fish die

Some people say they just don't have a green thumb...everything planty that they touch seems to die. Transfer that sentiment to my fish tank and you can see the predicament I'm in. I just don't have a blue thumb? Honestly, I'm so frustrated right now over this whole thing that it's making me laugh - ever been there? Laughing at how worked up I am over something so small and stupid...because the only other alternative to release it to just pick the starter tank up and heave it right through the nearby sliding door.  Wouldn't that be a sight for the neighbors?
Welcome to my fishy saga: rewind back two years ago to a perfectly wonderful Christmas gift for my daughter - cute little starter tank, graceful goldfish (named Dorothy after Elmo's own)...ah, such great intentions!  Not so long later...yup, belly up.  So, I find myself suddenly standing at the precipice of exploring the great topic of death with my two year old, grasping for a sensitive manner that is both understandable and not life-scarring to a toddler, and like so many before me - instead of jumping right in, I simply orchestrated a secret run to the pet store to replace Dorothy in an impressively classic lie.  In my stroke of genius deception, I directed my husband to choose one fish that looked just like Dorothy and a friend who looked different, so that any suspicions might be allayed by the distraction of presenting a new friend (named Spotty). It was a brilliant plot, except for one thing.  Dorothy II outlived Spotty, but not long.  Of course, I had to give in and just tell it like it is to my daughter (because eventually the multiplication of fish would get overwhelming)..."sorry honey, Spotty died. Sometimes fish do." That apparently sufficed because my daughter only said "okay," and went on happily playing, and didn't seem to care when Dorothy followed suit.  But after three swift deaths, I wasn't ready to buy another fish without figuring out what was going wrong.  Of course, the tank sat empty of fish and full of water in my daughters room for a minium of six months thereafter...likely more.  Eventually it got emptied and moved to a closet...but it never left my mind.  I still retained hope for a lovely little successful aquarium for the girls.
At one point I went and reviewed with a nice, well-informed pet shop employee everything I needed to achieve this success, because surely I'm missing some key aspect...and then another three months later: fast-forward to yesterday: Bought a new filter and asked again what I could do to make this work...feeling good, this is going to be it this time!...get home, restore the tank to it's former glory (imagined glory) and prime it for today.  Today we went to the pet store and bought two new fish...not goldfish. The girls were adamant about this...and I was told that they are kind of "dirty" so you have to change the water frequently - more work for me, not an option.  We proudly brought our new friends home and placed their bags in the tank to acclimate...but not before I once again asked a store employee for tips about how to make sure this works.
One hour ago....dead fish.  One down.  Can this really be happening again?  We've followed all the instructions, all the preparation.  As soon as the other one dies (isn't that so pessimistic?), I'm going to dump the entire tank out, waltz into several pet stores and demand an explanation.   I just can't leave my girls education about fish at this...."so what do you know about fish, girls?"  "they die."

Comments

[Alexandra]

We went through 3 or 4 goldfish in a matter of days also! One died as soon as I put it in the bowl. Then the cashier at Petco recommended a Beta Fish (also known as Japanese Fighting fish) - it has been happily living with us since January. I have never had a fish live so long. It's pretty to look at, less dirty than a goldfish, and still alive!

[Kitty]

Good to know... we are getting a tank and fish this week, but I have made it clear that I have enough beings to take care of as it is, so this is 100% hubby's deal, but I will make a mental note to prepare for this!!

[Linda]

I'm impressed the fish lived that long!