Jeremy once again has delighted me by sharing some of the inner-workings of his brain, and this time with a more morbid topic that while depressing, needs to be addressed. Whether it be from natural causes, old age, or carpet surfing, we’ve ALL been there. This topic is a tough one for me because while losing fish, no matter the cost, is always super sad, I’ve had a couple of tough losses myself. A suicidal Suess fish ended up being a pricy piece of jerky (and if you follow Rich Ross’ “Skeptical Reefkeeping” feature in our online magazine, you’d know he posed the question of whether Suess fish are jumpers. Well if they get too close to a cuttle enclosure when sneaking around their egg crate barriers, they definitely are), a Gem Tang who lost a fight to a bitchy Clarion angel, and a dwarf cuttlefish who had the unfortunate experience of being raped to death by her mate. It really, really blows. Not only is it a lot of money you’re losing – it’s a life that more often than not that ends far too soon. I don’t even want to THINK of what’s going to happen when we lose one of our Personatus angels – I’ll probably have a massive funeral – you’re all invited. Moving on, let’s get down to Jeremy’s article on the topic. He’ll inform you with excellent info on what to do when you have a loss, what to address in your tank, how to prevent unnecessary deaths, and how to best ensure your fish are happy, healthy little swimmers for the duration of their natural life. Muchas Gracias, Mr. Gosnell!
“When I was three years old, my parents got me a 4 gallon aquarium. I was thrilled, as the tank had a built in filter, light, and all the trimmings of a 1984 all in one aquarium. One weekend, they took me to a local pet shop to pick out a goldfish. We brought the fine creature home, (who I aptly named Goldie) and a whole lifetime of fun and adventures started. Well, not really. Goldie turned out to be a garden koi, which outgrew its four gallon tank in no time. Soon, Goldie was renamed floaty, because it was dead. I don’t remember this a whole lot, but I am reminded of it by my mother, who claims for a period of time after the fishes’ passing, I was inconsolable.
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