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couple shots of my pickerel and friends

Started by Guest_TonyKay_* , Oct 10 2013 10:15 PM

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10 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_TonyKay_*

Guests

Posted 10 October 2013 - 10:15 PM

Hey guys Ive been lurking on this forum for a couple years and finally decided to post a couple pics of my tank....

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on a side note do any of you guys know anything about the sore on the lower lip of the pickerel? i got him with the sore and it hasn't gotten any worse but it also isn't getting any better. I would rather not treat the tank if i don't have to.

anyways thanks for looking and I look forward to seeing/reading about more of your guys/gals tanks

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#2 littlen

NANFA Member

Washington, D.C.

Posted 11 October 2013 - 07:04 AM

It looks like inflammation from rubbing on the glass. Do you ever see it run into sides of the tank, "begging" when you're about to drop food in, or anything like that? Even if you don't, it still could be injuring itself frequently enough to keep the site swollen. Sometimes they spook then the lights come on/off and will dart right into the glass. It's common and usually isn't life threatening. If nothing is done to 'correct the behavior' so to speak, or prevent reoccuring injuries the wound will persist. You could be creative with your aquascaping and make a "wall" of sorts with your decor to make a visual barrier on each end of the tank. This will give the pickerel something to avoid running into when it gets spooked in the future and it should throw on the breaks before hitting the glass.

Depending on how long that injury has been present, there could be a lot of scarring that remains even after the problem has been resolved. (If you've ever seen a paddlefish in captivity you'll understand what I mean).

I had a juvenile Muskie about the size of your pickerel who a few years back spooked itself so badly it literally crushed its own skull running into the side of the tank. (A x-ray of the fish postmortem showed this quite clearly).

Great looking tank/fish. Good luck.

Nick L.

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#3 Michael Wolfe

Board of Directors

North Georgia, Oconee River Drainage

Posted 11 October 2013 - 07:18 AM

Nice tank and nice photos. I hope those perch keep growing for you and keep up with your Esox, that makes for a nice looking combo.

You say he had the bump in his lip "when you got him" but did say how long ago that was? So has he had it for a week or so, or for months or what?

Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing. - Benjamin Franklin

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#4 Guest_TonyKay_*

Guests

Posted 11 October 2013 - 06:31 PM

thanks for the responses guys and yeah i was kind of thinking that his lip was injured by the glass. Ive had him for a month or so and he has been rubbing his nose on the glass quite a bit. I had the same issue with a tiger muskie that i held in this tank before getting my pond set up but it wasnt so pronounced. the original plan with the tank was to have a driftwood/rock setup but ive added the ugly plastic plants to create a barrier until he gets a little more settled in the tank.

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#5 mattknepley

NANFA Member

Smack-dab between the Savannah and the Saluda.

Posted 12 October 2013 - 05:08 AM

Nice lookin' tank. Is that his supper staring out at us in the third picture?

Matt Knepley
"No thanks, a third of a gopher would merely arouse my appetite..."

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#6 Guest_TonyKay_*

Guests

Posted 12 October 2013 - 11:06 PM

Haha yes it is....

I had an unfortunate accident today, I woke up to something making some noise on the floor today. I rolled out of bed to investigate and found my pickerel on the floor full of dust.

I quickly got him back in the tank and he was very listless and stressed but managed to get to a calm spot in the tank. I shut the lights of and pulled the shades and let the tank be for the day. He is currently in much better shape and wouldn't even know he was out of the tank for 5+ minutes, so I think he dodged a bullet.

My question to you guys is, do you think adding a power head/current has anything to do with his free willy moment today? I just added one to get some current going earlier in the day. I have seen other esox jump dams in small rivers when moving up stream.

Edited by TonyKay, 12 October 2013 - 11:11 PM.

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#7 littlen

NANFA Member

Washington, D.C.

Posted 14 October 2013 - 09:40 AM

The facts you've provided in your last few posts go along with my suspicions.....that your fish is spooking and hitting the glass. With the exception of this last time where it jumped out of the tank. A powerhead will not alleviate your problem. More cover is what this fish needs---and sooner rather than later.

Nick L.

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#8 Guest_Heather_*

Guests

Posted 15 January 2014 - 04:38 PM

Any updates on your pickerel and perch Tony?
Were you able to provide more cover?

Nice tank!

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#9 Guest_TonyKay_*

Guests

Posted 12 February 2014 - 11:44 PM

Thank you for all of the comments, I haven't had much time to update my original posts. Unfortunately the redfin only survived a few days past my last post. While I was at work the perch took advantage of him recovering and their wasn't much left when i got home. I since have removed all of the fake decor and started the process of planting the tank to give it a more natural feel. I was also able to get my hands on some walleyes that will make there way out to the pond as soon as spring arrives

here are a couple recent shots

missed the focus on this one, but i like the lateral line detail none the less
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One of the walleyes showing me what he found
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the other walter doing what they do best
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I also started a 33gallon planted darter/shiner tank
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ill try to update with some new photos as the tanks and pond progresses

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#10 Guest_Kanus_*

Guests

Posted 15 February 2014 - 05:28 PM

Those may be the first photos I've ever seen on this forum of a walleye in a tank. Very cool. I would love to know more about them and their behavior (I've never even caught one fishing, unless you count electrofishing and gillnetting at work so I'm in the dark on their behavior).

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#11 Guest_TonyKay_*

Guests

Posted 15 February 2014 - 10:59 PM

They are very calm, they actually get out competed by the perch. I always thought they would be more active in low light situations but they lurk just as much with the lights on. I also thought they would spend the majority of their time in the lower 3rd of the tank but they are all over the water column. I've got some duckweed blowing around the tank and they spend a lot of time chasing it around, they have even taken feeders right off the surface. I might dunk the go pro during their next feeding sesh and post it. I'm really excited to get them in the pond come spring time.