Low_Budget_Hooker

I am aiming to have the road trip vid done this week and the members vid will be done immediately after. If you'd still like to contribute, send pics to membersmedia@gmail.com I NEED VIDEO CLIPS TOO!!!!!!

A. Chill B. Stay on topic and read the previous posts before replying. We are not talking about whether any fish can get huge or not, the subject is can they outgrow a tank or not. Gizzard shad are irrelevant Had you thought about the thread below,instead of getting defensive, you'd notice he is giving you an exaggeration of an example so you can see the point you are missing. You'll never learn with your ears and eyes shut and your mouth open (my grandmothers fav saying,lol) C. A Bass can have the genetic capability to grow to trophy size regardless of "where" it came from. D. Take your own advice regarding doing your homework before posting. E. This thread has run it's course, goodnight.

Touche' Cart!! JJ- I've been fishing over 25 yrs, but even still I learn. Some of the particular guys trying to give you advice here have forgotten more than I ever knew,...heed their experience and wisdom. 1 thing always remains the same though,....in the pursuit of knowledge, your ears and eyes need to be bigger than your mouth. I mean,...sure, we could sit here and stump each other with questions like,...."Does color matter?" but If you REALLY want to test your knowledge, go fishing If you come home smiling,....having caught or not,......you've figured out enough.

If I give you 2 Parakeets, 2 Pigeons and 2 Piping Plovers,..........can I have your old boat? 8-)

I know an excellent financial counselor. 1st thing they say to do is get out of Dodge and turn your phone off. LIVE IT UP MAN!!

I'd name him Bait. He's especially delicious looking with the tail, I'd rig him up before the tail goes away.

Interesting angle.

It's a vase but I have a dremel and a glass bit ;D

Is there anything specific u guys are short on?

On Sunday they only have Brunch.

Wow, talk about irresponsible legislation!

You are correct, it IS legal,....... with the correct permit. In RI and a few other states I know of, it's called a "Scientific Permit". Getting one is like requesting a sit down with the President though,lol. (77.32.240 Scientific permit -- Procedures -- Penalties -- Fee A scientific permit allows the holder to collect for research or display food fish, game fish, and shellfish.) I HAVE to see a pic of a Trout/walleye in a tank, I've never seen a cold water specie in a tank other than at BPS. PICS PLEASE!! PICS!!

A diatom is the smallest filterable particle. You tun the filter through a "cycle" (a few hours) and it makes the tank like crystal.

Holy cow! I imagine that much waste would be tough to keep up with. I also use the floating pellets, Hikari gold (large) Dumpster (the Oscar's name) certainly wasn't in need of weight though, pretty healthy, normal looking guy.

I'm with ya there buddy!! I get more excited watching a kid catch his first fish than any fish I've personally caught myself in the last 10 yrs or so.

I have an addictive/compulsive personality. If I take an interest to something, I max it out.

The larger tank can support a bigger bioload. The fish will have a growth spurt but then slow down as it reaches a size where the bioload gets higher. As I mentioned in an earlier post changing a large portion of the tanks water lessens the bioload and the fish can literally outgrow the tank. I am not an expert, but I have experienced this first hand. My poor Oscar could not turn around in my 20 gallon aquarium without displacing the hood he got so big. He experience a growth spurt when I relocated him to a 55 but then slowed down when he got rather large for that tank. By then I was making slight water changes once a month as I had learned my lesson about making to many water changes. You are assuming the cleaning regimen is not keeping up with the bioload but I can assure you it is. My fish is on a low feed program and 30% water changes are done every 2 weeks, sometimes 3 weeks if I'm traveling. I also hit the tank with the diatom filter once every other month. This is all for a single fish who is fed once a week, no live feed. Well, I'll give him a crayfish now and then, maybe 3-4/yr but no feeders. Water temp is never above 72-73 in the summer months and usually rests around 69-70 in the winter. Tank is not near a window, no algae growth. Interesting discussion so far guys, giving me lots to think about, thanks

1 question. How do we explain sudden growth spurts when a fish is moved to a larger tank?

all of them and then the box.

This illustrates my point exactly,growth was LIMITED due to tank size.

This info about fish only growing to the size of their tank is wrong... based on.......?? care to elaborate?? Jeo- I understand your points and they are good ones. You also touched on some vital points regarding releasing and cruelty, but 20+ yrs of owning large fish only has shown me otherwise (as far as the "turning around" theory). Have you ever seen a fish that can't turn around in a tank? No. I haven't either. Actually, I have, an Arrowana, but it was put in the tank when it was already too big. And they do "turn off", much like the switch you described but they can also be "turned on" (stop it,lol) again also. Ex: Raised an Oscar from a baby in a 50g. He reached his full size in roughly 2 yrs. He lived in that tank for another 4 yrs. When I rescued another Oscar, a 5 yr old, I gave the 6 yr old to a friend with a 125g. He grew another 1-2 inches and added weight extremely quickly and then growth stopped there. That fish is now going on 12? 13 yrs old? and hasn't grown again since he was introduced to the tank. Either has the 5 yr old I adopted which came from the same size tank he is in now. They are happy, healthy, and not growing. Genetically, they are programmed to grow every day of their lives, PROVIDED THEIR ENVIRONMENT ALLOWS THEM. (that can also be related to fish in the wild, i.e. not enough food, etc) As for the bioload, absolutely, large fish require more care and water balancing but diet plays a large part in that also. Another trick is to keep the tank as cool as possible, thus slowing the metabolism. Driftwood also helps to balance abnormalities in the water, a must for large fish. Now, I'm no rocket scientist and I'm not a biologist, but I did stay in a Holiday Inn last week so,... ;D This might be a good topic to throw at Mr Lusk, a real fisheries biologist. I'll link him and he should reply if he has the time, but it is spring, his busy season, so it may take a bit I'm not claiming to be the know all on this stuff, I just have a lot of personal experience. Please don't take me as cocky, I know when I write, I can come off that way but I love nothing more than to be proven WRONG,....learning is essential and I care about my pets, I want to give them the best care I can.

That's the biggest bait in the smallest pond I've ever seen!

and evidently created some pretty special memories of you and your dad spending quality time together

Man I hate this topic,lol. a search will show why. fyi- NO fish can outgrow a tank. A fish will only grow to where it can still turn around in the tank comfortably, after that, the growing stops. But in short, a Bass, in my opinion, has no place being kept as a pet. There are plenty of fish already in captivity at the store you can choose from.

Some AWESOME advice above To add to #3, have other things with you for when his/her attention is waning. Stuff to play catch, soccer ball, kite,butterfly and/or minnow net, whatever. You can always come back to fishing again later or it may be satisfying in itself as a short session. A field guide book is a great tool for exploring the shoreline also. Plants, bugs, critters, start turning over rocks,....now he/she also knows how to find their own bait too. (in bold above) Letting him actually pick his gear begins the connection to the sport/hobby/activity. Makes it personal to him/her