Tonight I discovered that one of the pork chops died. For those of you who don't know, Andy and I started a beginner 10 gallon fresh water tank last year. We stocked it with a beautiful betta fish, two catty-wompas (cory-catfish), 5 or so pork chops (raspboras) and a couple flighty sucker fish. All was going well for quite some time and then things went downhill real fast.
First, my betta started to show signs of illness. Being very new to fish, we tried everything that we could find on google and fish forums. It came down to putting him at rest (it's a fish, I know) and I was extremely torn up about it. I was so proud of my betta and how well he was getting along with his tank mates and how he seemed to recognize us and he would come to the surface begging for treats. Not long afterward, one of our catfish died. And then the other. And then a couple raspboras here and there. And then a sucker fish. It was obvious the tank had been compromised by some fish-borne illness. We treated the tank with fish antibiotics and anti-fungals. In the end, three raspboras were left and one elusive sucker. The survivors even endured the 50 minute truck ride to move from the apartment to the house.
And then Andy left. Tonight I discovered that one of the pork chops died. I think it's my fault. This was his fish project after all. I had wanted a ferret and when we got to the pet store, he decided we were getting the fish instead. There are three fish left. As I watch them dart around the tank I am really burdened by a sense of sadness and inevitability. Tomorrow will I discover that one more of the pork chops died?
