Arowana Care eBook For the Passionate Hobbyists
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Happy New Year To All Of You And Hope You Like The Aquarium Fish Photos Here …

Date : January 1, 2012 ·

Hope I find everyone in excellent health and high spirit going into the new year. It’s been a trying 2011 as so much malaise has happened in the world that I hope that the new year will be a better one for everyone. icon wink Happy New Year To All Of You And Hope You Like The Aquarium Fish Photos Here ...

Anyway, I would just like to start the new year by sharing some photos with all of you going into 2012. Feel free to do whatever you want with these photos of arowanas, goldfish, discus and flower horns. This are FREE for all my readers!!! icon smile Happy New Year To All Of You And Hope You Like The Aquarium Fish Photos Here ...
These zip files contain close to 700+ photos of fishes that I took during the Aquarama 2011 show that was held in Singapore in May 2011.

You can download all of them using the links provided below here …

1) Arowana Photos – http://www.arowana-care.com/2012arowanapics

2) Discus Photos – http://www.arowana-care.com/2012discuspics

3) Flower Horn Photos – http://www.arowana-care.com/2012flowerhornpics

4) Goldfish Photos – http://www.arowana-care.com/2012goldfishpics

Be patient when downloading as they are huge files ok. icon wink Happy New Year To All Of You And Hope You Like The Aquarium Fish Photos Here ... Just cut and paste the links onto your browser to start the download.

Hope you like them and cheers to all of you again and have a great year ahead!!!

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The Significance Of Arowana In Feng Shui

Date : December 8, 2011 · 1 Comment

Arowana Fish comes in different colors and types. There are 10 described Arowana species that are found in South America, Australia, Africa and Asia. The most wanted species by aquarists are the Asian variety. The Asian arowana is already scarce in the wild, thus it belongs now on the endangered list and protected through CITES. As a result, it is illegal to catch them in the wild and you can only buy them from authorized breeding farms which makes them expensive as it is not easy to breed them. The Asian Red Arowana is the costliest of these arowanas but again this can change as it really depends on demand and supply.

The arowana has scales that are arranged and shaped like the mythical dragon. That is why the Chinese called them dragonfish. Many owners confirmed that arowanas have superior mental abilities. They are said to understand what humans are talking and emit vibrations that increase good aura in its environment. They can also sense or anticipate unfavorable events to happen. They show these warnings by swimming frantically, bumping the wall of the aquarium and in extreme conditions, leaping out from its container.

Rich individuals in Asia, most of them businessmen, keeps arowanas in their homes or establishment. Feng Shui experts stressed that keeping a freshwater fish like the arowana activates good fortune. The fish is believed to enhance the force of wealth generation and accumulation. They are also kept to counteract negative forces or evil spirits. The fish is also available in decorations or images which are used by people who cannot afford to own a live one. They believe that these items bring the same effect as the real thing. The colors that are favored by feng shui enthusiasts are gold, silver-white, orange and the more popular, red.

In feng shui, it is accepted that water controls the wealth of a person. Most Asian aquarist kept 8 to 9 fishes in their possession believing these numbers or amount is auspicious. Some owners based on He Tu and Lou Shu numerology keep 1, 4, 6 or 9 fishes. The number 1 and 6 symbolizes water element and 4 to 9 symbolizes metal element according to He Tu. To enhance a person’s luck and good fortune, these numbers are used with the water and metal elements.

It is also recommended to use a combination of different fish colors and numbers to create a dynamic cycle of the elements to represent endless wealth. You can try this combination for the purpose. Mix 1 black, 6 white and 8 yellow fished in a tank. In numerology context, 1 represent the element water, 6 represent metal and 8 signify earth. In Chinese beliefs, the number combination 1, 6 and 8 means unbroken prosperity.

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My Arowana Is Not Eating No Matter What I Do !!!

Date : November 1, 2011 · 6 Comments

I have received many many emails from very anxious hobbyists asking for advise as their arowanas are not eating no matter what they do. So I thought this is the best time to advise you on this because …. my 3 arowanas has been doing the same thing for the past 3 weeks until yesterday!!! Has this happened to me before. YES and believe you me… it’s really no big deal if you take the necessary steps to fix the problem icon wink My Arowana Is Not Eating No Matter What I Do !!!

SO? What’s the first thing to do…… DON’T PANIC!!!!! icon wink My Arowana Is Not Eating No Matter What I Do !!! This usually happens because the water quality is probably not so good. People ask me whether I check for nitrates levels, etc but I’ll be frank with you, I don’t at all. If you think you have high nitrate problems, well… change the water! icon wink My Arowana Is Not Eating No Matter What I Do !!! I always do that! First thing I do when I see my arowana losing appetite or staying at the bottom of the tank often or it’s swimming patterns seem lethargic, etc, CHANGE THE WATER…

I have said this many times, this should always be your first course of action. It has never failed me until today. No point worrying about what to do first… AGAIN 1st STEP IS… YOU SHOULD CHANGE THE WATER. (Sorry for being naggy but I hope you get it by now.)

So below are the steps I took…
1) 3 weeks back, I change the water like usual during the weekends. 20 – 25% water change as usual. I also always add salt to it. Salt is like, lack of a better word, a tonic to it. I do not add anti-chlorine or any medication to it. No need for all these ok.

I usually do no feed it on the day of water change. I tried to feed it the next day but all it did was bite on the chopped prawn pieces and spat it out. I did not think much of it as it’s done this before. It did the same thing practically throughout the week but I thought they were just not hungry.

2) 2 weeks back, during the weekend, I change the water and added some salt in again as usual… It again decided not to eat for the whole week.

3) Last Sunday, I again change the water, added salt BUT this time, also added blackwater. I sometimes add blackwater as they do like this but it’s really not always necessary. It’s up to you. But the good thing is, it started to eat again yesterday. Was blackwater the ‘cure’, I really don’t think so but as I said, it does not hurt to add them if you have it.

So what is the moral behind this story? icon wink My Arowana Is Not Eating No Matter What I Do !!!
When your arowana don’t eat, DON’T PANIC. Continue to change the water as I did.
I know there is a quote that says “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results.” icon wink My Arowana Is Not Eating No Matter What I Do !!! Well, this quote does not stand for arowanas ok! In fact, you should change the water over and over again until they do eat. Think about it logically… there must be something in the water that is causing the problem right UNLESS of course, your arowana has inherent health problems that cannot be detected visually. In these cases, it is just bad luck as no one could have predicted that the arowana you bought has health issues.

Hope this will clear up some of your anxieties. Cheers and have a great day!

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Some Common Diseases That Can Affect Your Young Arowana

Date : October 18, 2011 · 1 Comment

Owning an arowana takes a lot of responsibility, from feeding to helping them keep their balance to taking care of them and treating them when they are sick. No matter how we take care of our fish, it remains possible for them to become sick one time of another, just like us. Other than that, it’s very easy to keep an arowana healthy at home. icon wink Some Common Diseases That Can Affect Your Young Arowana
Below are some diseases that may affect your arowana.

1. Warped Scales
Also known as cone scales, warped scales affect young arowanas more easily than adults. This condition is caused by immediate temperature change in the aquarium water and poor quality of water. This disease will start with just few scales warping with congested roots. If this is not attended immediately, the scales tend to bend and swell. When the scales raise, this will minimize the capability of the fish to protect itself from pathogen invasions. The scales will drop off and expose a certain area of its body increasing the susceptibility of bacterial attack. Then this will lead to ulceration and eventually causes death.

To stop the condition from getting worse, add in one kilo of salt to every 100 liter of aquarium water. Maintain the temperature at 32 to 34 degrees. Every three days or so, change about 20% of the water. Before you add in new water, make sure to heat up the water. It also makes sense to add antibiotic to the water if the affected area seems huge enough, to prevent infections.

2. Water Mycosis
The fungus stays in the wound of your arowana. It is light gray in color. Water mycosis is caused by fungal hyphae that cover the wound. This causes instability to the movement of the fish as it swims and rubs its body against parts of the tank to try and stop the itch. If this condition continues, it could be fatal to your arowana as it tends to lose it’s appetite as well as get secondary infections caused by bacteria in the water.

To treat water mycosis, you need to add in salt to the aquarium water with one percent consistency. Put disinfectant to the wound or you can add methyl red (4-5 drops) in every 100 liters of water at 5 percent consistency. For about 3 minutes, add in potassium chromatic solution of 1/30000 unit to the water.

3. Ascites
Young arowanas are the ones who are usually affected by this disease. This is usually caused by either decaying food which has been left in the water for too long or if the fish had accidentally swallowed something sharp (like a fish bones or prawn head pincer) which could have hurt its internal organs. This would lead to vibrion infection and ascites. This infection will cause stomach flatulence and swollen anal region. The arowana will tend to have problems balancing itself with its head pointing down most of the time.

Treating ascites includes administration of sulphonamide or antibiotic. The water also needs to be changed and temperature raised by 2-3 degrees to give it a chance to recover. But I have to say, the chances of recovery is slim when this condition hits.

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What You Need To Give Your Arowana A Good Home

Date : September 29, 2011 · 2 Comments

An Arowana, also known as bony-tongues or Dragon Fish, is a carnivorous freshwater fish. It is characterized by a bony head and long body with large, heavy scales. Arowanas can live up to 25 years. They are pretty easy to look after but you do need to understand some of their ‘peculiar’ behavior. A dedicated fish owner will not find it hard to take care of arowanas.

What’s in a Crowd?

Arowanas are usually solitary creatures. Several arowanas can be placed together in a tank in groups BUT ONLY IF they are put together since young. (I personally recommend odd numbers.) If you try to put adult arowanas together in a tank, they will fight and this can be fatal. BE WARNED!!!
They also have tendencies to become aggressive and dominant over other fishes. Should you decide to give your arowana some non-arowana tank mates, do not put in fishes that are small enough to fit easily into its mouth. It is also better to add fishes that are semi-aggressive. Stingrays, oscars, clown knifefish, and parrotfish are good company for your arowanas.

In the Tank

The size of your fish tank must be able to accommodate territorial needs of your arowana. I would recommend a tank size of at least 4x2x2feet to start off with. This would probably be able to accommodate 2-3 fishes for at least 3 years. You should keep your tank covered as arowanas are known to jump up to 6.6 feet high. This fish needs to live in a well-filtered and clean tank. Being meat-eaters, they tend to excrete a lot of wastes. Poor maintenance of tank could lead to nitrate and ammonia toxicity.
Also at least 20% water change is desirable once a week. Clear water does not mean the water quality is good!!! Water pH level is ideally kept from pH6.5 to pH7.0. You should also keep your tank away from direct sunlight as algae grows easily in such condition and will cause oxygen levels to drop in the water.
Sudden rise or drop of water temperature can be harmful and can lead to shock. Maintain your tank’s water temperature to 26 to 30 degree Celsius. Investing in an aquarium temperature checker will do your fishes well. You may put some fine gravel on your tank’s bottom surface but bear in mind that cleaning can be a hassle if you have this. You can also add some rocks or plants to create a natural looking environment for your fish. Be careful not to put anything inside the tank that has sharp edges.

Moving Your Fish to a Larger Tank

This can be stressful for you (and the fish) but you will probably have to do this once or twice when your arowana grows in size. Remember to cycle the water in your new tank for at least 2 weeks. Catch your arowana from the old tank using plastic bags and bring the entire bag into the new tank. Open the bag and mix the water in it with the water in the new tank. This will help to ensure that the water temperature does not change too much as arowanas gets stressed when water temperature changes too drastic too suddenly. Let this bag float for about 20 minutes and then add more water into it. Do this about 3 times and then release your arowana into the new tank. It will usually take your arowana 2-3 weeks to adapt to the new tank and environment. It is also common for them to stay off food during this period.
You can check out this post as I show you first hand how I moved my new arowanas home.
Bringing Your Arowana Home

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Will Your Arowana Or Dragonfish Bring Luck To You?

Date : September 10, 2011 ·

The Arowana is a freshwater fish that has scales with colorful, shiny and dragon-like appearance. The fish is prized by many, specially the Chinese who believes that it brings good luck, happiness and wealth to its owners. It is also believed to be a protection from evil spirits. The fish is often kept in tanks at home and at the office by businessmen who maintain the arowana to create positive energy.
It is proven by several owners that the fish can sense negative vibrations and show warning signs by swimming aggressively and bumping the walls of their tank when an intruder or an unwelcome person is nearby. If ever the tank is left open or its lid is not properly closed, the fish will jump out to die in order to disperse the negative energies. It is also believed that arowanas can understand human speech and focus their attention if a person is talking. Some people believes strongly that if you are talking about selling the fish within its hearing range, the arowana will commit suicide by jumping out.
These are the reasons why arowanas are well-known to bring affluence and success to its owner. Many people who keep the fish claims that it will really bring wealth to their homes after having experienced it themselves. The fish is very popular among rich people and business tycoons of many parts in Southeast Asia.

The Importance of Arowana According to Feng Shui

Feng Shui is a Chinese system focusing on environmental balance. It is a study of people in relation to their environment, particularly their home or place of work for the purpose of achieving utmost harmony with all spiritual forces thought to affect all places.
The element water is very useful and fundamental in Feng Shui. The combination of arowana or dragonfish and water is believed to produce potential positive results. In addition, clean and clear water in the aquarium brings natural beauty that blends with areas that the fish is kept in.

Feng Shui experts suggest placing the arowanas in the eastern, northern or south-eastern location of the office or house. It is not recommended to set the tank in the kitchen and bedroom as this is thought to cause sickness and financial problems.
Most of the Chinese owners believe that keeping an aquarium with 8 or 9 fishes inside the house bring good luck and fortune. People living in Southern China emphasized that the number 8 symbolize prosperity and the number 9 represent longevity. These two numbers are regarded to signify luck.

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