Author: mathyhemant@gmail.com

Categories
Community Stories

Aquascaping: The New Ideal Hobby

Previously, I wrote a couple of articles that talk about my experience with pet fish, along with some tips and tricks on how to care for them. However, I recently noticed that more and more people are shifting towards “aquascaping”, which is a new hobby that surged in popularity during Circuit Breaker.

For those of you who don’t know what it is, “aquascaping” is when you arrange aquatic plants, rocks, stones and other types of accessories within an aquarium. Basically it’s the equivalent of gardening, but this time it’s done underwater. The best part of this is that it’s completely up to you regarding whether you want to actually have aquatic pets in the tank or not!

While it seems “mundane” or troublesome, there’s actually a lot to learn when it comes to aquascaping, which I’ll be discussing below:

What are the types of aquascaping?

While there are quite a few types of aquascaping techniques and methods, I won’t be going through them all as there’s too much volume of content to provide. However, I’ve attached a hyperlink to each example for you to read more about them.

Each type of technique brings about a whole different style, layout, and even sense of appreciation by those that engage in aquascaping. What’s more, there’s actually quite a few health benefits that come with it.

Stress Reducer

One slightly more “obvious” benefit is that aquascaping helps reduce stress levels. Just watching the fish swim about, and observing the underwater plants swaying has had a positive effect on those who suffer from high stress levels.

If your job is giving you excessive stress or pressure, then this hobby is definitely for you.

Lowers High Blood Pressure

A slightly less known benefit of aquascaping is that it reduces high blood pressure. In a study conducted, those who participated in aquascaping actually had a reduction in their blood pressure levels. This was noted especially for people who had aquatic animals in their tank, compared to those that didn’t.

However, if aquascaping is out of your budget (which I’ll be discussing later on), you can actually experience similar results by simply watching videos of fish swimming, or aquatic plants swaying. Regardless of whether you own a tank or not, it does seem to have some really good health benefits.

Reduction of Pain

This last benefit is actually quite an unknown one. An academic report actually found that dentists with an aquarium in their waiting room resulted in decreased pain felt during the appointment, and also the amount of medicine required afterwards.

Not only that, it also leads to a lower level of stress (as previously mentioned).

Overall, there seems to be quite a few benefits to aquascaping, especially for those with high stress levels or blood pressure.

How Much does Aquascaping Cost?

To be very honest, I’m no expert at aquascaping. However, the cost of aquascaping really does depend on what you’d like to put inside the tank. Some basic essentials are lighting, water filters, carbon dioxide, liquid fertilisers, substrate, and hardscape materials. These items vary in prices depending on how extensive you’d like your aquarium to be.

However, if you’re looking to go the distance and also purchase aquatic animals, expect the prices to be beyond $100. Not only do you have to purchase these animals, but you’d probably also need to purchase a tank with a motor, fish food, anti-chlorine and other accessories to ensure your pets are well taken care of.

However again, I’m not an aquascaping expert. This article is merely here to provide you with some benefits of delving into this hobby, and some of the things you may want to consider before taking the plunge (pun intended).

If you’re interested in actually going into the hobby, do click here, and here to learn a little bit more about what you may need, and how to go about purchasing it.

Conclusion

While aquascaping doesn’t seem to be the cheapest hobby out there, there seems to be quite a few health benefits to it. If you’re looking for a somewhat low maintenance hobby (in comparison to others), this might be the one for you.

However, if you’re looking to find ways to reduce your stress levels on a budget, it may be easier to watch some videos of aquariums/aquascaping as they have similar positive impacts on your health.

Hope you’ve enjoyed the article! Do let me know if you have any other aquatic topics you’d like me to delve into 🙂

—-

Photo Credit: https://aquariumbreeder.com/aquascaping-for-beginners-introduction/

Reference: https://www.emotionalpetsupport.com/2019/11/the-world-of-aquascaping-and-its-benefits/

Categories
Community Stories

Important things to note when keeping fish as pets!

Previously, I wrote about the things you should note if you’d like to get a pet (i.e., dogs, cats), and what it’s like to work in a pet environment. To summarise my previous article; you should definitely consider getting a pet if you’re able to look after it (cleaning up its poop, pee, feeding it etc). If you’re unable to, then my recommendation is working in a pet-friendly environment, as it gives you the ability to see what it’s like to own a pet, without actually owning it.

I also mentioned that I don’t own any pets. Unfortunately, I might have unintentionally misled you. After writing and publishing my article, I remembered that my father actually owns fishes. Due to the fact that they reside in my house, it gives me partial ownership over them as well.

Therefore, I thought it’d be worthwhile to share my experience when owning pet fish, and what are some do’s and don’ts when ensuring their well-being.

DO’s
Purchase Anti-Chlorine for the Tank
This is a CRUCIAL point to note when keeping fish at home. The chlorine in the water will make your fish sick, and will eventually end up killing it if you don’t add it in. You can purchase one from the aqua-shop that you buy your fish & tank from, and it’s not every expensive!

Usually what I do is add just a few drops right after I finish cleaning the tank. DO NOT add more than that because too much can make your fish sick!

Have Enough Space for your Fish
One of the most common misconceptions is that you can pack quite a few fish in one tank. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case. For example, goldfish can grow up to 14 inches in the wild, and their size depends very much on the space around them. As such, it’s important to note the type of fish you

Fish can also get claustrophobic if they don’t have enough space, so it’s important to note that you need to give them enough room to move.

Provide Companionship
When kept in captivity, it’s good to provide your fish with some company, because they can actually get stressed from being alone (which could eventually lead to death).

For those of you who DO have standalone fish, some common signs if your fish is stressed include:
1. Fishes coming up to the surface to gasp for air (could also be due to poor oxygen quality)
2. Fishes not eating their food

Keep some of the Previous Water when Cleaning the Tank
If there is a large change in water quality/quantity, fishes can get stressed/sick and die. It’s important to reuse some of the previous tank water when cleaning the tank, to prevent too radical a change in the tank.

DON’TS
Overfeed your Fish
Similar to land-based pets, if you overfeed your aquatic buddy, they’ll of course create more poop. As a result, the amount of ammonia and nitrate in the tank will significantly increase, polluting the tank and affecting the fishes health.

Of course, a solution to this is increasing the frequency of cleaning the tank, but not everyone may have the ability to do this. My recommendation is feeding them once in the morning, and once at night. However, some breeds of fish require more food than others, so do a quick check online to ensure you’re feeding them enough, too.

FORGET TO CLEAN YOUR TANK
The more you forget, the dirtier the tanks going to be and your fish are going to S U F F E R. Please don’t forget!

CONCLUSION
Contrary to what many people believe, fish need quite a bit of care in order to be at their best. While they don’t require as much love and affection as dogs or cats, they do need attention at least once a day, and shouldn’t be neglected for long periods of time.

Additionally, if you’re already the owner of some wonderful fish, you may consider taking it a step further and try aquascaping! I’ll be discussing this in further detail in the coming weeks as well.

– – –
Feel free to comment below about other topics you’d like me to discuss!

Categories
Community Stories

Do you love animals but can’t have a pet? This article’s for you.

by Hemant Mathy M S

When I was younger, I always wanted a pet. It’s pretty common, right? You ask your parents for a dog, or a cat, or some other animal to care for and forge a special bond with. Unfortunately, my parents never budged and I had to settle for a pet rock.

Now as an adult, I still want a pet. However, my parent’s sentiments haven’t changed either. So, I thought: If I can’t bring the dogs to me, maybe I should bring myself to the dogs.

In December 2020 I joined The Woof Agency, a highly recognised agency that works with various pet brands and petfluencers, and of course is the one that gave birth to Pawjourr and this blogsite.

I was excited, as it was a brand new opportunity for my to hone my skills and learn a thing or two, especially in an industry that I’ve never experienced before (and not to mention play with some dogs). I’ve heard about creative agencies for F&B and other retail brands, but never for pet brands.

The day before my first day, I was genuinely unsure of what to expect going in.

However, what I definitely did not expect was to be greeted by Oolong, a 3-month old Husky. I was pleasantly surprised, and suspected that there would be more doggo’s to come.

Oolong, the 3-month old Husky

I was right! With each passing day, I was introduced to my colleagues various pups. Ranging from Corgi’s, Miniature Schnauzer’s, and many more breeds, I found myself getting acquainted with how to feed, carry, and generally look after a dog to ensure they’re healthy and well behaved.

Fifi, the Miniature Schnauzer

It was a major culture shock, as I had to strike a balance between finishing my reports and compilation decks, as well as giving out treats and giving A-star belly rubs to all the puppers. It was an exhausting challenge but I was up for the task!

On most days, I would end up taking one too many breaks to just hang out with them, since having a pet in close proximity to me the whole day was such a foreign concept. Roughly 1 month into my employment here, I’m proud to say I’ve accomplished the following:

  1. Pet (5) dogs
  2. Carried (3) dogs
  3. Fed (2) dogs
  4. Cleaned up (1) dog’s poop
  5. Cleaned (1) hamster cage

What I’ve Learnt

The one lesson I’ve gained so far is that caring for a dog is no easy feat. Majority of the time owning a dog means that you’re preoccupied in making sure it doesn’t eat any questionable items off the floor, nor letting it run off into the wilderness without your knowledge.

Sure, your friends and family are going to love playing with them, but in the end you’re the one in charge of their well-being. Sometimes, the process could make you go a little crazy and even overprotective.

And if anyone is considering getting a dog, here’s my suggestion: spend the day with a friend who owns a dog, and see what the experience is like.

If you can’t handle cleaning up after them, nor able to withstand the slobber that will eventually soak your pants, maybe it’s better to admire them from a distance for the time being.

However if you CAN, then feel free to browse through the various stories written by fellow pawrents on the website to learn more about the process of getting a dog in Singapore.

If the question in your head is “should I work in a pet-friendly environment” though, then my answer (with 97% certainty) is to go for it.

Not only do you get to slowly learn how to care for a pet without having to immersive yourself completely, you can also carry it around with you as a stress reliever for meetings that should have been an email instead.

Give this article a like if you enjoyed what I had to say! Also, let me know in the comments if there’s any other topics you’d like me to talk about 🙂