So confused please help

[dawnsussie]

hey guys, I'm new to the site and aquatic animals. I have one 20 gallon tank set up with plaites, guppies, albino shark, betta, and zebra danio's on top of that i have at barbs!... the barbs were picking at the longer fined fish and the betta and male guppy are iin hard shape, my two female guppies are pregnant and i want the barbs out but dont' have the heart to flush them or anything else cruel. As a solution I bought a 10 gallon tank it's been set up to about 12 hours now, it's half water and half air with a some rocks, floating plants, and a floating log intended for a basking newt the tank sound full but there is a fair amount of space in and out of the water and i am happy with the set up, however i want to put in one chineese fire bellied newt with the barbs and danios( 5 fish) my reading says that fish typically pick on newts and other readings say they are good together, I've also read that the barbs will only pick on each other if there are enough of them in teh tank ( it's a leader thing and natural to them) I would just love some info on this topic because because there is so many contradicting views. Thanks

 

[Alwyn]

I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but putting in any fish with you Fire Belly will not be a good idea… The tropical fish needs warm(er) water than the newt… In other words the fish will certainly die if you put them in a tank with no heater!! Only certain fish can tolerate cold water, like White Clouds and some shrimp…

This is just my opinion… I have two Fire Belly’s of my own and tried various ‘fishy’ tank mates but all of them decided the water is not to their liking

Just a comment on your selection of fish… The albino shark is very territorial and if it gets big will be very grumpy and will probably stress the other fish… As for the betta (aka Siamese Fighting Fish), I would not recommend ‘mixing’ him with the other fish As for the barbs (I presume Tiger Barbs), depending on how many you have they are also very energetic and will definitely terrorize the other fish… I would recommend you take some of the fish back to the Pet Store… and please do not flush your fish

This is just my opinion…

 

[Abrahm]

Barbs are like that. They are generally well known for their semi-aggressive nature and for picking on the fins of other fish. They will also likely pick on the newt's tiny limbs. Besides the aggression issue your fish require different temperatures than newts as fish like it around 76F to 80F and newts do better below 70F.

Don't flush your fish or "set them free" to get rid of them as this is really bad for the environment and is cruel to the fish. Most pet stores will take in fish you don't want, within reason.

 

[Jennewt]

Dawnsussie, welcome to the site.

For information on mixing newts and fish, see:
http://www.caudata.org/cc/articles/Mixing_disasters.shtml
In a word, don't.

Your writing is difficult to understand. I recommend using clear sentences and punctuation, so we can all understand you better - thanks!

 

[dawnsussie]

hi again,
I bought my newts, i have two chinese fire belly newts in a ten gallon (no fish) for about two weeks now they have not left the floating log, I've put them in the water myself but they swim frantically and try to get back on land. they haven't eaten since i've gotten them and now one has a white fuzzy looking spot on its back. I've put both newts ina dirt quarentine but i have no idea how long they should be in there, wether i should spray them with water or if i should provide food and drinking water, if somone could help i'd be so grateful, i don't want to loose these little guys
thanks

 

[gar4016]

Simply on mixing the newts with tropical fish I'm going to have to say that the temp differences required between newts and your tropical fish is too great. Either your newt could get stressed and die from hot temps, or the fish would get stressed and die from low temps. Not a good mix. This is beside the fact that the newt will get picked on by the barbs/whatever else pretty badly. Newts are more of a species tank thing, although that's good reason to get more cfbs for that tank

 

[Abrahm]

hi again,
I bought my newts, i have two chinese fire belly newts in a ten gallon (no fish) for about two weeks now they have not left the floating log, I've put them in the water myself but they swim frantically and try to get back on land. they haven't eaten since i've gotten them and now one has a white fuzzy looking spot on its back. I've put both newts ina dirt quarentine but i have no idea how long they should be in there, wether i should spray them with water or if i should provide food and drinking water, if somone could help i'd be so grateful, i don't want to loose these little guys
thanks

If you have them on dirt quarantine you will need to keep their habitat moist. Use a gradient and have one side be more moist than the other. Besides the dirt quarantine you can use a paper towel hospital tank where the only substrate is unbleached (brown) paper towel that has been moistened with dechlorinated water. Add some cork bark or folds of towel for hide and this is a good setup that also allows you to see if the newt has a bowel movement. The towels should be changed everyday and should always be moist. The habitat should also be kept as cool as possible.

Keep them in the quarantine until they are no longer showing signs of illness and continue to feed them when they are in quarantine. Small wriggling pieces of earthworm are a perfect food for this. When you put the newts back in their aquatic tank don't worry if they stay out of the water, they will eventually move back in. It is more stressful to try and reintroduce them repeatedly.

 

[pimpmastersmak]

Well, I would have to say you have to many fish in your tank. Enless you have a major filter on there. In my experience you sound like me and you want more and more. I suggest you get a 75 gallon tank for your fish and have your newts in the 20. For your problem with fish and newts, as long as the size is the same and the fish isn't labled aggressive you can try. The thing is, all animals are different some are nice and some are evil. But anyways your newts need more than a turtle log, I think you should drain your water down to about 3/4 and get some rocks and such and build one side up, jus watch the little cracks they might get stuck. Also most tropical fish don't need a heater, most are fine with room temp.

 

[oregon newt]

First of all, the thread is from last year. Second, I wouldn't say it is overstocked as long as there is 1 gallon for 1 inch of fish. It probably is overstocked, but the size of the tank they should get depends on how many inches of fish there are. Third, no animals are evil and no animals are nice, but if you mix different species together there will be problems. Fourth, if these animals are mostly aquatic, then a I would think a turtle log would be fine. And fifth, most tropical fish do need a heater to prevent temperature fluctuations. I also do not think your username is very appropriate.