How many are too many?

[TeenyTinyTofu]

Chicklet, yeah that's the person I remember. I just looked and noticed she hasn't posted much lately. She has a ton of betta's and her set-up is amazing. Not sure how long it takes her to do a water change though, LOL.

I just looked up ChristinaRoss and her signature says she has 75. Wow, I'd love to see her set-up!

[CodeRed]

Basically the answer is how many can you take care of without letting any fall behind in care? Nine is my answer (: If you get too many, it becomes more of a pain to take care of than to enjoy them, and that's no fun for you or the fish.

[tanker]

Thanks for all of the replies.

Originally Posted by 1fish2fish

If you don't have time to provide enrichment to all your fish, then you probably need to keep fewer fish.

That's a good point. I was thinking about getting a second tank to put next to one of my existing tanks (I'd cover the side so they wouldn't drive each other crazy), so I don't think that it would add much to the effort. When I go and sit there to talk to Shmuel, I could talk to the other one as well. My second one is in my office so I see him more, he's right there when I'm on the computer.

In terms of water changes, it might actually be easier because I could fill a full bucket to do the tanks rather than having to measure out water conditioner for smaller volumes.

Luckily I don't live in a hurricane (cyclone here) district so evacuation isn't something I have to deal with on a regular basis (never so far, thank goodness).

Originally Posted by doggyhog

I think if your ever starting to feel stressed about taking care of them, don't get more. That means you've reached your limit.

Yes, I was trying to figure it out before ending up stressed. I suppose that was rather optimistic. I think a third wouldn't add significantly to my stress levels, unless it or the others got sick.

I can't imagine having 50 fish, that sounds like a lot of work....

Thanks again, everyone. It's been helpful.