A Beginner’s Guide To Fish Parenting

Are you new to fish parenting, or just need to brush up on your parenting skills? Here are a few tips to get you started and help you care for your beautiful aqua pets better. 

Why Fish Make Good Companions

• Fish aren’t like other pets. They’re not warm, cuddly or necessarily looking to get your attention. However, they still make for great pets. Fish are relatively low-maintenance, require less space and are always a calming influence in one’s home.
• Having said that, they still require thoughtfully curated habitats and good care! In case you didn’t know, fish feel pain just like other mammals do. Thus it helps to provide them with an environment that’s as much like their natural habitat as possible. 
• Some of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish in the U.S. include Guppies, Neon Tetra, Oscars, Bettas, Cherry Barbs, Mollies, Swordtails, etc. 

• One must remember that different species of fish are adapted to different environments. This includes different temperatures as well. One must ensure that they regulate the temperature of their aquarium accordingly. Fish also require a fair amount of space. For example, when three guppies are kept together, each of them requires about 1 gallon of water. While selecting an aquarium, one should take such measurements into account. 
• In addition to this, fishes also require some foliage in their aquarium. You can consider keeping live plants or plastic plants in the aquarium as they also have multiple benefits. While plastic plants are decorative, live plants add oxygen to the water, remove carbon dioxide and utilize nitrates. 
• Fish can largely be divided into saltwater and freshwater. Depending upon your fish’s species and whether they’re saltwater or freshwater, you can design their habitat. Saltwater tanks are comparably a challenge to maintain, but they play host to the most colorful and visually diverse fish.

Nutrition & Dietary Requirements

• The first step towards deciding your fish’s diet is looking up the dietary requirements for the concerned species. Some fish are carnivores while others are herbivores. 
• After finding that out, one can choose between the different dietary options available along with what form they come in (for eg., frozen food, live food, freeze dried food, etc.). 
• The next thing to decide is the portion of food that your fishes require. It will depend on the species of your pet fishes and their number. You should also consider other factors like finding out if your fishes are surface feeders, mid-range feeders or bottom feeders as well as how often you should feed them.

Hygiene Requirements

• Arguably, the most important thing when it comes to maintenance of hygiene for your pets, is changing the water. It is recommended that the aquarium water should be changed every two weeks.
• One should also monitor water parameters such as the pH, nitrates, nitrites and the KH (carbonic hardness). 
• Depending upon the size of your aquarium as well as how densely populated it is, one will also have to clean the filter on a regular basis. 
• Some other tips include cleaning the aquarium tank from the outside, laminating it and checking for algae build-up. 

General Tips

• Dogs, cats or fish - pets are family! Don’t forget to keep a regular check on your fish. Monitor their eating habits and how active they are. 
• If you know their routine, you’ll know if there’s something wrong with them someday. It’s always best to get your pet checked by your local vet in case of an emergency.