Monday, January 08, 2007

Osteoglossum bicirrhosum Part 4

I first blogged about Mushu No. 5 one year ago today, so here's an update on him a year later.... He started out at a length of 6.5".... and today, he is a little over a foot long.... Considering the fact that his tail has not grown back completely, he should be a little bit longer. I purposely stopped feeding him live food because his growth rate was just too rapid to be sustained by his tiny 20 gallon tank. He actually loves his pellet food, and displays an equally voracious appetite for them.

This Christmas, my family gave me a sweet new setup for him, so I'm happy to say that Mushu No. 5 has finally made the big move into a new home.... Surprisingly, he didn't put up much of a fight at all. In fact, not a even so much as a splash. I simply scooped him up with a plastic grocery bag, and gently released him into the new tank. He slipped into his new surroundings very effortlessly, and seemed pleasantly surprised at all the new space. It is a 75 gallon tank with a length of 48", so he's got a lot more swimming space. This also means that I will be giving him live goldfish or minnows every so often again. I don't want him to grow too rapidly though, because I don't think I have the space for an even larger tank just yet. In their natural habitat of the Amazon River, Silver Arowanas can grow to the length of 47" or 1.2 meters. In captivity, they're more likely to grow to about 39" or one meter. If they are not given adequate space, they may develop deformities. Mushu has actually developed a slightly prolapsed operculum or gill covering. Presumably, this is from the fact that he would often swim backwards in the smaller tank. The operculum appears to be in better condition now that the length of the new tank is four times his body length, at least, it is not getting any worse. His old home has been converted into a tank for Aiden, which also serves the double purpose of being the home of Mushu's future prey.... (Mushu: mmmm, goldfish....)Looking at this tank makes me wonder how he survived for so long under such cramped conditions. I'm also raising a Pleco or janitor fish in this tank, until it is large enough not to fit in Mushu's mouth. I had gotten a new janitor fish (Phillipe II) thinking it was too big for Mushu to eat. I had even made a cave for it, just in case he needed to hide from Mushu. However, one day, Phillipe II went missing, on the same day, a large bulge appeared in Mushu's abdomen...

I'm hoping that the extra space will also allow for his tail to finally heal completely.... I'm no longer convinced that he sustained the injury trying to escape his cramped quarters by jumping, as I witnessed him swimming in circles trying to catch his own tail.... Seems like dog-like behaviour? I really must be a dog person, coz my cat behaves like a dog, and now my fish! Hopefully Mushu will be more content with all the space, that he won't feel the need to chew off his own tail anymore.

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21 comments:

Anonymous said...

That is beautiful fish.

haze said...

It's relaxing right! 2 days ago we have cleaned ours too! C'était un boulot enorme, assez delicat aussi! I love looking at them they're keeping me zen :) !

Anonymous said...

isa daw yang klaseng alagain na nagbibigay ng swerte sa bahay or business. mas malaking arwana mas maganda. tama ka kailnagan ng malaking tank para proportion ang paglaki nya. pangarap ko rin magka arowana, siguro kapag nagkaroon na ako ng malaking space sa bahay para sa fish tanka t may oras na mag-alaga ng pet arowa, isang ibon, at isang aso ang aalagaan ko balang araw :)

nice pics.

Gina said...

Hi Angelo! What an awesome fish. And they really get BIG! I have a few friends in the Phils. who had aruwanas as pets and whenever they have guests over, the aruwanas would always get the attention & become the "conversation piece". It is fascinating & kind of hypnotic just watching them swim gracefully in the tank.

Girlie said...

Wow, that's an impressive fish!

I think broiled or grilled?

Ok, ok...just kidding.

Angelo said...

Shafey: Thanks!

Angelo said...

Haze: D'accord! but it's worth it eh? definitely zen :)

Angelo said...

Iskoo: wow Iskoo! ang dami mong gustong maging alagang hayop! You remind me of my roomate dati, si Neil. Parati kami nasa Carti-Mart. Mura lang dun ang mga hayop diba? Yung dorm namin parang zoo... may arowana, godfish, kataba, tilapia, catfish, parakeets, finches, pusa, at aso... plus tatlong lalaki... Actaully, yung una kong Arowana, galing sa kanya...mas swerte daw pag binigay ang arowana?

Angelo said...

Gina: Thanks Gina.... ya tell me about it! I could sit and watch him for hours, it's very good at keeping my blood pressure low :)

Angelo said...

Shoshana: Hey Shoshana! Actually, I heard they're a prime source of fish meat in South America! They do get pretty big so I could totally see why.... wonder what they taste like?

Dennis Villegas said...

i would have wanted to keep an arowana as pet but in manila, the cost of keeping and feeding it is just too expewnsive. btw, very nice collection of pictures bro..

Anonymous said...

Mushu is a wonder!He got bigger and bigger everyday!Poor Philippe II,but im sure he pleased Mushu,hehe.

Good for Mushu,he has a new huge home.I cant believe he chewed his own tail,though.He`s naughty huh? :D

You must blog about him after a year,too.so we could find out how much he grow.

musta na,Angelo? :)

ghee

Angelo said...

Dennis: Hey thanks pre, ya keeping them is very expensive! I wish I were in the Philippines, at least there's Carti-Mart there :)

Angelo said...

Ghee: Yehey, you're back! Missed your comments on my blog :) and your updates on yours! I will definitely blog about Mushu again. Can't wait to read about you're holiday adventures!

Amol Naik said...

Hi Angelo, Mushu looks like a healthy Arowana.
I love Arowana’s, and everyone do…………..

Hey bring one more to Mushu’s Company.

My Arowanas never fight, Ya sometimes they act like they will eat each others heads, but that’s just fun-fight.

Did Mushu ever bit you while feeding.

JO said...

wow! Mushu brings goodluck... put his tank facing the door where the sun rises -- according to fung shiu.

Anonymous said...

Amol: Hey Amol, Mushu's never bitten me when I feed him, but he gets pretty close! I'm raising 2 plecos to accompany him, but I'm making sure they are really big first, so he won't eat them. I don't think I'll get another arowana to keep him company coz the tank won't be big enough.

Angelo said...

JO: Thanks for the advice! I put him in more of an eastern part of the house rather than the west. Don't really have a door where the sun rises, but he is in front of the bedroom door? Maybe that's good enough? :)

Amol Naik said...

One of them bit me while feeding, but that was not a powerful bite.
I feed them medium sized prawns.
Ya I can keep the gourami until unless, my arowans can accommodate them inside their mouth. I have to shift them later.
Whats Mushu’s length?

And do you believe Arowan’s are lucky? I don’t believe in Luck, But since the day when I brought my Arowan’s, There are many good things happening in my life.

Angelo said...

Amol: Oh shrimp eh? Do you get them live? That would be cool. I tried to feed Mushu dried shrimp, but he spits it out....Actually, I measured him again, and he's about 13+" long. I don't really believe in luck either, but they say they are lucky because they look like little dragons? I don't know, if they are lucky, then good luck to you Amol :)

Amol Naik said...

Hi, angelo, both of them are 11+”.
The little bigger one is “Motha” and the other one is “Chottha”.

The eel-looking fish is “Peacock Eeel ”, there are total three of them. And they really look cool, they are awesome creatures.
The burry themselves in the ground with only heads visible.