All About Our Aquatic Amigos

Comet the Performing Goldfish

2008-05-07T20:49:00.002-05:00

The fish that plays football and limbo dances

By Katie Franklin and agencies

Last updated: 9:00 PM BST 06/05/2008

They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks, but apparently you can teach a two-year-old goldfish to bend it like Beckham.

Comet the goldfish may be the world's most intelligent fish after its owner, Dean Pomerleau, trained it to perform a range of aquatic activities.

Comet can play football, basketball and even limbo dance under a bar.

The genius of the water world can also play fetch with a hoop, slalom around a series of poles and push a rugby ball over a set of posts.

Dr Pomerleau, 41, from Los Angeles, used a training technique called positive reinforcement to train Comet to perform the tricks.

This involves rewarding the fish with food when it successfully completes a task.

Dr Pomerleau insisted there was nothing fishy about his claim, saying anyone can teach their pet to perform similar tricks.

"There is mounting evidence that fish are more intelligent than people give them credit for," the fish training expert said.

"With the correct tools and the basic promise of a food reward, fish can very quickly learn complex tricks - like the limbo, slalom or playing fetch.

"Now people in the market for a dog might want to consider a fish instead."

Dr Pomerleau already holds the official world record for having the fish with the largest repertoire of tricks, with a three year-old calico fantail named Albert Einstein.

But four-inch long Comet has already learned Albert's array of tricks and is set to take the crown of the world's most intelligent goldfish.

My Snails Overrunneth....

2008-03-20T16:05:00.008-05:00

Well, it's been difficult updating my blog because so many of my fish family have gone and new have come, so I won't bore you with the details. Currently at home, I have a golden veil angelfish, an ivory mystery snail, an albino cory, and a panda cory. At work, I had a betta, but she died and I got two male guppies (now down to one), a ghost shrimp, and one red ramshorn snail.

Now, keep in mind I said I bought only one red ramshorn snail to my tank at work, because I thought the red color was pretty. But before I knew it, I saw egg sacs on the side of my tank: I had apparently bought a pregnant snail! Those have hatched, and those babies have already bred, and on and on (with many more egg sacs waiting to hatch now), and I have segregated nearly all of them to their own bowl, where they are apparently freely breeding with each other more, all within about a month's time.

So, this post is really my plea to anyone who wants one of these snails for FREE to add to your own freshwater tank. They do help keep the tank clean! Contact me if you are interested (serious inquiries ONLY), and I'd be happy to populate the rest of America's tanks with a snail! I don't see this coming to an end anytime soon....so the more taken, the better!! (Pickup in Washington, DC metro area only)

Sharlin, the Hungry Angelfish

2007-08-18T23:04:00.000-05:00

My golden veil angelfish, Sharlin, always wants to eat. Every time someone is near the tank, he gets going with his little "hungry dance" to indicate he's ready to eat...which is ALL THE TIME. So I caught a couple of clips of him doing this, especially since it's hard to describe and difficult to believe. He's a very cute fish, with lots of personality for an aquatic fella.

Welcome to our expanded family!

2007-01-17T21:44:00.000-05:00

Last you heard, we (Pete and Buzz) were the newest Aquatic Amigos with our Golden Chinese Algae Eater, Jin Long. Well, unfortunately he has also passed away, but there have been some changes since then. First of all, we moved to some new digs, a new 5 gallon aquarium--twice as big as our old home. We really like it there. Now we'd like to introduce the new members of our big tank, as well as those who moved into our smaller "apartment" in the meantime.

Otocinclus Algae Eater

We got him as a replacement for Jin Long, though a different kind of algae eater. He came when some algae started growing in our old tank, and he cleaned it up really well! Our owner didn't know what to name him right away, so he finally got the name Odo, after the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine character, since the Bajorans didn't know what to name him, either, when they found him.

One of "the hundred" sent out by The Founders long ago to explore the galaxy, Odo was found adrift in 2356 in the Denorios Belt by Bajorans, who indirectly gave him his name. It is unclear how long he had been adrift in the Denorios Belt. Since Odo had not yet learned how to morph into a humanoid appearance, he appeared in his natural gelatinous form. The Bajorans, not sure of what Odo actually was, put him in a container and labelled it "unknown sample". The Cardassian overseers translated this into their own language as "odo'ital", literally "nothing". Even after it became clear that Odo was sentient, the scientists kept calling him by that name, which eventually was styled (as a joke) into a Bajoran name "Odo Ital", then shortened to simply "Odo".

Fancy Guppy #3

George was added to the like of our number after we got a larger tank to fit him in. He is yellow and blue, befitting the colors of mom's graduate school, George Washington University, where he also got his name. He's the runt right now, but fitting in nicely.

African Dwarf Frogs

We got them in the tank as an addition for something different; they came in a pair to keep each other company. However, they pretty much do their own thing. One is larger than the other, so a good pair name decided for them was G'Kar (larger) and Londo (smaller), after the famous duo on Babylon 5.

In the smaller tank:

Angelfish

Sharlin became the star of the 2.5 gallon tank, a nice black and silver mottle/stripe angelfish. He got his name from the very angelfish-shaped Minbari War Cruiser ships of the Sharlin Class.

Albino Cory and Panda Cory Catfish

Marcus (Panda Cory) and Galen (Albino Cory) are a pair of cory catfish that keep the bottom of the tank clean. The particularly like to curl up in the cave together when they are tired or if there is food in there. They are named after Marcus Cole, a Ranger in the Army of Light from Babylon 5, and Galen, a technomage--and both were British comic relief.

A brief glimpse of hyperactivity

2006-10-03T08:06:00.000-05:00

Since we are so active that it's difficult for our parents to get good pictures of us, mom took a video to show our playful interactions:

Meet the new family!

2006-10-03T07:38:00.000-05:00

Well, since the aquarium is empty, we got a few new residents. Since two bettas have died just this year, we decided to get some different species to distance the grief somewhat and so we could have a community tank. Meet the family:

Pete is a male guppy that is orange with black spots. He is named after the mascot of Oklahoma State University, Pistol Pete, whose school colors are orange and black (mom's alma mater).

Buzz is also a male guppy that is yellow with black leopard-like spots. He is named after the mascot of Georgia Tech, Buzz the Yellow Jacket, whose school colors are yellow and white (dad's alma mater).

Jin Long is a Golden Chinese algae eater. He is named after the Chinese characters that mean "Golden Dragon."

RIP Keahi: 5/10/06-9/29/06

2006-09-29T13:14:00.000-05:00

This is Keahi's mom. It is with sadness to say that Keahi went to Fishie Heaven today. During the week, he started looking sluggish and hiding at the bottom of the aquarium. I started him in a hospital tank with a regimen of Maracyn and Maracyn II, but he continued losing his color with some bloating, and today, he died. I'm not certain what was wrong with him, but I did all I could do to save him. I hope he is enjoying a better life now. I will miss your friendliness, my "Flames."

Watch me swim!

2006-05-21T21:16:00.000-05:00

Since I'm such an active fish, my parents took some videos of me to show me in action! Click the titles to watch the videos:

Swimming Around

Crystal Acrobatics

Welcome to Our New Betta!

2006-05-10T12:56:00.000-05:00

Hi, my name is Keahi, and I am the newest addition to my family's aquarium since their other betta Prisma went to fishie heaven. As you can see, I'm red, but I have some purple accents on the ends of my scales and at the base of my fins. My parents named me Keahi because it is Hawaiian for "flames," which is kind of how I look with my flowing purple and red fins. :)

RIP Prisma: 10/2/05-3/12/06

2006-03-12T21:19:00.000-05:00

Hi, this is Prisma's mom.

Prisma died today. He was still suffering from fin rot, but what killed him is that he somehow jumped out of his tank while we were getting ready for church this morning, and I didn't find him until some time later when I was getting breakfast (his tank is in the kitchen). I don't know how long he was out, but I put him back in immediately when I realized he was still alive. He started breathing and rehydrating, and even swam around a little bit. We were running late after caring for him, but we decided to go on to church anyway and to an oboe lesson I had scheduled afterwards, hoping that he would rest and recover while we were gone, but when we got back home, he had crawled behind the shell to die. It looked like he might have still been breathing, but before long, he was gone. I'm so sorry I didn't catch him sooner. :~-(

I will miss your great fishie personality, Prisma. RIP! At least you are now in a place with no velvet, ick, or fin rot.

I'm Melting....

2006-03-10T19:49:00.000-05:00

My owner gave me a dose of Fungus Clear, until she can get to the store for other medicine. In the meantime, it seems my fins continue to deteriorate. :(

Another health challenge...

2006-03-08T21:45:00.000-05:00

Well, as a couple days have gone on, it appears I have fin rot, rather than just some damage from being so active or having overbearing aeration. So I will be going on another round of meds to attack this next illness. :( Hopefully it will stop and I will grow my beautiful fin back!

I can't get a break!

2006-03-06T21:45:00.000-05:00

Well, my owner took pictures of my beautiful self just two days ago, but as she fed me tonight, she noticed some of my tail fins were shredding away. :( So I might have tail rot now and may be starting some new medication regimen again. Sigh.

Showing my new look off!

2006-02-27T00:08:00.000-05:00

Here I am showing off my beautiful coloring, which had first attracted my owners, that I've since regained after being sick.

Back with double the trouble!

2006-02-26T00:00:00.000-05:00

I'm back to normal now, my coloring is back and I'm as active as I've ever been. I'm enjoying my aquarium home, and am glad to be over my illness. Thanks for taking care of me! I'm admiring my new looks in the mirror.

Feeling much better!

2006-02-23T21:42:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm defintely on the mend now....my color is nearly all back--though it's bluer than before--and I'm as active as ever!

Getting back to my old self

2006-02-20T16:04:00.000-05:00

Things are looking good. I am feeling much better, eating ravenously (as usual), and even doing my "happy dance" when I'm ready to eat. My color is getting back to normal, and the white in my face is nearly gone. It's been a long haul, but hopefully I'll be back to 100% soon!

I'm getting better...

2006-02-13T15:59:00.000-05:00

I've been in my aquarium for a while now, and it looks like my slime coat is shedding. I'm more active now and eating well. My color is also starting to improve. :)

I'm not dead yet....

2006-02-09T21:36:00.000-05:00

Today my owners moved me from my 1/2 gallon bowl to a 1 gallon aquarium. After trying QuICK Cure for velvet and Melafix in case it was bacterial, they tried aquarium salt, and now Fungus Clear to attempt to treat my ailment. I still look bad, as you can see here, but my activity has increased, and my appetite is still good, especially after they gave me bloodworms to eat!

Feeling a little sick....

2006-02-05T19:14:00.000-05:00

Here I am, feeling a little sick. My owners aren't sure what's wrong with me, so they are trying to find some help with some fish forum experts so they can get medication for me. I've lost my color and I have a filmy coat on my body.

A little video of me

2006-01-02T18:27:00.000-05:00

Here you can see me in action, swimming around my bowl:
(If it doesn't play, click here to watch)

Showing off a bit...

2005-10-10T17:21:00.000-05:00

Welcome Home!

2005-10-02T17:04:00.000-05:00

Today I was chosen to be a part of the family I am living with now. They chose me from a large selection of male bettas because of my beautiful coloring. Since I am so iridescent, they named me Prisma.