Originally Posted by
adrian31@outlook.com
Really sorry to hear about this Heidi. Most here have been in your shoes. I also know what this is like and I take it as a learning experience. Even when you do everything right with quarantine, etc., mishaps can still occur with water, filter, other odd incidents which result in dead fish. Even after proper quarantine deaths can still occur due to illness when mixing different fish.
I suppose the most sure way to succeed with your perfect fish is start with a fresh sterile environment (tank/filter), get all your fish at once from a reputable source, and personally hand-pick your fish to guarantee you get exactly what you want. As I mentioned, this last time around I sterilized my tank/filter to do a fresh start, ordered from a reputable supplier, but I wasn't able to hand-pick my fish. Only 5 of the 15 I received in that order were what I considered 'select grade' and what I was looking for. And it wasn't too long after that a water mishap occurred that resulted in some deaths.
This hobby can be difficult, especially when you're still learning and picky, like I have been.
Conclusion: don't take it too hard, this is normal for where you are right now.