Silurus glanis...overdue upgrade

Chub_by

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He's absolutely beautiful. I'm not the biggest fan of keeping just one fish in a big tank but this one is definitely worth it!
 
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wednesday13

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Didn't realize its been over a year since i updated lol... my boy is 52"+ respectivly and in need of my assistance on finishing his new enclosure. These pics are from a cple months ago. I Almost killed him this year when i left a hose draining the tank and went to work for 6 hrs :/. He survived in 4" of water under an autodrip for what i guess was anywhere between 2.5 to 4 hrs. Pretty remarkable to say the least. Im lucky i have other tanks and a 300gal rubbermaid setup that i threw him in for 24hrs while i resetup his tank. Needles to say he is pretty heavy and i had a heck of a time handeling him alone. I estimate an easy 35lbs+. Was easy moving him with my adrenaline running and him half dead when i returned home from work that day and heard the sound of pumps running dry....Was a bit more entertaining after he came back to life 24hrs later. No pics of him on deaths door for obvious reasons as i tore off the lids and rushed him into a full tank. but he looked just like the fishermen pics i see online of one gasping for air on a bank lol... smh... still kicking myself for that rookie mistake. It was all just to give him a bit of "extra" clean water that day as hes on an autodrip system and didnt need it anyway. Need to hunker down and get his new tank finished, as anyone in this hobby understands "real life" and work often get in the way of plans/projects. Ive been slacking on the fish front but still have him aswell as well as many others with 4kgal+ running in house a.t.m. One of these days he'll be able to stretch out again. stay tuned...
 

wednesday13

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Pics of "mental breakdown day" for me... standard 300gal rubbermaid and 24" albino channel cat for scale.... Last pic is my favorite as this is when i knew he was going to be O.K. :) as he tried to repediatly eat the 24" channel cat i grinned from ear to ear. sigh of relief after watching him for a few hrs, holding him, and talking him through it lmao...
Rough one for sure. Praise the fish gods for letting me keep him alive that day. would have been a very tough pill to swallow knowing it was 100% my fault. After 24hrs he was returned to his 650gal and quickly recovered over a week...no other catfish were harmed that day, the channel cat was removed shortly after being used as a chew toy.
 

thebiggerthebetter

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Rubber band, Russ! Rubber band goes on the wrist when you leave something going that must not be overdone or must be stopped timely.

Also good for slapping yourself repeatedly on the wrist for being stupid! Speaking from much experience.

So the bruised lower jaw is left over from that harrowing day?
 
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wednesday13

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Rubber band, Russ! Rubber band goes on the wrist when you leave something going that must not be overdone or must be stopped timely.

Also good for slapping yourself repeatedly on the wrist for being stupid! Speaking from much experience.

So the bruised lower jaw is left over from that harrowing day?
Wise advice as always Viktor... i havent put a hose in his tank for 5 months lol... Done it so many times over the years overflowing/draining tanks as i leave the house...or just forget but its been years now.. ive gotten soft with 5yrs on autodrip and no w/c's and dropped my guard. Sobering reminder how easily everything can go down the drain after yrs of hard work. Makes me appreciate this speimen all that much more now for bein a hell of a trooper and surviving outta water so long. Truely an amazing fish...
 

Chub_by

Redtail Catfish
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Man, sounds like the two of you had a really narrow escape there! Really is nothing worse in the hobby than losing a fish to your own mistakes.

The only good thing to come of it were those pics in the Rubbermaid, though! Good lord, he makes a 2 foot cat look like a fish finger..what a monster
 

wednesday13

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So the bruised lower jaw is left over from that harrowing day?

Well....lol... sort of... Hes been a "window licker" ever since he was 7" in 2012 in a 40breeder.. He'll wear his face down like that begging for food up on the glass until i feed him content and he goes and sits down. if im in the fish room, hes up on the glass... It does tend to get worse from time to time...esp. when he requests an upgrade. Ive moved him up every 1.5 yrs or so since ive had him and hes right on schedule... im behind this year :/ . Fingers crossed these next cple months go smooth for me and i can get everything done in time for him. Hes calmed down alot after my "incident" with him. saw how bad life could be with no water...or in a 300 tub. funny not funny... Ive finally decieded on using full fiberglass/epoxy resin for his enclosure as i do not want any headaches down the road. Been going back and forth for many yrs now on waterproofing options and pricing. Time to bite the bullet, empty the wallet and do it right this time. He def. deserves it.
 

wednesday13

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