# Need urgent help with transporting fish!



## CatherineSekel (Mar 18, 2011)

Hi, I am not sure if this is the right forum to put this in, please forgive me If I guessed wrong, but I am having a huge dilemma! Some issues came up and I must be moving 10 hours away within the next week or two. I have no where for my fish to get left behind (no one to care for them, no returns at any pet stores, ect) so I need to bring them with me. Returning them is not an option for where I live currently. I figure I can't just put them in a baggy like when you first buy your fish at the pet store and have them sit for 10 hours... lol, can anyone tell me a way I can transport my fish there? 

Also note that I will be taking public transportation (greyhound bus) so there is no way I can transport in vehicle. 

My fish:
2 Bolivian Rams
2 Black-Skirts
1 Guppy
20-30(?) White Clouds
1 Pocostamis (don't really know if the spelling is correct)
2 Cory Cats

I hope someone with more knowledge on this issue than I can help me, it would be GREATLY appreciated! I care for my fish just like a would a dog, each an every one of them, It would take a lot of stress off my shoulders because I literally have no idea what to do! Thank you! 
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## Plumkin (Jan 24, 2011)

I would try and put an ad on your local craigslist saying free fish to good home. Im sure you they people would come pick them up in a day or 2 people are ALWAYS looking for fish and tanks online.


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## Plumkin (Jan 24, 2011)

otherwise if you do put them in baggys and box them with some newspaper inbetween the bags and make sure there in a warm spot on the bus with you and they should be fine as long as the temp will stay a good regular temp 75-80F and you should be good alot of pet stores get fish in the mail that sit in bags for 3 days but they also have some type of medicane in there with them so hopefully that info i gave you could help.


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## sik80 (Mar 16, 2010)

My LFS gave me some plastic bags and a large polysyrene box when i was moving house recently. The polystyrene is meant to insulate the bags to help them maintain temperature. They said the fish'd be ok for 10hrs in there. Bear in mind that its gonna weigh a lot with all those fish bagged!

Giving them away on craigslist would be a much easier option


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## CatherineSekel (Mar 18, 2011)

Thanks for the replies! I know giving them away is easiest, but I really want to make that my last option, I would be so sad. Will the water in the bags lose oxygen? I might try that, I'm going to go out of town to the nearest pet store before I leave on my travel to see if they have anything I could buy to make my fish's trip easier. Thanks again! 
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## jeaninel (Aug 24, 2007)

Bag them up and put them in a Styrofoam cooler insulated with some newspaper as suggested above.


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## CatherineSekel (Mar 18, 2011)

Thank you! 
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## Christople (Sep 7, 2010)

3 fish to a bag is max.


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## Mikaila31 (Dec 18, 2008)

There is no max number of fish per bag. It all depends on size of bag, size and species of fish, and lenght of trip. When bagging use 1/3 water 2/3 air. Double bag all the fish. More bags are better(fewer fish to a bag). Fast all the fish prior to the move. When I buy fish at auctions there are a lot of fish in one bag and they are in there for about 10 hours too. 

Ask your LFS for a styro(big Styrofoam box) and some fish bags. They may charge you a little for these. The styros are not commonly sold item, but just ask them if they have the boxes their fish come shipped in. You can also use a regular cooler, like a hard plastic once or something similar. The main point of the styro/cooler is too keep them insulated and in the dark. Properly bagged they should be fine for 12 hours or more...

The Pleco you might want to put in a medium sized food container. Like a empty plastic icecream quart or 1/2gallon with the lid tapped on.

I'm gotten fish through the mail and that has taken 3 days, generally the only difference is the bags are filled with pure oxygen and heat packs are used. Only once have I gotten fish that were in medicated water. Its generally avoided except with certain treatments as a lot treatments can decrease the oxygen in the water.

I personally don't think giving them away is easiest. A lot of our fish are imported to wholesalers, then shipped to LFS, then sold to customers. They go threw a lot. Setting up a tank and restocking it with healthy fish is a lot of work compared to moving fish for 10 hours. If the current fish are healthy there is not a lot of risk. Also make sure you bag your media too!


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## Christople (Sep 7, 2010)

well for the normal pecto petco bag I wouldn't put more than three per bag. You are right that size matters but for the average bag...


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## Mikaila31 (Dec 18, 2008)

I'm not familiar with petsmarts bag sizes. I'm just saying what I have seen. Obviously time in the bag matters a lot. Shops seem to do pretty good about not overfilling bags. The breeders/sellers at our local club auctions though:lol:. I've honestly not thought too much about it. I've bought a number of bags with 8-10 fish in them for 10 hours, never lost any so IDK. When I sell fish I usually do the same, especially with livebearers lol.


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## CatherineSekel (Mar 18, 2011)

Wow thank you so much for the post ! I appreciate everything, I'm confident that my fishies are going to do just fine now, thanks again!
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## Christople (Sep 7, 2010)

Petsmart bags aren't the biggest


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