The other day one of my children asked me if we could have an aquarium at home and have fish as pets. That didn’t exactly go down well, I normally associate pets, ones that walk and can curl up at your feet, dogs and cats, that sort of thing. Happy to see you when you get home and offer some sort of protection, companionship. So off we went to the pet store and had a look at fish.

I can go to a doctor’s office and see an aquarium, stress relief, meant to put you at ease, I thought we could do with some of that at home. While in the pet store, we had a good look at the fish on offer, admittedly they look easy to maintain and don’t take up too much room in the household. Like owning a bird, although not much room is taken up, we quickly worked out there is a lot to consider if you what fish at home.

One of the first considerations should be in deciding on the best size tank for your home, that is you know the location of your new fish tank before walking into the pet store. This way you don’t overstep the home footprint and can keep the budget within reason. There is no point in buying something that is too expensive or won’t fit in your desired location.

Once the size of the fish tank is known whether it’s a 10 to 20 litre one for the children’s room or something bigger like a 50 to 100L tank. This also depends on the type of fish you have your heart set on. Certain types of fish may need a larger tank so again research is vital beforehand.

Speaking with a fish specialist helps to ensure you understand what to do with the water, filtration and if a heater or other accessories are required for the specifies of fish. This will differ greatly depending on whether they are cold water or tropical fish for example.

The location of the tank, this is quite important for the health and safety of the fish to keep them out of direct sunlight, away from windows, and any direct heating. Most tanks require access to multiple power points or a power board to keep the water and tank clean, at the right temperature and oxygenated, as fish can die in water if they suffer from a lack of Oxygen in the water. Serious consideration to easy access for maintenance and cleaning purposes is required, otherwise the fish tank will have to be moved and can lead to damage of property the fish and the fish tank.

There should also be a set number of fish in the tank as well, avoid overcrowding, again the answer to this really does depend on the size of the tank, the size of the fish species, whether the fish like to be in schools and therefore need to be in groups of six and more, or whether they like to be left alone.  The Siamese Fighting Fish is one breed of fish that do not mix well with others.

Start with about two of each species, as adding too many at once may cause unnecessary stress on the fish. When purchasing further down the track, it is still recommended to purchase minimal numbers at a time and try giving the newbies somewhere safe they can hide out such as a plant, shells or other hidey holes. In this instance fish compatibility is a must, so homework is required here

Fish tanks require regular water changes and pH testing in order to ensure fish are living in the proper conditions. This will depend on the size of tank and the effectiveness of the filtration system, can include a weekly partial water replacement and tank clean, to a regular full change of water. Consider the chemicals that go into tap water and how this might impact the fish and cleaning, cleaning the outside of the tank regularly with water or aquarium safe products should be performed as well.

Apparently, fish don’t have stomachs, so they never know when to stop eating. It is generally recommended to only feed fish as much as they can eat in a couple of minutes and only once or twice a day. There are some fish, like goldfish that don’t need as much so should only be fed as much as they can eat in one minute.

Again, it is important to know the specific needs of each breed of fish as overfeeding is one of the most common mistakes people make.

To find out more about caring for your fish and what you need to consider when buying one visit your local pet store and ask to speak to the fish specialist to find out more fishy facts. Did we end up buying the fish? well a visit to the local aquarium helped a lot, that seemed to satisfy my daughter, and that was good enough for me. Do you own fish, tell us all about your experience?