I live in Lumberton, North Carolina. Once the storm was passed, townspeople discovered downed power lines, fallen trees, damage to homes, cars and property. Little did we know our ordeal was just beginning. As the Lumber River swelled over the levee in the southern section of this small town, literally half of Lumberton faced massive flooding which, as of this writing, has yet to recede. The Lumber River crested at almost 25 feet above flood stage.


Power was knocked out on Saturday, October 8. We lost running water on October 9.


Temperature


My immediate concern with regard to my fish was the temperature. Fortunately, the skies cleared and outside temperatures remained in the 70's during the day. However, as we entered Tuesday, the water in the community tanks had dropped a full ten degrees, from the normal temperature of 78 to only 68 degrees. I placed a heavy blanket over half the tank, keeping the other half open to sunlight pouring through the windows and allowing oxygen from the air to reach the surface of the tank.


Oxygenation

The water was no longer oxygenated with the loss of power. I used battery backups for filtration. I simply unplugged the air hose from the electric pump and plugged it into the battery backup. Not knowing how long the power would be off and how long the batteries would last (each took two D batteries), I ran them for fifteen minutes every four hours. I observed the fish to see if they gathered around the air wands in the tanks, and as the bubbled penetrated more deeply into the tank, I knew the water was being sufficiently oxygenated.


Filtration


To help with the filtration issue, I stopped feeding the fish. Oddly, they did not seem hungry, and I attribute this to several factors: the lights on the tank didn't come on, and that always signals them that food is coming; their body temperature was dropping with the temperature of the water, as they are cold-blooded creatures.


On the third day, I lightly fed them but noticed only a few coming to the surface to feed.


Losses


I lost one fish, a neon tetra, on the third day. Another fish, a glowlight tetra, has been hanging near the surface of the water. My four angelfish that I was most concerned about showed no signs of stress - hanging at the surface of the water, gathering in one corner of the tank, etc. All other fish - plecos, corydoras, tetras, banjo catfish - have remained well.


Power Returned - But Not Out of the Woods Yet!


Power was restored on Tuesday evening, October 11. However, we're not out of the woods quite yet. The power could still flicker or go out, as the infrastructure has been weakened and repairs are on-going throughout the region.

And over the coming weeks, I will have another issue to contend with: the water supply. Right now, our running water remains out. I have a 10-gallon bucket filled with water that I filled prior to the storm. However, once our water is turned back on, we've been told to boil it before using it - for weeks or possibly months. The floodwaters have been such that tens of thousands of hogs and chickens from North Carolina farms have perished, and that could have a devastating impact on water sanitation.


This means that I will be boiling out the nutrients that the fish require for life as well as those organisms that could kill them. It's a catch-22. I plan to boil the water, treat it with Prime, and then add nutrients back in with Amazon Extract or Blackwater Extract.


We were very fortunate during Hurricane Matthew and in its aftermath. Water rose to within a few yards of my house but did not enter it, unlike tens of thousands across the state. My dogs were safe the entire time. And while we lost power and still do not have running water, we have a roof over our heads and the house is livable - unlike many throughout the state - multiple states - who are living in shelters are facing an uncertain future. Please keep all of the hurricane's victims in your thoughts and prayers.

Angelfish Breeding Cycle

Good news and bad news to report regarding my pair of angelfish lovers.

First, the bad news: it appears that none of the angelfish babies that hatched this past week have survived in the community tank. There are a number of hiding places, however, so the possibility does exist that I will find a few who have remained well-hidden from me as well as predators.

The good news: once a pair of angels successfully lays eggs and sees them hatch, they are hooked. About every two weeks that they are without babies to care for, they will lay more eggs. This could go on for months -or even years- at a time.

So today I discovered that they had laid more eggs on the same intake.

I had a dilemma.

If I allowed them to repeat the process of laying eggs in the community tank, I ran the risk that none of the babies would ever survive. Once they became free swimmers, it was just too much of a challenge to keep corydoras, plecos and tetras at bay.

I realized that because I'd removed the other angelfish to a separate community tank when John and Christy McFish decided to have a family, there were no predators in that tank that would bother my neon tetras, which had been housed in a separate, smaller tank. (Grown angelfish will eat neons.)

That is, there would be no predators if John and Christy McFish weren't there.

So today I moved all of the neon tetras, corydoras and two small plecos from their smaller tank (20 gallons) to the larger community tank (70 gallons) where they joined larger tetras and more corydoras. (I love corydoras; they seem like busy little Merry Maids.)


And I moved John and Christy McFish to the smaller tank, which is now officially the Honeymoon Suite.

The eggs on the intake were left behind, so they will be food for the fish that remained in the tank. However, once John and Christy realize they are all by themselves without any predators to harm their babies in the Honeymoon Suite, they'll lay eggs again. And this time, the babies have a much better chance of survival.

Stay tuned, and I'll post updates when they begin working on a family again!

p.m.terrell is the award-winning author of more than 20 books, including the Black Swamp Mysteries Series, which features CIA operatives who use an angelfish breeding facility as a front to cover their covert activities. Read Vicki's Key for details on raising angelfish from a breeder's perspective! And visit www.pmterrell.com for more infomation on all p.m.terrell's books!

Visit p.m.terrell's YouTube channel for videos on Angelfish Keeping and Breeding: https://www.youtube.com/user/terrellpm 

The Stress of Life

It's tough having to guard two treats at once...

I Spy

I'm spying on you.

Little Sister Is Watching.

Smiling at the Vet's Office

You know a veterinarian and his staff is great when this young lady smiles in his office.

Simone is a tri-colored collie.

She was rescued by the Robeson County Humane Society

and the Terrell family adopted her.

She is always the perfect lady!

Cuddle Time

My two Jack Russells, Eddie (with the blue collar) and Lucy (with the pink collar). 

Notice there's no room for me?

Remember to Relax

Something I learned from my dogs:

Always remember to take time to relax.

The Lovers

Lindsay Buckingfish and Stevie Fishnick haven't bred in a long time. The last time they had babies, Lindsay got a sudden midnight snack obsession and thought his children were a sushi bar. Stevie was so angry that she bit him. I suspect that Stevie has decided never to lay eggs with him again.

So I decided to try and reintroduce them to the community tank. They both lived there until a couple of years ago, when they were mating so often that I needed to remove them to their own tank to protect the fry from predators.

Stevie was accepted immediately. Female angelfish are usually accepted without a problem, unless they go after a male who has already been claimed by another female.

Lindsay did not fare well at all. The other males had him cornered underneath a decoration and had I not been observing and ready to intercept, I think he would have been chewed pretty badly. Male angelfish are much more territorial and when a new male attempts to join the school, they can be vicious.

So rather than place Lindsay in a tank completely by himself, I moved both Stevie and Lindsay. Now I have plans to redecorate their tank. If they aren't going to lay more eggs, then I can add more decorations. However, I chose a castle with an eye toward the vertical lines, because angelfish lay their eggs on vertical surfaces. Who knows? The new digs might set them on a second honeymoon.

I'll post pictures of the new tank once all the new decorations are in!

Eddie the Jack Russell

Here are two pictures of Eddie and me. Eddie is a Jack Russell. The Robeson County (North Carolina) Humane Society discovered him at an area dog pound. He was scheduled for euthanasia because his leg was injured. They thought his leg had been broken but x-rays revealed that he'd been shot.

I adopted him and brought him to a surgeon in Cary, NC, who implanted a metal plate in his leg to help the shattered bone heal. He has made a full recovery and runs and walks to such an extent that you wouldn't even know he'd been injured. (The affected leg is the one that sticks out a bit from the rest of his body.)

Eddie has a special fondness for teeth and he cleans his sisters' teeth every day - a collie named Simone and another Jack Russell mix named Lucy. I draw the line at him cleaning mine.

Eddie loves to ride in a car, and he'd follow me anywhere and everywhere - as long as I am alone. When I take him out to the pet shop or someplace busy, he gets frightened and wants me to carry him - which I always do. I can't say "no" to the little fella.

A Video of the Pastel Betta

My pastel betta is a bit more shy than my multi-colored betta, so getting him to profile and stretch those fins is more of a challenge. I had never seen a betta with his coloring before - gold, lavender and green on a cream background - and he has become quite the pet. He usually watches me wash dishes and "follows" me around the kitchen from his tank, which is located on the counter between the kitchen and the breakfast nook.

It is also next to the multi-colored betta. This allows them to see each other, but it also gives them privacy when they swim elsewhere in their separate tanks.

A Video of the Double Comb-Tail Betta

I received so many comments last week about the photograph of my multi-colored double-comb betta, that I made a video this weekend of him.

I placed a mirror near his tank. When bettas see another betta or a fish they perceive to be a threat, they extend their fins as far as possible. It makes them look larger and a more formidable opponent, which hopefully would send "the other guy" running (or swimming) away.

Crepe Myrtle - Flowers in the Sky

With two Jack Russells and a collie that sometimes enjoy digging, I've found that I can't effectively grow flowers in my back yard.

So I have several crepe myrtle, which look to me like "flowers in the sky" ... They allow me to enjoy the beautiful colors of the spring and summer seasons, but the flowers are too high for paws to reach them.

In my back yard, I have one purple crepe myrtle and three white crepe myrtle, and in my front yard and side yard I have four pink crepe myrtle.

Family Portrait

Below is a family portrait of my three dogs.

Lucy is winking in the background; she is a Jack Russell.

Simone is a tr-colored collie.

Eddie is in the foreground, and he is also a Jack Russell.

Lavendar and Green Pastel Betta

Earlier this week, I profiled the multi-colored double-comb betta, and I mentioned that his tank is beside another betta tank.

Below is a picture of the second betta, a lavender and green pastel betta.

This betta is younger than my other one, so he has not yet reached his adult size or fin length. He is a double delta betta. He lives, like my other one, in a 2.5 gallon betta tank on the counter between my kitchen and my breakfast nook. One side is beside the other betta tank, which allows him to "profile", stretching his fins and getting some exercise. The other three sides are clear, allowing him to get some needed privacy or watch what is going on outside his tank.

On one side is my kitchen sink, and whenever I am working at the sink, he wants to watch what I am doing. Here he is, swimming among the castle "ruins" and plant in his tank, to keep an eye on me.

Multi-Colored Double-Comb Betta

A few weeks ago, I posted a picture of one of my bettas, which got quite a bit of attention.

Below is a better picture of this multi-colored double-comb male betta.

This betta lives in a 2.5 gallon tank that resides on the counter between my kitchen and the breakfast nook. He lives alone. His fins are so long that it takes effort to swim, which makes him a slow-moving fish. That means he would be easy prey for faster-moving fish who enjoy nipping, like barbs.

I also must keep the water movement to a minimum. This tank has a bottom filter with an air stone in the middle. I have adjusted this air stone for very little air, which keeps the current from overwhelming this betta.

Inside the tank are a couple of castle "ruins" and a plant. On one side is another betta tank, allowing him to get some exercise by "profiling" and stretching his fins out, as he is doing in the picture above. The other three sides are clear, which allow him to get some privacy or watch what is going on outside his tank.

Dramatic Pictures of Bettas

My two male bettas have been in top form lately. Their two-gallon round tanks sit side-by-side so they can see each other if they'd like to, but they also have plenty of private space.

Here is the double-fan-tail, a gorgeous pastel fish whose hues change from lavender to green depending on the lighting:

And here is the comb-tail betta, whose tail extends to look like a comb with the teeth set far apart. He is older than the pastel betta, so he is much larger. His colors are blue, green and red in deep, jewel tones:

The bubbles you see on the top of the water shows that each male is building a nest, hoping to attract a female. That means the water conditions are just right for them.

Lindsay Buckingfish and Stevie Fishnick

I haven't posted a lot lately about new baby angelfish because there hasn't been any in quite awhile. The couple I depend on most for laying eggs every few weeks has been on a hiatus for months. The last time they laid eggs, Lindsay thought the fry wasn't to his liking and decided to eat them. Or maybe they were too much to his liking. Stevie caught him in the act and tore into him. I removed them both to a separate tank and hand-raised their young on my own, eventually raising 17 to take to the local pet shop.

I don't know if Stevie was still angry with Lindsay and refused to have sex with him. Or maybe she was too traumatized by the sight of Her Babies' Daddy eating them. I tried changing their food to pure brine shrimp, specially designed for breeding. No luck.

This past weekend, I decided that it was too much work to clean so many tanks every week so I drained the infant tank. I moved Lindsay and Stevie to a community tank but that turned out to be short-lived. Stevie was accepted instantly, as most females are. Lindsay, however, was perceived as a threat by the other males and promptly driven into a corner. As I observed this, I realized Lindsay's eye had become injured so out he came and back to his original tank.

I added medicine to his tank that day and followed with Bionox the following day. Late yesterday, I moved Stevie, shown in this video below, back to the honeymoon suite. I decided since angelfish mate for life, they were better off together. Lindsay looked lonely in the tank by himself. And Stevie wouldn't leave the corner of the community tank, where she stared across the room at Lindsay.

This morning, Lindsay's eye is almost completely healed. I will continue with the medicine for a week, and then reassess his condition.

So the lovers are back together.

Mr. Blue Gets Two Female Friends

Last week I mentioned that my blue marble angelfish had lost his long-time mate. He was pretty blue, hanging out in a corner and staring at his own reflection in the glass.

So I moved Emmie Lou, the platinum marble angelfish who was born to Lindsay Buckingfish and Stevie Fishnick right here in my own home, into his tank. (Shown below)

Because one should never introduce just one angelfish to a different tank, I also moved Alfreda AKA Alfie, a koi angelfish.

If I introduce just one angelfish to a group of angels, the newcomer will often be the target of territorial issues and bullying. By introducing two at once, especially in a tank with only three others present, it changes the dynamics and there is less likelihood of bullying.

Both Emmie Lou and Alfie are females, which is also acceptable in a tank with three males. Had I introduced another male, I would have had definite problems.

So far, Emmie Lou and Alfie have taken up with Mr. Blue, which is exactly what I wanted to happen.

The largest angels in this tank are Walter and Jack, two huge (12 inch tall) blue angels. They are named for Grumpy Old Men Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon, because they are always bickering. But they're brothers and I suspect if I moved one, they'd miss each other. Besides, nobody else wants to put up with them.

Super Delta Betta

Last week I purchased a new betta. I have two betta tanks; in one, I have a double comb betta in blue, green and red. In the video below, you can see the double comb fins very dramatically. He loves to swim with his fins completely fanned out, especially since a new betta has joined him in the tank next door.



The new betta is a pearl Super Delta. The tips of his fins are actually pearlescent green, which I believe will be stunning as he goes. He is just a baby now. The Super Deltas can grow to be 2-3 inches in length, which makes them larger than many other betta varieties.



Bettas require little care and are quite hardy and robust. They're the perfect fish for the novice, which is why I got my grandchildren started in fishkeeping with bettas of their own.