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tell me what needs to be done to make them happy.i saw some austrllians for 1.99 and i wanted to give them a try they look so nice!]

Rainbowfish do well in regular tap water, and they are very very adaptable. They need a lot of unobstructed swimming space as well. They like plants but swim mostly in the open. They love water changes like discus, so I recommend doing a small water change every two weeks. I keep about seven different varieties together and they all school with eachother regardless of color, however the ones of the same colors seem to display to eachother more. So get two or more of whatever colors you want. Australians are wonderful, as they get older they will become a vibrant metalic lavendar with red tails. Most rainbowfish start out drab but within a year they will get incredible color. I can't stress enough how patience will win with the rainbowfish, they need time to mature. If you check out my site at www.angelfire.com/az2/Hollandbunnys/index.html you can see some of the rainbowfish in their adult colors. My largest Aussie was about four inches long. If you can get a hold of them Red/Red Iranian Rainbowfish are probably my favorite and as a bonus they have their color throughout their lifes. Males are a blood red with high shine metalic silver scales on their sides that fade out on the edges into that intense red. I have three males together, they will not hurt eachother! But my largest rainbow, which is a red, is on my site and he's several years old and going strong. He's six inches and by far my favorite fish. Good luck feel free to email me with any questions.

Rainbows are great fish. I have Precox and Boesmani. Planning to have an all rainbowfish tank some day.

Skittles pretty much covered it. But they do need schools, yes they will all hang out together. This and the fact that they are very active fish who need a lot of swimming room means you really need a good sized tank. For a decent group I would say nothing less then a 55.

You think they look good in the lfs ? Gives them a few months in a nice tank and then you'll see their true beauty. Again, skittles is right on the mark, they are quite slow growing but mature beautifully. My Praecox are about 6 months old and still got a bit of growing to do but get better looking everyday.

Have patience give them an appropiate home and you won't be disappointed.

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Some days you're the pigeon and some days you're the statue.

Remember that age and treachery will always triumph over youth and ability.

They defintely need schools to really feel comfortable but are loose shoaling fish that don't mind other fish in the area. They are very accepting of tank mates of all kinds. Some keys for keeping rainbowfish are live plants, some live or frozen foods and water changes.

Rainbowfish really like clean, healthy water. I know all fish do but rainbows more than most. Plants really help Rainbows by keeping nitrates lower. They just seem to be more colorful and active when kept with plants.

Nothing picks up the activity level of rainbowfish like a water change. Remember, rainbowfish really like clean, healthy water. I do 20% water changes twice a week and the tanks do very well although I think they would do even better with a few more changes. Small, frequent water changes are a real key.

These fish will greedily eat just about anything but they really enjoy live foods including brine shrimp. I don't have reasonable access to live foods so mine often get frozen bloodworms, glassworms, brine shrimp etc. The frozen foods seem to have a similar effect as the live foods.

A great thing about rainbowfish is that they will let you know when you do something right. They really talk to you with their coloration and activity level. You can see it within minutes of a water change or live feeding. They color up brightly and start swimming (and mating) all over the tank. You can see that they really appreciated your efforts.