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Dear Miss Fifi:
My son would really like a fish in his room, but neither my husband nor I have ever had them as pets. Any suggestions for a ten year old?
- The Bridgers
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Dear Bridgers Family:
Unfortunately, Miss Fifi won't be of much assistance to you in this regard, considering my humans have worked their way through at least a dozen fish through the years. In fact, the notorious tank once occupied by the fish during their stints on death row ... er, that is to say, their sadly shortened lives ... now houses a lovely philodendron. It sits in a sunny spot in the living room near my bed. Their consciences finally got the better of them, and I was relieved when they opted to use the tank to sustain life ... the plant thanks them for their green thumb.
Wouldn't you rather have a dog?
Woof.
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If I were to recommend a fish, I'd suggest getting the Penguin Biowheel tanks (You can get the 5 gallon for relatively cheap and it comes with almost all the equipment you need). I'd recommend getting one male betta fish (No, you can't keep them in the little cups that the stores push), and a couple of Otocinclus (Otos). The Otos are catfish that will eat the algae that grows in the tank (Requiring less cleaning on your behalf). Then you'll need to do a 25% water change once a week. Be sure to get something like "Stress Coat" for the water to take out all the chlorine and such (Let it sit for a few hours in the bucket).
Do not, under any circumstances, get a goldfish and put them in a tiny bowl or a small tank. Goldfish require excessive amounts of work as they put out an extremely high amount of ammonia in the water.
February 5, 2008 5:21 p.m.
February 5, 2008 8:41 a.m.
February 1, 2008 5:21 p.m.