Pet Care Tip of the Day

If you’re setting up an aquarium, make sure that all your fish are compatible both in temperament and environment. It’s common sense that you can’t keep saltwater fish and freshwater fish together, but some other kinds of fish, such as cold water (fish like goldfish who cannot have a heater in the tank) and  tropical fish (many types of fish at the pet store). If you are using a heater with tropical fish, never put a goldfish in the tank or it will probably die from the heat. Goldfish should never be kept with very small fish, as goldfish have large, gaping mouths and will eat the little fish. Bettas and Angel fish or other bettas should not be kept together, because the bettas will attack the other fish. Research your fish choices before buying them to make sure they are compatible in temperature, personality, size, and water Ph.

Pet Care Tip of the Day

Even though the typical vision of a goldfish is a orange fish in a fish bowl, goldfish need the same filtration and aeration of a tropical aquarium. For their size, goldfish are one of the highest waste producers (fish poop + water = water pollution). Though goldfish need the same set up as tropical fish, never put a goldfish in a aquarium that has a tank heater–goldfish are cool water fish and do not thrive in a heated aquarium.

Pet Care Tip of the Day

If you’ve got a pet land hermit crab, make sure that you let any water that you will bathe it in or give it to drink sit out at least overnight. This will allow any chlorine to evaporate, which is important because chlorine can cause blisters on the gills of land hermit crabs (yes, they do have gills, but these are for breathing air. They still must be kept moist, which is why your land hermit crab should be bathed once a week.) The blisters can eventually kill the hermit crab if the chlorine exposure is not corrected. Basically, don’t use any water for your hermit crab that you wouldn’t use for a tropical fish tank.