FishProfiles.com Message Forums

Tangential diversion.

I've suddenly developed this interesting mental image of you in a white coat with a stethoscope, Cory_Di ... and a mermaid's tail

Hopefully some of the advice I dispensed was useful, even if some cases were sadly terminal. Mind you, writing prescriptions after 19 hours' solid net surfing has given me a new respect for junior doctors in the NHS over here in the UK, who work those kind of hours in real A&E departments ...

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

I was already planning on it, but must get off to bed. I have to get up in six hours to go to a doctor's appointment. Was having trouble sleeping and sitting here sometimes makes me sleepy

Cory_Di, if you want to suggest it to Adam, that's fine with me. I have all my major articles archived on CD. I can resurrect them literally at a moment's notice. Exquisite torture for the uninitiated

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

i find myself passing through more often than usual, and boy, some of those posts are things u try not to dream about

Cal - I think you have earned your very own place in the Articles section. I think we should label it:

Calilasseia's Corner

Did I spell that right?

Your essays are a classic example of how some people will simply not be interested, while others will love them. I print them and read them later and appreciate the many ideas I get from them. It was the same with Gary's stories - some loved them and got invovled, while others passed them up. It's all diversity - likes/dislikes.

Bottom line is that your printable articles shouldn't be lost in the bowels of server land when they get no hits. While any one of us can copy them for ourselves, why not make the collection available to everyone, anytime? Then we can link to it, say, when someone asks about how to treat otocinclus.

EDIT: Oops! Corrected that spelling


Last edited by Cory_Di at 21-Feb-2005 18:55

Guess it's time for me to post some more essays then Cory_Di ...

Always providing I don't break Adam 's server of course


Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Well, I'm sure glad the world is so rich in diversity. There are those who like things straight to the point and others who like details. There are those who tell us about the red streaks on the fish, but fail to tell us about the ammonia spike they had last week. Some wonder why the fish look disoriented, yet don't think it could be that pH altering product, or the RO system they recently installed. That history often pulls out the root cause or a contributor to the condition for which the person seeks help. Body Fungus won't improve in a tank that has lousy parameters or is overstocked, and meds can exacerbate ammonia or nitrite levels.

All we do in the hospital is guesswork. Some guesses are better than others. The more data one takes into consideration, the better those guesses are going to be.

Its amazing that since I've been at fishprofiles.com, only two members have ever made inferences about lengthy posts in my threads and the target is clearly visible. Yet dozens have thanked me for providing as much information as I have and to take the time to do so. I receive email regularly on the subject.

There are several members on this site that are highly respected and they happen to write very long posts and replies, some making mine look short. I am grateful for the time they take to share their experience and to probe my thoughts, and the thoughts of others, with their questions. It is a way to grow in knowledge. I can only hope that more would look at it that way.

When one is looking for help, they don't have much of a choice in how it comes. It's all in how they recieve it. I can't even begin say how many times I've been blown off on water quality issues in a "help me" thread, only to find that when the thread is 20+ posts long, there WAS indeed a water quality issue at the root of the problem.

Diane


Last edited by Cory_Di at 21-Feb-2005 18:49

I would like to remind all these new helpful members out there to remember to keep the simple things simple.

Yeah, okay, we tell everyone that the numbers are important, and they are in a number of cases, but some things really don't require whole fishkeeping histories and daily measurements to treat. A fungus is a fungus afterall!! People come to the Hospital Forum for help, not to be lectured on and on about how stupid or wrong they have been to get to the point they are at. (More flies with honey and all that right??.... )

So remember, you don't have to spell out everything to everyone each and every time you post. It's not wrong to refer people to the articles on cycling, or refer them to profiles on their fish, or heck, even send them to the various forums to ask about compatibility- others have done the work for you!!

Keeping things short and to the point helps more people than writing novels. Freaked out fishkeepers want answers as easy as you can give them, not something they are going to have to brew a pot of coffee and send out for a pizza to read through..


Man, some of those posts are just scary....

L.

Last edited by littlecatjoe at 21-Feb-2005 14:58

Hey people

Please see this note I've placed in the hospital forum:

[link=http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Hospital/55169.html?05841028]http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/The%20Hospital/55169.html?05841028" style="COLOR: #C000C0[/link]

Hi People

Since Gary has passed away, it seems the hospital has become a little neglected. I see our hospital forum where often desperate people look for help and often need it quickly. I've noticed as of late that there are many posts with "0" replies that go back several days.

I myself have been sick and my mother was recently hospitalized after complications from a catheterization procedure. I did not have time to come myself and still have very little time now.

I would like to see more of the regulars scanning the hospital forum, if only to ask for pertinent info that isn't supplied. We always rule out the environment first and it means asking for parameters if they haven't been supplied, tank size, stock list and all that other useful info people don't think to put down (in spite of our many requests).

If you've treated ich successfully, then you can help someone with ich. If you've dealt with body fungus, then you can help with that.

I hope to see more action in the hospital, especially for those who understand a little more about fish disease, stressors, medications and so on.

What we don't need is for anyone to recommend meds right off the bat for anything and everything. If you aren't sure, just get the questions up so we can get info flowing sooner than later.

If anyone sees a hospital forum post with 2 replies or less, please go to those first.

If SW issues are found in hospital forum, please use the Report Thread button and request it be moved to General Marine where it can get the attention it needs.

Thanks

Diane

Last edited by Cory_Di at 18-Feb-2005 18:19

Thanks everyone. I've noticed more traffic from several, including many who have not replied here so thanks to all .

I just hope we can all make an effort to help those in need of saving their fish - not just for now, but for the future. There's now doubt it can be depressing in the hospital, but it can also be enlightening and educational.

It can be so frustrating to be in a crisis with fish croaking left and right, or even having a long time goldfish or oscar come down with something dreadful. Sometimes people are looking for any idea thoughts at all that may help stem the losses or save that old pet.

Diane

I did a big stint of answering questions last night Cory_Di ... whether my answers were up to scratch after 19 hours' constant net surfing though is a moot point

Panda Catfish fan and keeper/breeder since Christmas 2002

Thanks for the reminder, Di. I'll do my best, but I'm afraid I'll definitely be one of the "askers of questions" not a "provider of answers."

I've always stopped in once a day...

I know how important answers can be when you're posting in hospital.

^_^


[hr width='40%']"Somewhere beyond happiness and sadness
I need to calculate,what creates my own madness...
and I am waiting for disaster"

Watch for newbs to the site in the hospital forum. Many come here, in trouble.

Thanks Diane for mentioning it. I have made a point of stepping in at least once a day, but usually more than that, and try to help, though I'm definately not the expert Gary was...we all need to pitch in, it will definately take a lot of us to fill his shoes...Heidi

"I've got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom." Thomas Carlyle

I'll step up to the challenge. I am not the most knowledgeable on diseases, mostly because I don't get many anymore because I care for my fish better than ever with the knowledge that I learn as I continue to progress in the hobby. I admit that I rarely venture into the hospital. I will get to it ASAP.