Arowana hobbyist - Comprehensive CareGuide

[PAIN]

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WELCOME TO AROWANA PET CARE!

• Learn all about Asian Arowanas
• Ask questions about Dragon fish
• Tips and Tricks

PART 1: Introduction/Overview




Also known as the Dragon Fish or Water Monkey. Originated sa Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Australia, Thailand, Vietnam, South America ug Africa walay Philippines gape daghan. Nabuhi since dinosaur age ug ma buhi up to 25 years in captivity. Endangered n cla karon specialy the Asian Aros; they range in size from 30 to 90cm. All arowanas are mouth brooders (ang laki mag lumlum sa itlog sulod sa ilang baba).

According in Chinese and traditional Asian (feng shui) believes; this brings fortune, good health and dispel bad spirits. According to breeders, this are gold bars swimming in there ponds. ~_~

Habitat:
Aros are predatory, territorial and aggressive fresh water fish; they are carnivorous dili mo eat ug utan and will eat almost any aquatic life that fits in their mouths. Mao if you decided to put a tank mate pilia kanang d ma sud sa iya baba or else…
Aros are surface feeders, they can jump 2x there height mao gi tawag cla flying monkeys sa Africa.

In Captivity:
I’ve mentioned tank size and water temperature at the earlier post. Or tank should be 3x the length of your Aro, full grown Aro require a 125Gallon tank and it must be covered at all times! Minimal decorations is advice ug avoid sharp edge/objects pra dili ma samad or garasan imo Aro. Substrate is advisable pra dili mag sig tanaw sa iyang reflection ang Aro sa ubos, to prevent (Drop eye syndrome) will talk about this later as we move on.

Feeding:




Adult Aro’s should be fed once a day lang or every other day; young (juvenile) fish must be fed 2 to 3 times a day apas sa ila growth. Aro foods can be classified into four types; Live food, Fresh food, Frozen food ug Canned food.

• Live Food: mao ni #1 choice sa mga Aro mag laway pa, sama sa; Guppies, SuperWorm (nay daghan sa manalili or pet shoppe), Goldfish, Crikets o temus and small frogs. As long as limpyohan sa ninyu to ensure they are parasites free.
• Fresh Food: like; market Prawns (pasayan), fish, chicken or beef heart. Pag buwad lang sa mo gud, unaha lang sa ang Aro. ^^ reminders, please cut off the head and tail of the prawn or any sharp object sa inyu e lawg.
• Frozen Food: most of this is sold frozen like worms, cockroaches, larvae, insects and centipedes. Note, ang ok-ok ako gi mention dili nang naa sa ato balay ha this are breed from a cockroach farms.
• Canned Food: like pellets and dried process fish foods, that can be buy in any petshope. Normally Aros don’t like this but when you train them young they will.

Ok, if you’re lucky enough to actually bred an Aro, the fry needs food after the yolk on there body disappeared aprox 60days then mangita nanag ma kaun. You can feed them mollies or guppies lang, ayaw timplahig milk kay lo-od. And Fish should only be fed an amount they can consume in approximately 5 mins.

Types of Arowana:
Please paki basa earlier post (below), thank you. Nag tina pulan! Nyahahaha

Current price nlang (sa minimum price lang ug bata pa na aro pra d kayu sakit)
Based on 2010 price tag in peso.

Golden xback = 50k up to 100k for juvenile!
Blood/Chili red type = 50k up to 80k for juvenile
RTG = 20k to 60k
2nd grade Red (redtails)= around 9k
Green variety = 4 to 5k
Saratogas or Jardini= 1 to 3k
Silver and Black Aro = 900 up
Blue base Aro = don’t know sa price
and Platinum base Aros = 2.4 Million! (oist nay dugo sa imo ilong o). very rare.


PART 2: The Arowana Aquarium

It will surely help beginners to start this hobby successfully, start sa silver Aro pra d kayu sakit kung ma deds ^^. When acquiring housing depth is really not important but width and length is. Naa cla dapat ka languyan space to avoid curled gills, they prefer rectangular tanks.

Tank Cover:
It is a must! Aros jump every time mka kitag food sa taas insects or frightened. I have a lots of friends lost there Aros bcoz of unstable tank covers. You can weight down the cover to give extra firm and not easily dislodged.

Equipment:



Aros required well filtered, clean water and natural looking environment; heres the list:

• Gravel/Rocks with rounded edge = recommended (optional)
• Filters = with Bio, Mech and Chemical filtration
• Aeration = for oxygen
• Heater = optional, if low temperature area.
• Algae Scraper = pede rag Janitor fish
• Aquarium salt = ma palit sa pet stores
• Water Conditioner = Very important in every water change.
• Vacume pump = for cleaning the botton / water change
• Variety of quality medication kit = in case of emergency
• Background covering = Dark backing will show off coloration
• Power plugs extension = stay away in water splashing and drips.

Preparation and Acclimatizing:
Before putting your new Aro on the tank please do the basic 1st.
Put water conditioner on the water ma tabay o stock water na, specialy MCWD which contains chlorines. Recently, one of my aro died because of unchecked water condition, Ayaw compyansa. Ka remember no-on ko da L. Leave the fish in the platic floting in ur aquarium for 20min pra sa temperature adjustment, yaw sa buhi-e. Then gently put a small amount of water from the aquarium into the platic kung asa ang isda, repeat this every 3min interval until hapit n ma puno ang platic then drain some mga 50% and same procedure gihapon until ma puno nsad, then release! Note: turn off aquarium light if any for a day to reduce stress. It is normal kung imo fish dili mo eat at this time but this should be temporary.


PART 3: Arowana Keeping

While Australian and South America Aros can usually be found or ordered commercially through fish shops; mga tao interested sa Asian Aros must have understanding sa mga laws and regulations regarding there trade. Kay endangered nman cla, CITES organization protects and control this species, mao nang nay permit to Import/Export before u can own one direct from the breeder. Only second generation, captive-raised Aros from CITES registered farm lang ang pede mka baligya ani (nay daghan sa Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia) This Aros has a TAG code o chip sa ila lawas, injected when they are young and a Certificate of Authenticity document must be accompanied when buying one.

Dragon Fish Selection:



Syempre sa ka mahal ani you must know how to choose a good quality of breed, here’s some tips.

• Color = Color and grade of an Aro directly affect price. Must be bright and glossy, just an advice, don’t buy fry (baby) fish. Ok ra kay mka barato ka but chances are you cannot assume the quality pag dako.Beware in color scum’s like: artificial color injectable, 2nd grade juvenile Aros baligya as 1st grade, dwarftism (Aro raised in hu-ot na area to compres scale) and the most cruel is the Blindness (butahan ang isda) it intense its color if it cant see.
• Scale = dili talent ha ~_~ Scale are an indication of Health and quality for Dragon Fish. Dapat evenly layered, neatly arrange, Large, bright and shiny. Avoid dull or uneven scales or scales containing dark patches (na kuha na scale will grow back).
• Fins and Tail = One of the criteria sa contest and directly affect the gracefulness of their movement trough water. They should be smooth, free of tears and wide open during swimming.
• Shape = Arowana should have a Long, Broad appearance. Dpat nay gamay curve from head to its back (one of the most expensive Red Aro fish is what we called the King Arowana)
• Swimming Style = Aros have an elegant, graceful swimming style. They should appear to glide through water, using all parts of their bodies while keeping their heads stable. Silver Aros swims like a serpent while their head stays stable.
• Gills = should be smooth and lay flatly against the Aros body. The gills should not be wrinkled and gill motions should be minimal when fish is breathing; excessive movements or panting (hangos) may indicate distress or disease.
• Mouth = All Aros mouth are large, and should point upward. (if bali dili na Aro) Two barbells should be equal in length and match the Aros body color. Nice head shape would be a Spoon Head Aro.
• Eyes = are another indication of Health and quality. Should never appear Droopy or cloudy, they should be completely clear and free of any dullness.

Tank Mates:
Depende sa ka dakon sa imo tank there are several factors that must be considered prior to the addition of Aro tank mates. Just bear this in mind that Aros are territorial ug can be more aggressive if wala clay space to move around. And an overcrowded tank is not good for your fish as the waste and ammonia build up much faster and your fish will be more susceptible to diseases. Basta, More is not good, Unless you have the space!

A good practice is to put them together while they’re still young, they will still fight but less nlang because its there nature to do so. If you’re putting same Aros as a tank mate please put in odd numbers of Aro in the tank (mga 5, 7 or pa taas) mag bugno na cla if 2 to 4 cla sa usa ka tank. And Do Not try to put in two or more ADULT Aro in the same tank because they will fight to death. Specialy ga dako ang Aro na nag inusara sa aquarium, you must do this while there young.

Tank mates should be Large, Fast-moving, “Mid-tank” or preferable Bottom Dwelling fishes; Sama sa: catfish, fresh water stingrays and janitor (isda ha dili tao) they also provide additional benefits of helping to keep the tank clean and free of algae and excess food. Be aware lang diay sa catfish, Fast growing na cla n isda basin ma upsan pana imo Aro and mao pay ma kaun. Paktay! Fast moving fish sama sa: tinfoil barbs, silver dollar and parrot fishes. If you’re into FengShui good partners would be the Siamese Tiger and the Prochilodus fish. Some fishes na pede are: gars, dourados, peackock cichlid, gouramis etc. (kanang etc. dili na fish ha ~_-).
Just be prepared to remove new tankmates quickly to prevent disaster kung mag sigig away.


OK that end Part 1, 2 and 3; Part 4 and 5 will be posted below (hope you enjoy).

TO BE CONTINUED...

[moxji]

Wow,..

PAIN naa kay video sa imong arowana? pa tanawa sad me woe..

naa kay libro ana?

[PAIN]

Moxji, i dont usualy make video but i hav uploaded 1 recently sa youtube, for my friends request.
thats my latest Aro, and makita nimo dha basic setup ug mga gamit.
please check nlang sa link: YouTube - BANJAR RED AROWANA

books? yes i have 1, but the best adviced i can share would be on my personal experience mismo. ^^

[arrowana]

Asa ka palit sa imong aro?

[PAIN]

sa mga Pet shoppe ug pa dala sa ako sis naa sa Singapore and Malaysia.
naay nice dri dpit sa foodland Banilad Pippers ang name, ubos sa flyover tapad sa UCPB.
garantee genuin pets nila, ka palit ko isa Aro nko dha.

[moxji]

PAIN,

as a starter, unsay una nako paliton,usang nga mga filters and nindot.
mo try ko ug anha sa kana nga pet shop imo gi refer

nice diay ayo imong video sa youtube sa imo arowana.. astig kaayo.

hope to here more from you sir.

hehe

[kenny_tiu7]

buy the OHF(over head filters) ok na kayo na and also should be 2,200l/hour and output niya para limpyo ang tubig. weekly 20% waterchange is advisable para paspas mu dako and para less hugaw ang water even naa nay filter, for arowana basta remember if asian aro imu tank width should be atleast 24" but daghan tao nakaya rapod and 20" and width.

[PAIN]

a lot of things u need to consider.

Types of Arowana:
Asian (mga mahal na arowana! ) bcoz endangered ni cla controlled by CITES org.



Note: need import/export permet and Cert. and illegal ni sa USA.

1. Golden CrossBack (magka nose bled ka sa prisyu) Gold na arowana.
2. Red Aro (duol rag prisyu sa Gold, sakit pud ) daghan ni na clase: A) Chilli Red B) Blood Red C) 2nd Grade Red ug uban pang red... ^^
3. RTG (cross breed between Red and xback) Ret Tail Golden
4. Green Aro (makaya ra ang prisyu) but shorter and green/silver color

Others: which pede nimo ma palit bisag asa w/ or w/o Cert.

1. Australian Aro = Jardini (ok rpud ang price) Spotted tails with silver scales.
2. Silver Aro (daghan sa mga pet shoppe) originated in amazon river.
3. Black Aro (same sa silver ug purma but black fins).

next sa filter and aquarium?
u need a lot of space sa Aro specialy sa lenght, normal sa bata pa na aro (juvenile) a 4x2x2x feet will do, mka hold na cya up to 1 to 2 yrs old na aro.

sa filter, u realy ned a durable filter for an expensive fish, i recomend a Eheim filters (mahal lang).
or DIY pra mka barato, u will ned: water pump, hose, Ceramics (very important) for Bio filtration, fume/sponge (pra pag salud sa hugaw or visible waste).

pra sa tubig: u need water conditioners pra sure walay clorine, amonia ug uban pang bacteria.
water temperature between 25 to 30c, u ned to have a Heater if naa mos bugnaw n lugar.

Note: kini tanan i basic info lang pra ma dali ^^ broad pa kayu na, if u want to learn more just post a msg and you wil b amaze how things works in Arowanas world...

[6foot1]

unsa lain pamaagi pag cure sa inflame gills sa aro boss aside operation?.

[PAIN]

buy the OHF(over head filters) ok na kayo na and also should be 2,200l/hour and output niya para limpyo ang tubig. weekly 20% waterchange is advisable para paspas mu dako and para less hugaw ang water even naa nay filter, for arowana basta remember if asian aro imu tank width should be atleast 24" but daghan tao nakaya rapod and 20" and width.

Sakto, water chage is important (weekly).
dili kinahanglan kuhaon ang isda pra mag limpyo, just use water pumps.