Freshwater Rays

[longstocking]

Robert... I believe the reason she is saying not to drip is that you are dealing with a ph higher than 7.0 therefor you are dealing with ammonia when transporting them.

There have been countless studies on the "drip method" and it has been found to be harmfull to fish/sharks/rays. Sometimes deadly !

I never drip any fish any more and I've never lost a fish to it or stressed them out. Now i've never lost a fish to drip method either ( I used to drip )... but I know I have stressed them out because of it. I haven't dealt with the amount of fish Julie has or the types.... but I'd trust her on this one. Rays aren't the cheapest fish in the world... and they are too cool to stress out

 

[Artee]

check this out..

http://h2ocustomaquatics.com/acclimation.htm

the current owner is in agreement with Julie which is what I will be doing.....

thanks all for taking time to discuss the matter...

 

[Julie]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Artee @ Aug 7 2008, 11:55 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

check this out..

http://h2ocustomaquatics.com/acclimation.htm

the current owner is in agreement with Julie which is what I will be doing.....

thanks all for taking time to discuss the matter...[/b]

<span style="font-family:Comic Sans MS">
Just to point out... what they are doing is basically the drip method.. and NOT what I reccomend. I do not combine waters at all anymore in the bag. To be very specific...

1) float the bag if possible in the tank/pond for @30minutes or so so that the temps are roughly the same.

2) open the bag (do not open before!!!) and pour out as much of the bag water as you can without unduly stressing the fish, or use tubing, etc.. but I find supporting the bag under the ray, and allowing the water to pour out leaving the ray in a little pool of water doesn't stress them.

3) put the bag & ray back in the tank and let the ray swim out. remove bag and hopefully as much of the shipping water as possible.

If when you get your fish, they are breathing very heavy in the bag, the bag is filthy, or somehow things look very wrong... get the ray out as fast as possible!!!! don't worry about acclimatizing or you'll lose the ray. Worry about contams later. I call this the Hail Mary method.. and has worked many times for me on all fishes. After all, the fish is dead otherwise, change their conditions immediately for the better, and they'll come around even if temp or pH shocked better than if left in the bag that's stressing them.

BTW. I once got in a 19" tiger ray, not expecting one so large. We did @100% water change on the bag upon receipt of the fish (after saying a few choice words like *holy sh&%* :confused0054: ) We then built a pool and 24 hours later released the ray. He lived quite well and suffered no ill efects.</span>

 

[mscichlid]

Artie,
Keep us aprised with whats happening with your rays when they come in. This is exciting!

 

[Artee]

sunday at noon will be the day I get them home.

had the 180 set up and running, wet/dry is flowing smoothly, will be adding the seeded bioball tomorrow.

a little problem, mechanical filtration, seems like debris are just going around in circles, can't seem to get it to the top to pass thru the overflow, even added a couple of sponge filters. must be because it is a bare bottom tank, was thinking of adding a cannister or maybe a polisher to clear it up. any ideas ?

 

[dogofwar]

I'm a fan of box filters for mechanical filtration. Otherwise a big HOB like an aquaclear or penguin would be OK.

I wouldn't go with a canister with rays, unless you plan to clean it a lot or use a pre-filter on the intake. I tend to not clean them until they're dirtier than they should be.

 

[Artee]

hob's doesn't work since it is an acrylic w/overflow, doesn't have any cutouts/provisions for it.

I may just dig up some of my old box filters.

 

[dogofwar]

You can also rig a powerhead on some of the bigger ones

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Artee @ Aug 8 2008, 08:13 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

hob's doesn't work since it is an acrylic w/overflow, doesn't have any cutouts/provisions for it.

I may just dig up some of my old box filters.[/b]

 

[Artee]

here they are

 

[George]

Very nice! I hope they do well for you. They are beautiful!

George

 

[Julie]

They are beautiful!! The female is an especially nice color imo. Nice fat tails, too!

Best of luck with them both!!

 

[Artee]

Thanks Julie & Goerge.

Settled in quite nicely, fed them late in the evening, no hesitation at all, went after the peeled shrimp..

have to fatten up the male, although smaller than the female, seems to be the dominant one.

 

[mscichlid]

Looking good!

I read someplace that you want the male to be smaller than the female because of the damage a larger male could do to the female when it comes time to breeding.

 

[Artee]

....and it's true as was mentioned by the previous owner.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (mscichlid @ Aug 11 2008, 08:51 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Looking good!

I read someplace that you want the male to be smaller than the female because of the damage a larger male could do to the female when it comes time to breeding.[/b]

 

[Spine]

Robert,
Your pictures look nice. I'll have to come see them in person one of these days.

 

[mscichlid]

How is it going with the rays?

 

[Artee]

rays are settled well, roaming the bottom parts of the tank and on rare occasions go vertical which I really like watching.. seems to prefer peeled shrimp and bits/slices of salmon, tried feeding them NLS, they will just grind it down and spit out...

I am thinking of adding a top dwelling fish , like an arowana....

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (mscichlid @ Aug 21 2008, 05:35 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

How is it going with the rays?[/b]

 

[Cakes]

rays are settled well, roaming the bottom parts of the tank and on rare occasions go vertical which I really like watching.. seems to prefer peeled shrimp and bits/slices of salmon, tried feeding them NLS, they will just grind it down and spit out...

I am thinking of adding a top dwelling fish , like an arowana....

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (mscichlid @ Aug 21 2008, 05:35 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Aro and a Ray are a great combo, be careful if you add a Jar, they can be mean.

 

[Andrewtfw]

Do not go with a jardini. My friend had a six inch section of his motoro ray removed by a 22 inch jardini. The tank pushes 1000 gallons, so it was not because the two were cramped. Silvers and black aros would be fine.

 

[AIdeoto]

I thought we should have a thread dedicated to freshwater fishings tips & techniques. It could be as simple as posting a new idea on how to catch your favourite fish or you can post how to use favourite lure or bait. You can ask a question on how to use a product or how to fish for a species of fish.