So, for reasons unclear to me, my fish are afraid of me. All of a sudden when I approach the tank they rush into their hiding holes. :irked: I have no idea what I was supposed to have done, but it really ticks me off! Even the Chromises dash away. The Betta is the only one unimpressed... Any thoughts?
Chicken fish!
- Thread starter Dmitry
- Start date
- Location
- Westchester, NY
You're too close to the tank take a few steps back LOL.
Seriously do you constantly mess with things in the tank? Remember you are the great arm from above and you are quite a bit bigger than they are so it is natural for them to hide. Give them some time and they will be better with you.
Seriously do you constantly mess with things in the tank? Remember you are the great arm from above and you are quite a bit bigger than they are so it is natural for them to hide. Give them some time and they will be better with you.
Put yourself in the "shoes" of the fish! They are looking out. They dont see things the way we do. There are so many reasons why this could be happening. Do you wear bright colors and approach the tank quickly?
Do you have wooden floors that vibrate as you are waliking towards the tank?
Are you a "glass tapper"?
Do you eat sushi at home and is the tank in full view of the kitchen cuttingboard?
The fish have to associate you with something pleasant. One thing is feeding. If you are the type of aquarist that constantly has his hands in the tank and moving things around or trying to catch fish with a net then they perceive you as a threat. Maybe when the lights turn down you are the type that will occasionally switch the lights back on because you want to still look. This kind of action disturbs the fish. and they will associate these events with the aquarist or the family (children) of the aquarist.
Like I said there could be a ton of reasons.
Do you have wooden floors that vibrate as you are waliking towards the tank?
Are you a "glass tapper"?
Do you eat sushi at home and is the tank in full view of the kitchen cuttingboard?
The fish have to associate you with something pleasant. One thing is feeding. If you are the type of aquarist that constantly has his hands in the tank and moving things around or trying to catch fish with a net then they perceive you as a threat. Maybe when the lights turn down you are the type that will occasionally switch the lights back on because you want to still look. This kind of action disturbs the fish. and they will associate these events with the aquarist or the family (children) of the aquarist.
Like I said there could be a ton of reasons.
- Location
- Philippines
:shhh: ...caN you post youR pic and we'LL see if we get the saMe reacTion :lol: :knockedou :joke:
the other guy who posted earlier was correct. how much do you put your hands in your tank?? you cant keep upsetting the balance in your tank and expect them to be all lovey dovey.
if you dont put it in that much then check those levels and then feed them with you standing in front of the tank. Believe it or not I show them the food. they know that when they see the red cup they are getting fed and they go bezerk for me. i can even feed them by hand. also all new fish wont comply with you in the begining. And they usually go to one person. that is my experience. also what kind of fish do you have anyway?
matt
if you dont put it in that much then check those levels and then feed them with you standing in front of the tank. Believe it or not I show them the food. they know that when they see the red cup they are getting fed and they go bezerk for me. i can even feed them by hand. also all new fish wont comply with you in the begining. And they usually go to one person. that is my experience. also what kind of fish do you have anyway?
matt
I always put my hands in the tank dont have a problem with my fish what i do is when i feed the i make sure they know where it is coming from! i put my hand at up to my rist before i let the food go they head for my hand to eat. when a new fish is added it takes a few days but the fish will fall in line
good luck
good luck
- Location
- Ossining, NY
Dmitry,
I would love to do a study about this - I spend alot of time at my tank, inside, in front, etc. I also see the tank more than 3 times a day - since you work odd hours, I am wondering how often you "interact" with your tank and how that affects the inhabitants.
When I first started, I had a 30g and barely saw it cause I worked so many hours and when I did interact with it, I was fiddling, rebuilding, moving rocks etc. My fish would do the same thing - freak out and hide. Interesting enough, they don't do that now and 4 of the 12 fish that I have now are from that same first tank . Emprical, no, it is what I observed.
Jim
I would love to do a study about this - I spend alot of time at my tank, inside, in front, etc. I also see the tank more than 3 times a day - since you work odd hours, I am wondering how often you "interact" with your tank and how that affects the inhabitants.
When I first started, I had a 30g and barely saw it cause I worked so many hours and when I did interact with it, I was fiddling, rebuilding, moving rocks etc. My fish would do the same thing - freak out and hide. Interesting enough, they don't do that now and 4 of the 12 fish that I have now are from that same first tank . Emprical, no, it is what I observed.
Jim
I noticed in the past I used to under feed my fish and they would be skittish. Now I feed a lot, all fish fat and healthy, and they are always out in the open ...begging. Only problem with this is you better have a big enough skimmer yo handle the waste 
BIGG SKIMMER YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAa
BIGG SKIMMER YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAa
- Location
- Howell, NJ
as he said BIG SKIMMER....... Rich im Joining the BIG SKIMMER CLUB now 2..
- Location
- 11756
It's "Big JACKSON" guys not "Big SKIMMER"...silly dudes...
Rich, just saw my JACKSON and said it's kicking arse :icon16:
Rich, just saw my JACKSON and said it's kicking arse :icon16:
Hmm...I found this thread by an accident. After I initially posted...it seemed to vanish and I assumed some glitch was at fault. Now I stumble upon all these replies!! Weird.
Anyway, I don't think I fiddle around with rocks or anything too much. The only time I cause a serious disturbance in the tank is when I get a magfloat and clean the front glass.
As soon as I start feeding the fish come out and eat all is well. And then the next time I approach the tank (I make sure I'm not rushing up to it) they will go and hide. The only two fish who don't hide are the Marine Betta and the Purple Firefish.
The lights on my tank are on a timer, so there's a routine there. But I'm not there by the tank on a real routine because my work hours are scattered. Not sure if that is a problem...
Anyway, I don't think I fiddle around with rocks or anything too much. The only time I cause a serious disturbance in the tank is when I get a magfloat and clean the front glass.
As soon as I start feeding the fish come out and eat all is well. And then the next time I approach the tank (I make sure I'm not rushing up to it) they will go and hide. The only two fish who don't hide are the Marine Betta and the Purple Firefish.
The lights on my tank are on a timer, so there's a routine there. But I'm not there by the tank on a real routine because my work hours are scattered. Not sure if that is a problem...
Had the same problem, just sit in front (not right in front) of the tank, watch and enjoy. They'll eventually come out when they see that you don't mean any harm. I have a damsel that was always scared, now when i come up to the tank he knows he associates my presence with him getting fed and comes out of hiding.
Fish petting
I even had some of my fish come to the top of the tank and get pet.. yes pet them.. thats was pretty cool. :thrash:
I've had a few nibble on my finger thinkings its food.. :eat:
So I guess each individule has its own personality.
I even had some of my fish come to the top of the tank and get pet.. yes pet them.. thats was pretty cool. :thrash:
I've had a few nibble on my finger thinkings its food.. :eat:
So I guess each individule has its own personality.
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