Adopting a dog off the street may give you the warm feeling of having saved an animal from a life of misery as well as satisfy your desire to have a pet, but fish don't attack your visitors, defecate on your bed or try to have sex with your cushions.
Watching fish drift around in an aquarium can be very soothing, and they require only a minimal amount of maintenance. Not only that, but there are aquariums for all budgets.
At the least ambitious end of the scale is the desk-top fish bowl. The advantage of this is that you don't need a pump or a heater or a bucket to change the water. The downside is that there are only certain kinds of fish that can live like this -- the most fun that can be had is buying a fighting fish and waving a mirror in front of it.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEITIMES
If you're planning a more elaborate setup at home, you need to make a few decisions first.
Saltwater or fresh: Saltwater aquariums allow you to keep all manner of bizarre wildlife normally only found in the ocean, including the most colorful fish. But it takes a lot longer (a couple of months) for the water to become stable enough to support these quirky lifeforms, and the pumps are more expensive because they have to deal with the salt.
Size: Larger aquariums are far more impressive than smaller ones, but are more difficult to move around. You also need to remember that around 30 percent of the water needs to be siphoned off every few weeks and replaced. For a large aquarium of several hundred liters, sucking out 25 percent can take a while.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEITIMES
Animals: When chosing what kind of set-up you want, it's a good idea to first consider what kind of animals you want in there. Many kinds of fish aren't compatible with other kinds, and some are more demanding of the environment they live in. It's no good yearning after a school of particularly colorful fish only to find out after you've set up your freshwater tank that they are saltwater fish.
Money and effort: While not as demanding as dogs, fish still require care and monitoring. Don't take on more than you can handle, because you can't just throw fish on the street and expect them to fend for themselves.
They require feeding, sometimes several times a day, and they get sick, and the water needs to be changed regularly. As well as the aquarium and fish, there are a lot of other gadgets you may need to buy for the aquarium to function properly, although the maintenance costs are minimal compared to the initial outlay.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEITIMES
Once you've decided what you want, how much you're willing to pay for it and how bothered you'll be about it a few months down the line, you have to find the equipment that best fits your needs.
Aquariums come in all shapes and sizes and are measured in liters. Most are made of glass, which can be quite heavy, although acrylic tanks are becoming more common. The disadvantage of an acrylic tank is that it scratches easily, impairing your viewing pleasure. A 20 liter tank, which could be around half a meter long depending on what shape it is, can cost as little as NT$500. Aquariums you would be able to take home yourself go up to 90 liters. A 90 liter tank costs around NT$8,000. Tanks bigger than this cost a lot of money and require special delivery.
Thankfully, the aquarium itself is the most expensive and awkward part. However, you will also need a filtration system, which includes a pump, trays and some kind of filter material. There are many kinds of filters, but the cheapest are very cheap and, as long as they are regularly changed, will do the job well enough. For a 20 liter tank a pump costs around NT$250, and for a 90 liter tank between NT$650 and NT$850.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEITIMES
Unless your fish are goldfish, your aquarium will also need a heater. Most come with a built-in thermometer, but a separate thermometer to check the water in other parts of the tank to see if another heater is required. If the aquarium is not near a window, you will also need to get a light, which can cost between NT$400 and NT$1,000.
Once all this is set up, you can add gravel and the water. Tap water contains chlorine, which kills fish, so you either have to leave the tank for a few weeks to dechlorinate the water, or get some chemicals to do the job immediately. Even with the chemicals, the filter and heater should be left to run for a few days before fish are added.
The grand finale to all this preparation and expense is to get the fish. The array of fish on offer is huge, and on visiting a fish store you may be tempted to get too many. Some cost as little as NT$20, others many thousands of dollars. But for a newly established aquarium, it's best to add them a few at a time.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEITIMES
Developed fish tend to cost more than younger fish and, as with dogs, you should find out before you hand over the money how big your purchase can get. Sharks, for example, can grow very quickly and start eating your more colorful fish.
There are a lot of other kinds of water-faring animals available. Turtles, of which there are many kinds, are quite affable creatures, while lobsters can disappear for weeks under rocks, making them a less-visually stimulating buy. You can also get shrimp, lizards, eels, crabs, snails, frogs and even alligators, although they share a drawback with dogs in that they can attack your visitors.
Taking care of your fish can be straightforward, and you can leave them unattended for a few days if you go on holiday. However, prolonged neglect can cause problems that are very hard to correct. The fish should be fed regularly, although the frequency depends on the kind of fish and what they're being fed. Around one-third of the water needs to be changed every few weeks, and the filters will have to be cleaned or replaced.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEITIMES
Your fish will get sick if you fail to do any of these things, and sometimes even if you don't.
Every set-up is unique, and advice from the place where you bought the fish can be invaluable. If your fish do get sick, they will stop eating and probably get some kind of fungus on their skin.
Unfortunately, there are many different kinds of fungus that all look pretty similar to the untrained eye, so you may have to look it up on the Internet, buy a book or take a digital camera to show the people at the shop what the problem is. But to avoid all this hassel, prevention is the best cure, so it pays to look after your pets.
PHOTO: GRAHAM NORRIS, TAIPEI TIMES
So next time you're looking for something to keep you company at home, consider fish. Obedient, loyal and always willing to please, fish really are man's best friend.
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
PHOTO: GEORGE TSORNG, TAIPEI TIMES
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