Hi Folks

dave · Post by **dave** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 4:54 am

While the quest for Zebras goes on, and I have kept my mouth shut for quite a while.

I have just read that somebody is keeping 20 in a 10 gal tank, and I guess that is US gals.

I just find it scary that somebody can do this.

I just think that this shows a complete lack of understanding of fish keeping and is tantamount to cruelty.

Dave

Jojoyojimbi · Post by **Jojoyojimbi** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 7:17 am

just goes to prove that people with zebras aren't always the most qualified, so long as they're rare, and desired, people with money will have zebras as status symbols

random guy_1: man that's a neat fish there, what's that
Zebrabreeder_1: that there's a hypancistrus zebra, they're rare, ane expensive, not many people have them
random guy_1: well jobbie... how much are they?
Zebrabreeder_1: they're $100 per fish at one inch long
random guy_1: $100 bucks a pop for a one inch fish? not many people have them you say?
Zebrabreeder_1: yeah, they're rare and they can't be imported anymore
random guy_1: i'll take 20!
Zebrabreeder_1: .... have you bred any fish before?
random guy_1: of course, i'm a master breeder, i've bred guppies, swordtails, platies, and even convict cichlids. I can breed anything
Zebrabreeder_1: what kind of set up do you have?
random guy_1: well i've got a 29g with 4 6 inch long oscars in it, and 2, foot long common plecos, but i've got a spare 10g i can set up zebras in, so i'll take 20, here's cash
Zebrabreeder_1: ...zebras aren't a status symbol that you can just set up and ignore and expect them to breed like guppies, they require a lot of work, they sell for a lot of money because they are in demand by people who have the experience and the knowledge to perpetuate the species...
random guy_1: here's $2500 then
Zebrabreeder_1: i'm sorry, i can't sell them to you, you're an idiot
random guy_1: well fine, if you won't someone else will!

Zebrabreeder_2: (insert previous exchange here).... you're an idiot you can't have my fry

Zebrabreeder_3: (see above)

Big-Wholesale-Importer-Getting-Illegal-L46: ... 20 you say? that'll be $4000
random guy_1: done, now when they get here i'll fill my 10g tank up with warm tap water and not even bother to cycle it, also i won't put anything in it for them to hide in/under and i think i'll use a big oversized canister filter with an exposed intake

phone call from random guy_1 to Zebrabreeder_1&2: so, you wouldn't sell them to me so i bought them from someone else, i'm going to breed them and put you out of business!
Zebrabreeder_1&2: we're not doing this as a business, we're doing it because we love the fish
random guy_1: well i'm going to resell half of them at twice the price then mine will be free! muhahahahaha

andrewcoxon · Post by **andrewcoxon** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 8:40 am

hmmm its allways a bit of a worry when that persons first post is basically "help im getting 20 zebras in a couple of days time and i dont know how to look after them". this might be a little obvious but i planned my zebra tank over months and had it set up and running for ages before they arrived....to make sure everything was 100% perfect for them. just seems like common sense to me

rhino · Post by **rhino** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 11:19 am

Soooo....Funny!

I would love to have zebras right now! But being new to them, at least I have enough sense to hang with you guys awhile and learn as much as I can before I attempt to house them. I want whats best for the zebras, not whats best for me. If it takes me a year for that so be it. At least I will know what to do when the time comes. Thank you all for letting a non-zeb owner ( will be though

) be a part of Zebrapleco.com.

Jojoyojimbi · Post by **Jojoyojimbi** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 12:33 pm

andrewcoxon wrote:hmmm its allways a bit of a worry when that persons first post is basically "help im getting 20 zebras in a couple of days time and i dont know how to look after them". this might be a little obvious but i planned my zebra tank over months and had it set up and running for ages before they arrived....to make sure everything was 100% perfect for them. just seems like common sense to me

I just had a guy from my local aquarium society post that he got 20 zebras, he may or may not have gotten them for the wrong reasons but he at least did the research to find out how to keep them alive and he'd never stick them into a 10g tank so i don't feel bad about him owning them at all.

now hopfully there's another pleco that i have access too that he'll take in trade for 4-6 of his zebras

chanettt · Post by **chanettt** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 12:40 pm

i hope all 20 are fine

they will be stress for sure. however, in my head, the evil side say "hope half of them die" that guy should be more concern about them.

crazie.eddie · Post by **crazie.eddie** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 1:36 pm

That's funny. I do hope someone does buy them. He's definetely the wrong type of person to be raising them, since he's definetely just in it for the cash.

eklikewhoa · Post by **eklikewhoa** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 1:45 pm

im considering upgrading my 20gal long for a bigger tank, possibly a bowfront and i dont have no where near as many but i dont see how 20 could be happy in a 10gal unless they are fry and water changes occur often and parameters are under a close watch.

crazie.eddie · Post by **crazie.eddie** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 2:46 pm

Yeah. I admit, mine are in a 10 gallon, but there are only 2, both juveniles and the biggest almost 2". Plus there are plenty of caves and tunnels for them and I do daily water changes with aged water.

I don't see how one person would be able to put anyone out of business with just 20 zebras. Now if someone had probably had 1000 pairs of breeding zebras, then yes, but 20?

eklikewhoa · Post by **eklikewhoa** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 3:51 pm

i saw the guys auction thread while leaving negative feedback for someone and its pretty suspicious to have two different sale ads with different contenst selling the same fish.

Jojoyojimbi · Post by **Jojoyojimbi** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 3:55 pm

I wasn't saying that with 20 zebras you could corner the market, i was just saying that it seems that people who aquire these fish think that they're going to get rich because they can sell them for a hundred dollars each, in their minds they're just like stocks and bonds, you set them up, then wait awhile and net out the profits, pathetic if you ask me

rhino · Post by **rhino** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 3:57 pm

[quote="crazie.eddie"]Yeah. I admit, mine are in a 10 gallon, but there are only 2, both juveniles and the biggest almost 2". Plus there are plenty of caves and tunnels for them and I do daily water changes with aged water.quote]

Do you think 10 would be to many in my 33 gallon? http://www.zebrapleco.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2380

Thats how many I would like to put in it. I do have a 75 gallon not being used but I was going to use that for some Cichlids maybe.

Post by **Barbie** » Thu Oct 05, 2006 4:07 pm

Guys, we all know someone learning the lesson of why tanks have to be cycled and how difficult it can be to keep a small tank stable. It's going to be a terrible shame if zebras are lost in the learning curve, but really, does it require a couple threads of bashing to make you feel better? Noone is going to learn the lesson faster than the person doing it wrong in the first place and it affects the tone of the board in a really negative way. Tthis topic has definitely outlived it's usefulness.

Barbie