General Aquaria Discussion • Totally bummed....hubby wants me to reduce my tanks!!

[heylady]

Hubby started thinking about things and decided that no more new tanks should come into the house (which totally throws off my plans on getting a bigger tank for some of my fish!), not only that but he wants me to reduce the amount of tanks that I have too!!!

Don't get me wrong.....I can understand where he's coming from because yes, it is getting a little out of hand!! I have 8 tanks right now and they are scattered all over the house. This past weekend I moved the tank in the living room into the "fish" room so that at least is out of the way. It's crowded in here but I can deal with that. But I am so in a dilemma about what to do from here. There is not a tank or fish that I can bear to part with. If I think about giving up say, the 30g I might think that yeah, the bettas (m/f) in there I can part with but the angel pair are really nice and that tank is a breeze to care for. Then I think about something like the 55g which has Pinky my BP and The Brain (formally known as "Tex") a texas cichlid in it, yes this tank requires more maintance but Pinky is a fish that I really, really like and have had for years. Or, how do I give up my salt tank when my yellow tang is my oldest fish and I know what people do with adult damsels??? About the only tank I wouldn't mind is the smallest one - a 5g - that is in HIS game room.....a tank with fish that HE wanted.....

I have agreed to 'no new tanks' in the house. I have also agreed to 'no new fish'. Other than that I don't know what to do. Lie low and hope this passes? Hope he forgets about the reducing part? I never did actually agree to that!!

If your significant other put their foot down, what would you do? What would you part with??


BTW, just so you know, he's a really good guy, has put up with alot of this for a long time; (ie) worms in the fridge, a tank with crickets in the hallway, growing infusoria on the windowsills, hatching BBS in the kitchen, you get the idea. There is no way that I would leave him over this, or demand that he just deal with it. I love him totally he's my soul mate but I think he's getting tired of the expense and space it takes up. Mainly I'm just venting a little

[F8LBITEva]

well, tell him you have no choice but to get a 265G to put most of your fish in. Also you could tell him you have the P....Power and you make the rules.

[rwolff]

tell him 'no more tanks, no more sex'...muahaha...that should do it

i would say it may have gone too far also, but its such a nice hobby and we never really know what too far is, its diff for every person.
'no new fish' hmm...id say only the number of tanks is negotiable hehe.
Hope u keep the nr of tanks u have tho, be a pity ever to get rid of just one

[CDMOK]

I just recently joined a local aquarium club, and seeing some of the fishrooms that these people have... it's intense. 30+ tanks, none smaller than 20gl. Luckily, a majority of their spouses share in the hobby so it's not so much of an issue. But I can easily see how, for someone who is not interested in fishkeeping, this can be a problem.

By BP, do you mean Bristlenose Pleco? If so, then Pinky can join just about any of your other tanks Honestly, what I would do - and I know it's irrelevent because I can't place the attachment you have for your fish into my logic - is convince the hubby to let you keep one big tank as opposed to mulitple smaller ones. Maybe sell the 30 gl, and the 55. Bettas and Angels and popular fish and I bet you can even hand them over to a neighbor, family or friend who you trust and would let you stop in and see them whenever . The BP (if it's a bristlenose) and Texas Cichlid you could transfer to a larger (75 gl's are popular, and cheap on craigslist) aquarium and even add to the stock. That is, if he lets you. You could keep the same filters from the 55 and 30, costing you no extra and even gaining some from the sell of the smaller tanks.

Maybe he will be fine with keeping the two tanks - a larger one, and the salt water. Three if you count his 5 gallon

That's the only thing I can think of to keep everyone happy. Either way, good luck!

[sickchild]

If I was your hubby I wouldn't mind the fish(obviously!) but no way would I ever tolerate the crickets in the hallway! I HATE BUGS! I totaly know how you feel though, my wife won't allow me to have anymore tanks as well. And I only have 4 tanks!

[sickchild]

I would love an 180g...The ol' ball and chain doesn't see the same picture as me though. But she loves both the 60g and 55g long (both of which are in the bed room!) and the 80g all male hap/peacock show tank and the 20g long fry growout. And she also says we should make more room for the baby fry so the kids can help learn to grow them out...But no more tanks! I'll break her though, We'll get the 180g by the end of summer i'm predicting!

[Malawi Mac]

If I was your hubby I wouldn't mind the fish(obviously!) but no way would I ever tolerate the crickets in the hallway! I HATE BUGS! I totaly know how you feel though, my wife won't allow me to have anymore tanks as well. And I only have 4 tanks!

When my son was about five, he came up to me and said "Daddy, there is a lizard in the bathroom closet." I didn't believe him, but he insisted, and when I went to check, sure enough, there was a green anole in our bathroom closet. We captured him easily enough and put him in an empty aquarium in the basement. Upon learning that anoles only eat live food, we set up another aquarium to raise crickets.

At one point, the cat jumped on top of the cricket aquarium, knocking the screen off, and setting the crickets free.

The anole has been gone for many years. My son graduated from college last Saturday.

And we still have gigantic crickets in our basement.

[dwarfpike]

Extreme options:

1)Trade said signifant other in for a newer, younger, more compliant version.
2)Locate a larger house preferable with a seperate fish building.
3)Nookie prision.
4)"No more tanks means no more children/cars/football" (which ever is cherished by said signifig. other).
5)Sell a child.
6)Sell the signif. other.

Priorities people ... fish come before family, money, just about anything else. Remember even the homeless can keep goldfish in bowls.

(hopes everyone realizes this is completely tongue in cheek)

[travis2k]

I would suggest, offering to cut down on the number of tanks, in exchange for a big one

Worked for me, I am building a 600+ gallon, and now have the fiance more or less convinced that I am still going to keep the two 29's and the 55, but then again, she is really easy going and doesnt care what I do with my money (also helps I bought the house)

good luck

[lloyd]

addicts need to realize, that when family finally injects opinion, it is for the best. decide a ratio that best describes your addiction (aka 'hobby') vs. other important issues like family, work, social activities, etc... then take that same ratio and apply it against the square footage your hobby has intervened into the space your family lives in. if you have already exceeded that space ratio, then wake up and smell the caprichromis. there is more to life than fish.
there are many reasons, why some of us cannot control our obsessions, but unlimited fish availability cannot be one of them. search your heart, then your soul (not that sole,:roll:), and perhaps you will find the answer for yourself.

[DJRansome]

Or you could just encourage him to acquire a hobby that is even more space consuming and expensive...you will look like the hero with your little fish tanks! My hubby restores antique cars.

[lloyd]

[quote="DJRansome"]My hubby restores antique cars.[/quote]

has he tried to keep all of them?

[DJRansome]

So far, yes. He tries to tell me they are investments. He doesn't blink an eye when I tell him I'm getting another tank or buying more fish.

[sickchild]

Is there a 12 step program for fish keepers? If so then lloyd may have stumbled onto a new career path, a "Cichlid addiction interventionist." Honestly, half the stuff posted here is out of humor, at least my posts anyway. Hey Malawl Mac, that story about the cat and the crickets is too funny! I had to laugh when I read that. One time I had a couple of hamsters as a child. My sisters would play with them when they got home from school, when I was outside playing. One day they lost them inside the house! We looked for hours trying to find them, but gave up thinking they must have got outside somehow. Well, a day turned into a week, a week turned into a month. One day my mother was bring the christmas decorations out of the closet to set up the tree, it was earliy December at this point. To her surprise there was a huge mass of Hamsters living in the Christmas box! Her scream was heard throught the neighborhood for about ten years ! My sisters have never held another Hamster to this day in fear of losing it like that again!

DREW