Syphoning?!

[discus2010]

I do w/c's 6 times a week (2 55%, and 4 25%) and i have 3 in juveniles and whenever i put in the syphon they go CRAZY and get all stressed out! how do i stop this from happening i don't want to overly stress them out and they go so crazy that they bump against the walls!:(

[Albanets]

Mine were bumping for 3 weeks. They just need time. Move slow, do not make rapid moves. They are also very sensitive to vibrations, so it is better not to hit any hard objects or walls in the tank. I also turned room lights off.
What can I say, it is a necessary evil!
:bandana:

[Timbo]

feed them their favorite food just as you are lowering the syphon into the tank first couple of times

soon they will associate the syphon with good things...like eating

[Cosmo]

What worked for me was moving slow until they got used to it.. noise, vibrations would set them off too. Another thing is.... shadows...

Mine are at the point now where I have to nudge them out of the way with the syphon tube ... lol

Another point.. 3 juvies alone in a tank is not a good number..

Jim

[RyanH]

I agree with Jim on both accounts. 3 is not enough for juveniles to feel comfortable in a tank. You really need at least 6.

Like others have mentioned, I've also found that vibrations freak them out more than merely the presence of the syphon. Hitting the bottom or the sides will send them swimming for cover.

I don't recommend babying them though. They need to get used to your presence and your maintenence routine. Keeping lights off and tiptowing around will only reinforce their timid behavior.

They will get used to it. My adults also need to be pushed out of the way while I'm cleaning their tank. They'll even rub on my hands and try to eat poop that's being syphoned out.

hth:)
-Ryan

[KIWI13]

Ryan and Jim are totally right, I go about my routines normally, if they get spooked then tough, they will harden up. They learn fast to associate noises and the recognise you and they might scatter off but its all harmless..

Yes 3 is a bad number, often I have lost one out of the 3 due to stress.. Add a couple more in there if its possible..

Feeding them while siphoning only makes for more work cause then you gotta siphon out again all the uneaten food and if you gotta feed em while doing that, then your gonna be running around in circles...

If you need to , stick a piece of driftwood in there so they can hide behind it while you clean and then you don't have to pamper them anymore. They are just fish...

JMHO

Jason

[goheel]

I think he meant 3 inch juvies, not 3 juvies.

[Greg Richardson]

Put the syphon in the tank and leave it there ALL DAY.
Move it to different places in the tank.

Feed them at normal times if u have them while it's in there.

Do this for a few days.

Do not adjust to them as far as noise goes.
Or movements.
Tippy toeing around tanks will take all the fun out of your hobby and your fish will not grow strong due to being pampered.

Weak fish get stressed faster and sick more.

It's tough enough without losing that edge u can obtain by conditioning them to you not the other way around.

[discus2010]

I didn't mean to say i have 3in juvies i actually have 8
My BAD
Thanks for picking it up goheel, yea i have 8 3 inch juvies in my 55 wiht good water conditions with tetratec and aquaclear filters

[Cosmo]

oops.. my mistake :o

Maybe too much information, but....

I have several pieces of driftwood in the tank, the one in the middle is about 18 inches long and maybe 6 inch in diameter (give or take).. I aways get a kick out of how they all kind of line up behind this piece while I'm syphoning... reminds me of how the fish were all packed together along the edge of a reef or something when I was scuba diving :)

I always start on one end of the tank, so they all line up behind the middle one or the one on the opposite end... then I jump to the other side, and I have to gently nudge them so they'll move over... when I get to the middle they don't seem to want to move anymore and I have to weave the tube between and around them.. lol

After I syphon, I clean the sides and bottom with a scraper while more water drains out of the drain bulkhead ... once draining is done, I clean the prefilters and startup the refill pump .. they wait patiently ...

Routine is good... they get used to it and know there's nothing to get excited about :)

Jim

[discus2010]

So my solution is to
A leave the syphon in the tank and move it around for 2 days all day
B get driftwood
C pamper them spoiled
D forcefully make them get used to it

[CAGE-RATTLER]

I feed mine the frozen foods by hand so they associate my hands in the tank with food.

I use a small 1/4 inch diameter tube for syphoning food and poo and when ever i use it the fish are usually nipping at my fingers or pretty much following the tube around the tank and getting in my way. I also usually feed them something right after i syphon the poo so i guess they associate the tube with food coming soon too.

Slow movements definately a must so's not to startle them..... and the less things in the tank the easier it is to clean and not have to worry about banging into things or moving them around.

And when i drain with the python they will actually swim inside the tube ..... lol. I have a large tube on my python.

[Timbo]

I have a large tube on my python.

lol, you and John Holmes