Easiest or Most Difficult Pet To Keep, Is Reef Keeping the choice for you?

[WVNed]

Dog went to vet. We are both on gabapentin now. X-rays next Tuesday.
The dog faction is trying to claim budget parity with the fish tank faction which is increased because of the new 180 gallon.
I hope the cat and bird groups dont try as well.

 

[LeBon]

I guess im old skool and 30 years ago our marine tanks were pretty much for sharks. Of course no internet, no practical books on corals, no auto devices, no digital testers, no idea. What we had was passion and persistence and the ability to learn through experience, particularly through mistakes..

The reefkeeping/ marine industry, in general, has come a long way and its easier than ever to set up a system..

On the flip side; I see it daily, people are spending a lot of time researching nowadays and planning and product picking and essentially building systems that look good in a home environment. But during this year perhaps they think they are reef keeping mentally when all they are doing is building systems, then the rush dies.

Also, not to rub folk up the wrong way, but many of the tools available have made people lazy. I even see people using auto top-ups on nano tanks ***. Overall means people are in reality less involved and learning less, what we digest information-wise on the internet suddenly seems alien when put into physical action. and they are then on forums asking for advice despite those extended periods of apparent learning.

Everybody has an opinion. Again daily I might see a true expert in the field share some information and every time without fail a member of the public will come up with something contradictory, perhaps reciting something they heard from elsewhere.

Its easy to set up, you will get out of it what you put in, put in little you will receive little, actually invest time and effort and you will paint pictures. I suppose we could say these things about many 'hobbies' nowadays, we are transient too
Trouble is these are live animals and not the same as changing your VR headset

I imagine I spend 8 hours a week maintaining our 3 tanks. but I also have dogs, donkeys, geese, chickens, cockatiels, dogs cats, goats, pig etc and between them I maybe spend only 8 hours a week so its time consuming to do things well in reefing

 

[Sean Clark]

I guess im old skool and 30 years ago our marine tanks were pretty much for sharks. Of course no internet, no practical books on corals, no auto devices, no digital testers, no idea. What we had was passion and persistence and the ability to learn through experience, particularly through mistakes..

The reefkeeping/ marine industry, in general, has come a long way and its easier than ever to set up a system..

On the flip side; I see it daily, people are spending a lot of time researching nowadays and planning and product picking and essentially building systems that look good in a home environment. But during this year perhaps they think they are reef keeping mentally when all they are doing is building systems, then the rush dies.

Also, not to rub folk up the wrong way, but many of the tools available have made people lazy. I even see people using auto top-ups on nano tanks ***. Overall means people are in reality less involved and learning less, what we digest information-wise on the internet suddenly seems alien when put into physical action. and they are then on forums asking for advice despite those extended periods of apparent learning.

Everybody has an opinion. Again daily I might see a true expert in the field share some information and every time without fail a member of the public will come up with something contradictory, perhaps reciting something they heard from elsewhere.

Its easy to set up, you will get out of it what you put in, put in little you will receive little, actually invest time and effort and you will paint pictures. I suppose we could say these things about many 'hobbies' nowadays, we are transient too
Trouble is these are live animals and not the same as changing your VR headset

I imagine I spend 8 hours a week maintaining our 3 tanks. but I also have dogs, donkeys, geese, chickens, cockatiels, dogs cats, goats, pig etc and between them I maybe spend only 8 hours a week so its time consuming to do things well in reefing

Pics!

 

[LeBon]

For me the overall aspect of my aquarium is relaxing. With covid I became a virtual worker so I went from regular interaction with coworkers to none. I have mine setup right in front of my desk so I get to look at it all day long.

I get it tho, when things get out of control in the tank they can get out of control fast and can be frustrating and overwhelming.

That's the thing tho, "nothing really happens quickly in reefing" , it was building to that crescendo a while (apparently)

 

[LeBon]

Pics!

i started a build thread somewhere for a garage frag system. In its early stages and have some ambition to do some outdoor coral farming this year. I suspect there will be pics of all the animals and existing tanks at some points. Nobody is reading it yet but I'm just plodding on with it till it takes shape in 6 months and then hopefully someone will notice

 

[flyfisher2]

Just received the final shipment of my order from Dr. Reef.
Between replacing DOA’s due to delay with FEDEX on first order and the same on the final. The order ended up being done in three shipments
Thanks to Mike for his follow through .

 

[fish farmer]

Dog went to vet. We are both on gabapentin now. X-rays next Tuesday.
The dog faction is trying to claim budget parity with the fish tank faction which is increased because of the new 180 gallon.
I hope the cat and bird groups dont try as well.

My cats went in for blood work, weighs, etc. $360. Both had lost some weight, the one on the weight watchers diet lost about 3 lbs since last fall. I've been using a fancy automatic feeder for some dry meals. Probably set it too light...

The vet wanted a follow up x ray just in case....the bloodwork on both cats was great. X-ray visit for one cat was $144. Everything looked good as I suspected. I told the Dr. why he probably lost some weight and told him his fall weight was probably a pound heavier than his fighting weight of around 14 lbs....so he is really only down about a pound and a half.

So back to increasing the feed rate.

 

[WVNed]

My cats went in for blood work, weighs, etc. $360. Both had lost some weight, the one on the weight watchers diet lost about 3 lbs since last fall. I've been using a fancy automatic feeder for some dry meals. Probably set it too light...

The vet wanted a follow up x ray just in case....the bloodwork on both cats was great. X-ray visit for one cat was $144. Everything looked good as I suspected. I told the Dr. why he probably lost some weight and told him his fall weight was probably a pound heavier than his fighting weight of around 14 lbs....so he is really only down about a pound and a half.

So back to increasing the feed rate.

Mocha, our senior cat who is 16 years old weighed 15 pounds when he chased dogs and white tailed deer. He only weighs 11 now.

Bear the 110 pound German Shephard is getting knocked out Tuesday so they can fully manipulate his back legs and x-ray his hips.

 

[fish farmer]

Mocha, our senior cat who is 16 years old weighed 15 pounds when he chased dogs and white tailed deer. He only weighs 11 now.

Bear the 110 pound German Shephard is getting knocked out Tuesday so they can fully manipulate his back legs and x-ray his hips.

Martin was 18 lbs when he started on the diet food....lazy at that weight, but his brother Panther is up to 16 lbs with a benign tumor that got removed, grew back and can still dominate his brother and kills rats. If he was an outdoor cat everything would be dead in the yard.

 

[Wasabiroot]

I think the key is that it appears to be possible to have a reef tank thriving from the get go, but not without discipline and careful observation, something most new reefers lack.
Not to mention the sheer barrage of information..."your phosphates are too high" and then another thread saying "reefs can have 2ppm phosphates, don't chase numbers" .
An issue is a lot of the issues presenting in reef systems are insidious or hidden unless tested for and unless you're familiar with them, you might not notice to fix them until the damage has been done. I have gotten the most mileage out of simply observing my corals. If they look off, there's likely something up with my water chemistry.

I treated a dog with lymphoma for a year in chemotherapy. So far, my dogs and cats are more expensive...but like any hobby, it costs what you spend.

 

[WVNed]

Mocha would lay quietly in the shadow of this tree and the deer would walk right up to him. He would jump up and bop them on the nose.

 

[Dan I]

I believe people understand the aspect of needing to be patient with reef tanks and then tend to freak out and do more than needs to be done. I ran into that situation in my first two years, until I finally got the grasp of riding the wave with the tank in it's first year before slowly adjusting things to where I think the tank is stable.

There are different levels to this hobby and it can cater to anyone, it just depends how much effort one wants to put to get there.

 

[flyfisher2]

Just received the final shipment of my order from Dr. Reef.
Between replacing DOA’s due to delay with FEDEX on first order and the same on the final. The order ended up being done in three shipments
Thanks to Mike for his follow through .

reading up on Marine Betta and how to get it to eat. Seems a bit finicky. We'll see

 

[flyfisher2]

Just received the final shipment of my order from Dr. Reef.
Between replacing DOA’s due to delay with FEDEX on first order and the same on the final. The order ended up being done in three shipments
Thanks to Mike for his follow through .

 

[HaveFishWillTravel]

After having read through other members posts on how unexpectedly difficult the reefing hobby has become for them to the point of them leaving reefing altogether, I thought I'd start this discussion.
The beauty and tranquility of enjoying an aquarium is hard to put into words. Just the idea of having creatures you would never see any other way short of visiting an aquarium or entering the ocean, in the comfort of your own home is amazing. What happens behind the scenes to make this work for us is another story.

For some, keeping fish is the simplest of hobbies with less maintenance than any other pet. I have kept many animals as pets at some point in my life,Dogs, cats, birds, reptiles.
In my experience I feel reefing requires more attention and upkeep than most if not all other pets. We're talking about the reef aquarium with the lighting issues, water parameters, finicky fish, territorial fish, encroaching corals, pests, diseases, the list goes on.
I've been an aquarium keeper for well over 40 years. I find it relaxing, challenging, frustrating at times, expensive and sometimes even rewarding. It occupies lots of time, be it in research or actual hands on and I love it.


I would love to hear others and their opinions.

I think that you have brought up a very good and extremely thoughtful point. I am going to start out with one of my pet peeves…no pun intended. I have written many times about how the big fish stores and even the smaller ones will sell Bettas in a 1/2 cup of water and sell incredibly small vessels for these little animals to live in. No lights, no heaters, no oxygen. Not to mention the fact that they are living in a cup of warm unoxygenated water in the hottest part of July without a care for the fact that they cannot breathe. It sickens me to my core.
Also, the fact that fish stores sell aquariums and fishes on the same day. The chances of the fishes survival are practically nil. Most of us are much more experienced than that and I am hoping that I am preaching to the choir. I just want you all to know where my heart is. It is with the animals’ well-being.
Before anyone gets into reefing, they need to without a doubt understand what they are getting into. Financially, time-wise, how much research is involved, do they have a clue about chemistry, do they have resources in the area that they live? Like what are their natural water parameters? How difficult will it be for them to get RO water or an RO pump? Do they understand the challenges that they will face to get saltwater or make saltwater? To test the water? To keep the water at a constant level? And, do they know what level that should be? When I read your post, I had to re-read it a couple of times and like I said, it is a very deep and thoughtful question not easily answered especially by someone like me. I say that because I have been trying to do this hobby since I was a kid and then 18 years old and again as an adult and again as an older adult and as an adult with the financial means, the learning curve for me within the last 6 or 7 years has been tough and I have been trying to do it for most of my life. I honestly believe that I have been successful, but it took quite a bit of work. Maybe for some it comes easy, but not for me. Maybe I cared too much or knew too little. Don’t know. What I do know is that reefing is not for everyone.
I look forward to reading the responses that you are going to receive on your post and again, I thank you for putting the question out there because I think that it is a very important one. Julie Lynn

 

[flyfisher2]

I think that you have brought up a very good and extremely thoughtful point. I am going to start out with one of my pet peeves…no pun intended. I have written many times about how the big fish stores and even the smaller ones will sell Bettas in a 1/2 cup of water and sell incredibly small vessels for these little animals to live in. No lights, no heaters, no oxygen. Not to mention the fact that they are living in a cup of warm unoxygenated water in the hottest part of July without a care for the fact that they cannot breathe. It sickens me to my core.
Also, the fact that fish stores sell aquariums and fishes on the same day. The chances of the fishes survival are practically nil. Most of us are much more experienced than that and I am hoping that I am preaching to the choir. I just want you all to know where my heart is. It is with the animals’ well-being.
Before anyone gets into reefing, they need to without a doubt understand what they are getting into. Financially, time-wise, how much research is involved, do they have a clue about chemistry, do they have resources in the area that they live? Like what are their natural water parameters? How difficult will it be for them to get RO water or an RO pump? Do they understand the challenges that they will face to get saltwater or make saltwater? To test the water? To keep the water at a constant level? And, do they know what level that should be? When I read your post, I had to re-read it a couple of times and like I said, it is a very deep and thoughtful question not easily answered especially by someone like me. I say that because I have been trying to do this hobby since I was a kid and then 18 years old and again as an adult and again as an older adult and as an adult with the financial means, the learning curve for me within the last 6 or 7 years has been tough and I have been trying to do it for most of my life. I honestly believe that I have been successful, but it took quite a bit of work. Maybe for some it comes easy, but not for me. Maybe I cared too much or knew too little. Don’t know. What I do know is that reefing is not for everyone.
I look forward to reading the responses that you are going to receive on your post and again, I thank you for putting the question out there because I think that it is a very important one. Julie Lynn

Thank you for that very detailed response, I truly appreciate your honesty. I like you, believe that a proper education is what we need prior to jumping into a hobby such as ours. Impulse buying will most likely lead to disappointment. Years ago everything was in magazines and or books. Research was part of the process. I think back to the days of hobbies. We had hardware stores which also sold trains. We had multiple audio shops where you went in to listen to the gear prior to actually deciding and purchase. We built models and at the same time learned the history and design of the original.

Today it's more of see it on your phone screen,You think its cool so send away for it and then you try and figure it out on Youtube . That's impulse buying. Or worse you watch an infomercial which is bent on convincing you that you need this or that.
I know I had failures in the past and looking back I can only say that at those points in my life I should not have been in the hobby. I wasn't prepared to put in the time and effort to deal with the challenges.In the last 5 years I've learned things which I didn't know 30 years ago. Not because they didn't exist but more because I didn't dedicate the time and effort to research that I do today. I re-read the same articles, because unfortunately I don't have the retention of years past but I believe firmly that research and obtaining knowledge is core to our hobby.
My son-n-law loves my tanks and takes pictures of them when he comes over. On several occasions I've discussed the possibility of setting up a system at his home. I've offered my assistance and he simply says "No, it's not for me".
As much as he likes it, he realizes that he will not dedicate the time and effort required to do it successfully and so this 40 year old man collects inanimate objects and stores them in cabinets. He goes on vacation when he wants and lives at Disney World with his daughter.
Should I pursue the issue?
No!
It's not an issue. It's not for him and he knows it. Case closed.

 

[Arego]

horses
full stop

You a riding family too? We have 4 horses all hunter jumper and one dressage mainly. Just getting to a show itself is full stop lol. Nevermind every other minute, it's their world i simply live in it and haul the horses to where they need to be in their trailer that I won't even begin to get started on how much that cost for a 5 horse gooseneck.

Here is a photo that reminds me even though the cost is huge, the reward is high and worth the effort. My girls with their trainer, newest pony, kicking **** and taking names.

 

[bnord]

You a riding family too? We have 4 horses all hunter jumper and one dressage mainly. Just getting to a show itself is full stop lol. Nevermind every other minute, it's their world i simply live in it and haul the horses to where they need to be in their trailer that I won't even begin to get started on how much that cost for a 5 horse gooseneck.

Here is a photo that reminds me even though the cost is huge, the reward is high and worth the effort. My girls with their trainer, newest pony, kicking **** and taking names.

Absolutely beautiful

western saddle and rides through the woods for us, but yours is a gorgeous animal

 

[Arego]

Absolutely beautiful

western saddle and rides through the woods for us, but yours is a gorgeous animal

Pleasure rides ftw.

 

[bnord]

Pleasure rides ftw.

and as I pointed out in another entry - after a back altering fall from the horse and a torn ACL from a goat running tween my legs as I was carrying 2 feed buckets down some steps - I compared that with the occasional bristle worm fingertip numbness to point out reefing tends to be a safer hobby - smile