# a couple of questions



## Emt_tracy28 (Sep 11, 2010)

Hello all. I haven't had any fish since I was a little kid and even than I didn't have to take care of the tank myself so I'm pretty new to this. I started out with a 10g tank. I went to the store and decided on tiger barbs. The guy at the store told me that I would have to have 5 or 6 of the tiger barbs or they would fight each other. I also got a blue lobster. After seeing those fish in the 10g tank I knew that I needed a bigger tank. I now have a 29g tank. I have a 100w heater, a 6" air stone, and a hang on the tank filter. I have 6 tiger barbs, 2 golden mystery snails, and a blue lobster. 

My first question is I would like to add some more color to my tank and I am not sure what I should add. I was looking at the website for Jack's ( only pet store around me besides Walmart) and I liked the look of some of the discus but could not find any info on them. What would you guys suggest that would get along in my tank and add some more color?

My next question is I was hoping that someone could tell me what is going on with one of my tiger barbs it is acting strange. It will swim up to the top of the water flip over so that it is belly up and float there for a few seconds like it has died, then it will flip back over and swim off around the tank. Other then this action it acts just like the others. Could it be that it is just bored? 

One last question, what is the best thing to feed to my blue lobster? I have heard that if I get some ghost shrimp and put them in the tank that will be enough.
Thank you for any help or suggesting that you could give me.


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## Peeps (May 24, 2010)

The lobster might be picking on the barbs. There is not much you can add with the lobster, they eat what ever they get their claws on. I have some. They can eat veggies (cucumber, zucchini, lettuce, raw potato). And crushed egg shells are needed for calcium. Just crack an egg, wash it, crush it up and put it in the tank. But like I said their is not much you can add with them, I have mine with no tank mates. I got Lobster food, here is the link.


http://www.bigalsonline.ca/edealinv...=&offset=0&hits=12&sortby=&query=lobster+food


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## Emt_tracy28 (Sep 11, 2010)

I have an empty 10g tank should I put the lobster in it with no tank mates? The store that I got my lobster had him in the same tank with the tiger barbs so I thought that it would be ok.


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## spike0544 (Aug 28, 2010)

I am no expert but if you mean Jack Dempsy's, they will get much too large for your tank. As for the Discus, I believe they would be too large also and they require very specific water parameters. They are a very docile fish also, so probably not a good choice with tiger barbs which can be aggressive. Do some research on your fish there are many sites on the web that offer great fish profiles.


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## lohachata (Jan 27, 2006)

move the lobster to the 10...no discus with the barbs..tiger barbs are pretty....but they are pretty mean..i would put them in with the lobster..then start out new with the 29..
discus can be a little tricky at times...they like warmer water..84-90 degrees..they really are not a good fish for a beginner..
you could try doing a natural tank..a dark natural gravel..nice plants...anubias..java ferns.. cryptocoryne..aponogetons.. a nice piece of driftwood..
then some cories..smaller active fish like odessa barbs which will knock your eyes out once they are comfortable.lots of beautiful tetras around as well..
i am sure you will figure things out..mistakes are made by all of us..don't let them run you out of a fantastic hobby..
welcome to the world of fish.....and to FishForums..you will be constantly amazed at the things you will see...
oh..and i am also from Ohio..good to see another one of us here..


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## Corwin (May 23, 2010)

as far as i know you have to gutload ghosts before you feed them to fish etc, beyond that i feed my crays shrimp pellets


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## LilSums (Aug 2, 2010)

Lohachata is spot on with her suggestion of the barbs and lobster together. If you choose to start the 29g without them (so basically from scratch) peaceful community fish will be easiest to get along & add lots of colour. Careful with barbs though, they tend to be fin nippers & often the tank bullies. Discus as well get aggressive (sometimes REALLY aggressive) with other fish; and as mentioned are a real pain in the rear to take care of. I have a 29G as well with peaceful fish and have reds, oranges, blues, pinks, silver, yellows, and grays all swimming around between my gold algae eater, guppies, blackskirt tetras, pink longfin zebra danios, marigold & redwag platties, mystery snail & Dwarf frog (who is so much fun & eats from my finger, HIGHLY recommend!), and everyone's mellow. 

As for lobster food, I agree shrimp food works well. But as Peeps suggested, be sure to supplement it's diet with calcium at least 1-2x/wk. When I kept crustaceans I made sure that the shrimp food got down to it (sometimes the other fish will catch it on the way down) and pieces of veggie. Other fish tend to ignore the egg shell so that was no worry. Good luck!


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## Corwin (May 23, 2010)

hmm anyone know if eggshells work with ghost shrimp as well?


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## LilSums (Aug 2, 2010)

@Corwin- I had ghost shrimp awhile back, too & gave it to them just super crushed, they ate it & never had a problem. All crustaceans I've had I've given it to, actually. Shrimp, lobsters, crayfish, and crabs (all freshwater) and it seemed to improve their growth, health, and spunk (which was not always good, the shrimps & crabs all passed away either getting out through the filter or through the back even with netting & my cat found them before I did :/ ). My snails would eat some, too & although I didn't notice a difference they didn't seem to be harmed by it. I'm not an expert though, this was just my personal experience in caring for them.


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