When I moved house about 5 years ago, the fish tank was the last thing to come. We took great care with it, knowing that fish are very susceptible to changes in their environment. Sadly over the next few weeks, one by one, all the fish expired. The stress was clearly too much for them to bear. We'd mostly had neon and cardinal tetras, and guppies, all of whom get on really well together. The guppies had continually mated, and as they're live bearers, we frequently had lots of little babies. Before we moved we'd probably got on to 4 or 5 generations of guppies. I love guppies as they're so gregarious. They enjoy playing in the strong current from the outflow of the filter, they really know how to have fun. And they're very sociable, both with other fish, and with people. It's probably just because they always want feeding, but whenever we went near to the tank, they'd be there, clamouring for attention.
Anyway, this sad event provided a new opportunity. The room was bigger, and would take a larger tank, so that's what we did. We started from scratch again, and built up a lovely colony of fish. Among them we had some different tetras this time, and a couple of pairs of rainbow fish. There was one rainbow male who was clearly in charge of the tank – he was the head fish, undoubtedly.
The tank was sited in the darkest part of the room – essential so as not to encourage too much algae growth. A little algae is normal, but every now and again, when you have a tank you find you have to do a little extra cleaning. We had a number of fish known for their cleaning abilities, but we started to notice that more and more they weren't doing their job. In fact the algae was growing rampant. It would change in type, and strangely looked both messy and perfect at the same time. After all, in a sunny stream or lake, there would very naturally be algae, so trying to keep a tank completely clean of algae probably isn't that natural. But of course, when you keep fish, part of the attraction and the reason, is that it's a pleasing feature in the room – so people very naturally try to keep on top of algae development. We had the water tested, and there was no problem, and we tried various treatments, which really didn't work at all. But the fish were thriving, so was it really as bad as it looked?
We had a discussion, and it was clear that despite all our efforts, we just weren't winning the algae battle. Mark decided the best thing to do was to completely bleach the tank to kill off all the spores, once all the fish had finally gone. Then we'd start again. I have to admit I'm not happy with this solution. For a start, how can we be sure that every last molecule of bleach has been expunged from the tank before we start again? And how long do we soak it for? As it's one of Bella's favourite places to sleep on top of, I didn't want her becoming sick from breathing in the fumes. And on top of all that, it just didn't feel right. Surely there's got to be a more natural, kinder way to rid the tank of all the spores.
As they do, some of the fish started to die off, and this time we didn't replace any. But the strangest thing happened...... I was sitting by the tank one day, and I was aware of the head fish talking to me. I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised at all, but it never occurred to me that the fish would want to talk. He said that he knew what was happening, and that it was his job to take care of all the fish in the tank. He was worried that we were just waiting for them all, impatiently, to die off, and this was upsetting him and all the other fish in the tank. I was mortified! I apologised immediately, and told him that wasn't the case at all – I was so sorry if we'd given him that impression. We were very happy for them to live in the tank (their home) for as long as they were able, but that when it was finally empty, we would start again. That's been my view all along, but Mark has been a little more impatient from time to time. He's suggested taking the fish to the fish shop, but I know that the stress of this move will kill them, so I'm not doing it. It's their home, and so what if it is all full of algae? It could look smarter, but I don't live in a museum – my home is a home for all the creatures that live in it.
Well, one day the big chief rainbow died, and in time we were down to just a few fish....... In fact, for quite a while now, the only inhabitants have been a 5 year old head and tail light tetra, a 4 year old penguin tetra, a plecostamus, a tiger loach, and a horse face loach, all of whom are at least 3 years old. So they're doing quite well. Showing their age though, not as active as they used to be, and their scales have seen better days. But they're happy. And I'm still in no hurry for them to swim off this mortal coil...
Then one day recently the penny dropped!!!! Why did it take so long for me to realise? I started learning Reiki about 3 years ago, and it's about then that we started having the algae "problem". I'd actually thought about using Reiki then to try to resolve the problem in the tank, but even then resisted as I thought I might just help the algae to grow better. And of course, as I carry Reiki around with me all the time, that's what's happened. But more than that, Reiki is concerned with what's best for any situation or being. So actually even though we think the algae isn't good for the tank or the fish, the likelihood is that it's very good for it. It's not causing a problem for the water, the fish are living well (it's only the plants that have struggled), and the tank is pretty healthy.
So, do you know what? I'm going to abandon any plans to start again with the tank. If it means that from time to time we have to bring everything out and give it a good scrub, so be it. If the plants are being suffocated we won't have any real ones. They're there to both oxygenate the water, and to provide cover and interest for the fish. Well, we can get some plastic ones, more rocks and other bits and pieces, and the filter oxygenates the water any way. Decision made!!!
So, what new fish do I want?..............
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