Anyone want a fish? Klingon is up for grabs.

He is a young lionhead goldfish that I have had since the spring.

I am giving him away for two reasons. First, in my current state of health, I can’t clean my tanks out as often as I usually do, and so reducing the number of fish in my big tank will reduce the quantity of waste produced between cleanings, thus helping everybody out.

Second, he’s obnoxious. I originally bought him for my smaller tank that is in my bedroom. I have another lionhead, and a pearlscale in there. Both are females. When Klingon (who earned his name in that tank) was introduced, both of my girls started releasing eggs, and he liked eating them. That’s normal. What isn’t so normal is that he wasn’t content to wait until the eggs came out. So he became a butt-sucker. He chased them all the time, not aggressively, but in pursuit of eggs. So he was banned to the BIG tank. Now, most everything in the big tank is very big. He was about 2 inches long at the time, and three of the four fish in the big tank were pushing 10 inches. A normal fish would have made himself scarce, but not Klingon. The second I released him into the water, he muscled his way into the center of the pack.

This fish has no fear.

So, he behaved himself for a number of months, but he’s back to his old habits now. And I find it annoying. Fortunately, the other fish in the tank are so big, that they don’t exhaust themselves by running away from him like my little girls did. To the big guys, he’s more of a nuisance. No one is getting beat up or tattered, he just pecks at the bottom, looking for stuff.

I know, ewww.

So, I think that Klingon needs to go to a tank all by his little self. I think he’d be ok in a 10 gallon for a year or so, but ultimately, he will need 20 gallons to be healthy and happy, in my opinion. If I didn’t already have two tanks, I’d seriously get another tank, just for him. He’s really beautiful. He’s healthy, he’s a strong swimmer, he has really good confirmation…..

He’s a nice fish, and very enjoyable to watch. So long as he’s by himself.

I don’t want to give him to a pet store, because their tanks are loaded with parasites and illness, and Klingon has been in a closed, healthy, and parasite free environment since the spring. When he came home from the pet store, he was quarantined, treated for flukes, given a salt bath, and observed for a month. He’s been healthy ever since. I’d say he’s about 3 inches long right now, or close to it. He’s growing very nicely.

Anyone want him?

And if not, (and I cringe to even consider this, because I need another responsibility like I need a hole in the head), does anyone have a tank they want to get rid of that I can put him in?

As for the Esther Williams hat… We’re really getting close to posting a pattern. I’ve taken some up-close pictures to illustrate the crocheted edge (which is gorgeous, btw. Thanks, Gayle!), and it’ll be ready soon. My pink hat is done. The red hat for my sister-in-law is done and gone.

Really, really close.