Pot Belly has gone!

[Britbox]

Some of you may know, that as well as having a passion for our beloved Boxers..I also to keep tropical fish..I have one really big tank, with varios sharks etc..And yeah, I know It's silly, but I give them all names! ...

Anyway, about two years ago, we bought a couple of Gourami's to add to the tank...Big mistake!!..One of those Gourami's had a bad attitude, and went beserk as soon as we put him in, the other poor soul hid behind a rock, and refused to come out, in the face of his enraged mate (I had to give him to our neighbour, to save his life...but she granted me visiting rights )..Even the biggest of our sharks lost their reputation as kings of the tank, and shivered like sissy's in the face of Pot Belly, the Gourami...

He was a terrorist with scales, and every time he saw another fish, he would get livid, and change colour from a nice pearlised light blue, to a deep angry mauve..I feared for the lives of my once happy fishy community who all tried to take up residence in the fairy castle to escape this evil newcomer..but unfortunately, although they could all manage get their heads in, it left an awful lot of fin, and tail exposed, and Pot belly set about them with such vigour, that they were left with ragged stumps, where once had been magnificent tails! I knew I had put a murderer amongst them... I even thought I must have been sold a 'Gourami look a like', that was really a piranha!! Not being able to live with my conscience should he have decided to finish off his captive prey, whilst I was sleeping, and treat himself to a big fishy banquet..I dispatched the old man off to buy him a tank of his own.(He was heard to moan loudly that he didn't want to fork out ££££'s for another tank, and couldn't we just flush the nutty fish? :ekk

And so..Pot belly ruled, King of his own tank, he led a sedentary lonely life, but he seemed happy, (well if you can tell if a fish is happy!!) and loved to be the king of all that he surveyed,... plants, dayglo bridge, and pretty multi coloured gravel!..Sometimes we would put a mirror up to the side of the tank, and he would go mad, his old gangster ways emerging again, he would get livid, and try to attack, and 'take out' his own reflection!!...He lived on Tropical fish food, salmon flakes, and sometimes as a treat, we would feed him hard boiled egg, or fresh cod flakes, and he would come up and take them from our fingers...and he grew, and GREW, and lived up to his name, and fearful reputation!


Until this morning...I got up, and there was old Pot belly, struggling, and trying to get to the top of the tank...I was distraught, and immediately got the old man out of bed..(He wasn't best pleased as it was 4am!)..I was shrieking that Pot belly was in trouble, and he HAD to do something...The old man, (bleary eyed)..just looked at me like I'm insane, and enquired, with more than a hint of sarcasm in his voice, If he wanted me to give him the kiss of life??....and in that moment, Pot belly sank gracefully to the bottom of his beloved tank, looking at me with those once menacing eyes, for one last time!.. I suppose two years is a good innings for a fish like him...I have to go fish him out know for one last time, and say goodbye....sigh.....The old man is in hysterics laughing at me....but I really am gonna miss my old Pot belly!!!!!

[Rocky's Ma]

It's funny how attached we get to our pets. I mean, people expect us to get attached to cats and dogs, but not fish! I had an Oscar for a year and a half. I had raised him from 1" and he was 9" when I had to give him away. I was moving and I did my very best to find someone I knew would take great care of him. I am a member at Oscarfish.com and found someone there who knew how important it is for their tank to be clean, etc. I drove an hour to meet the people with this huge fish in a giant storage container in the back of my car. I actually cried when I gave him away. He had so much personality and Oscars are just so calming to watch. I will definitely get another one when I am definitely settled in a living situation. It is hard to move aquariums. Here is my beloved Oscar (named Oscar): http://flickr.com/photos/pissyrissy/45743990/

I am so sorry about your loss of Pot Belly!

[lafsalot]

I am so sorry to hear about the loss of your Pot Belly. Godspeed and swim (?) free ~ Cathy

[Luvnmyboxer]

So sorry to hear about the loss of your sweet Pot Belly. We also have an aquarium full of spoiled fish who beg like dogs when we eat. Its funny how you can fall for an animal that you can't physically hold and play with, but we love our fish too.

[Louie's Mom]

Gourami's only live a short time I believe around 2 years - like bettas (siamese fighting fish)
So if you had him for a few years, he had a full fishy life

[Roxy'sNewMom]

Originally Posted by Rocky's Ma

It's funny how attached we get to our pets. I mean, people expect us to get attached to cats and dogs, but not fish! I had an Oscar for a year and a half. I had raised him from 1" and he was 9" when I had to give him away. I was moving and I did my very best to find someone I knew would take great care of him. I am a member at Oscarfish.com and found someone there who knew how important it is for their tank to be clean, etc. I drove an hour to meet the people with this huge fish in a giant storage container in the back of my car. I actually cried when I gave him away. He had so much personality and Oscars are just so calming to watch. I will definitely get another one when I am definitely settled in a living situation. It is hard to move aquariums. Here is my beloved Oscar (named Oscar): http://flickr.com/photos/pissyrissy/45743990/

I am so sorry about your loss of Pot Belly!

We LOVE our Oscars. We have Oscar and Garth! They are sooo neat and I love watching them eat other fish....it is great! And when they burp scales...oh I laugh so hard!

Godspeed sweet Pot belly!
Shaunna

[hldavis]

Godspeed Pot Belly...
My dh and I had a aquarium when we first got together and we had an Oscar and loved him until the day we brought home the meanest goldfish I have ever met in my life he did not like Oscar and well the goldfish won to my amazement. We had to keep the goldfish solo after that incident.. whoever heard of a goldfish eating an Oscar before.. but I'm here to tell you it did happen.

[Coco'smommy]

Sorry to hear about Pot Belly Marion.