We lost a fish…

Today I was meant to be mixing work with family time.

That really didn't work out.

Shall I tell you about my day?

We'd planned to get some fish for my lad's new tank. He's never had fish before and never been allowed a pet of any sort in his room.  So we've spent the past week setting up the tank, making sure the filter and pump are working, that the plants are happy and that the water is going to not kill any fish we put in.

Today was the day for fish.

Off we went to the pet shop – via the garden centre to look at pond liners. I want a small pond in the garden, just a tiny little one. No fish, just some plants and wildlife, if it chooses to move in. I'd love frogs, beetles and stuff like that. But I can't be messing with pumps, filters and digging up huge areas to lay cables and water to it.

Priced up the pond, then on to the pet shop where we spent ages discussing fish and what would be suitable for the new tank – which is only a small one, cold water not tropical. Lad wanted goldfish. No. They get too big. And not those, they're tropical….. So it went on until one of the staff got involved by telling him she was so pleased to hear someone really thinking about the right fish for the tank.

Lad was made up, and therefore so much more ready to listen to the suggestion of a few Danios. We took 4 home. We settled them in the tank. Then we watched a film.

Then there were 3 fish. They're fish! They can't escape, they can't get out, can't go anywhere… But there was no body. It wasn't hiding – we took ALL the plants and ornaments out, we stripped down the filter. Just 3 fish.

Now, these are tiny fish, look…

[image error]See, tiny little fish, just a couple of cm long. We found the one with the beautifully long fins, we found the silvery ones. But the fat one with stripes was missing. We hunted round the talk, on the cupboard it sits on and through the mess on the floor.  No fish. Total mystery.

We went back to the pet shop. We asked what could have happened. Yes we checked the filter and weed, no we don't have a cat. They gave us a couple of new fish to replace the missing one, and explained that Danios do sometimes jump……

We settled the new fish in, counted them several times. 5. Then we searched UNDER the cupboard.

Ah, dead fish. Must have jumped out through the small gap where the filter cable comes out.

I think the gap is suitably covered now, and we have the 5 fish swimming about happily.

However, I've got absolutely NO writing done. Not a single word. Unless I count this blog post.

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