Melody - 2012-05-12 Hi I have two blue skirt tetra's and one has something wrong with it's one eye,since i got them this has bin a problem with my one tera now. It started by looking like pop eye then the eye is still poped out and blood filled?? Can anyone give me an idea as to what i'm dealing with?!
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Jeremy Roche - 2012-05-13 Could be from an injury or water conditions. Did he come from the pet store like this?
nm123 - 2012-01-30 i would buy as much of these fish as you can and breed them so they dont get a chance of being dyed again by another fish store lisen to me no one has a chance of stoping tetras glofish exc from being dyed but you can make the fish hapier by only bredding it with non painted white skirt tetras that will eventually cause the colored skirt tetra to be less and less populer in your area
sean - 2011-11-01 I bought four of these fish because they looked cool. I've heard of fish being injected with dye but never dawned on me that this breed could be one that they do this two. I have a green, blue, and pink ones. My fish seem to be healthy but I would have never bought them had I known that. I guess I'll do the research before I buy anymore fish. This is truely horrible
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Charlie Roche - 2011-11-01 Yes, I was a little shocked too. Doesn't sound great to me. However, it is done and you have your fish so just enjoy them. Maybe the coloring came about through the foods.
Eric Dancel - 2011-08-12 I can't get it. My tetra just looks like it's original form plain white. But my aunt have her tetra fish now look like a balk skirt tetra. How did that happene? Reply please. My aunt is annoying me please reply ASAP as soon as posible
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Charlie Roche - 2011-08-12 Attached is article from Animal World and it will tell you more about the colored skirt tetra - including color additives for the fish. The link is
stephanie - 2011-07-28 Not all of the color tetra are dyed using syringes and dye. I have a pink one and it simply gains its color from the food its fed. I use Tetra Color plus. Its specialized food for fish hat have colors. It enchaces their color naturaly.
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Charlie Roche - 2011-07-28 Didn't know you could do that - thanks
janelle Oldham - 2010-07-21 I couldn't believe what I have learned after reading several posts and several sites about these "fruit Tetras" we however bought 7 of them at our local Petsmart, not knowing what kind of fish they were, I did some research. After I was done, I was sick inside. The torture these little fish have to go through to become these "pretty" fish is horrible. I will never buy or support this cruel procedure again. I could see walmart doing something like this, but not petsmart. If enough people that read these posts, before they buy, we maybe can stop this from happening to these poor fish. Nobody buys, so now they can't be sold.
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Gena S - 2011-05-16 I also bought some tetras. Eleven of them from Kahoots, but they're called painted tetras. I bought them because they are soo beautiful, but as mentioned in previous comments, if I would have known I would not have purchased them. This is terrible. What I don't understand is how are the pet stores allowed to sell them? A part of me wants to take them back and get a refund, but at the same time I don't, because I'm sure they will either resale or kill them. Any suggestions?
Victoria - 2011-04-03 I have two of the rainbow tetras, about 1 year now, the blue has a fat rib cage and the pink never looks bigger. This week I have noticed that the blue is chasing the pink around the tank. I haven't separated them from the tank and wanted to know if they are in the breed process or egg laying process? I don't see any eggs. And I can't tell by the dorsal fin who is the male.
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Jasmine Brough Hinesley - 2011-04-03 Generally when breeding colored skirt tetras (Gymnocorymbus ternetzi), you would want to keep the males and females separated until they are primed for spawning. Once ready to spawn, it usually occurs within a few days, and you will want to remove the parents immediately so that they do not egg their eggs. It is possible that they have been spawning this week, however you need to keep an eye out for eggs (usually landing on the plants). If you have not seen any eggs, then they may not actually be breeding, they may still be in the process of breeding, or they have already finished breeding and have eaten their eggs. Continue to watch them closely and make sure to remove them from the tank if you see any eggs.
melissa - 2011-03-02 I am new to having fish (2 days) and I bought them for my daughter so of course we got the "pretty" fish at Walmart. They all died that night except one blue one. I have been trying to learn more about them before the next shipment comes in and I buy more. Now I am horrified to discover this site and what they go through. I will not be buying more. I guess we will live with the goldfish and koo we currently have until we find a natural "pretty" fish we like.
froglett - 2011-01-16 I feel terrible :( I just bought 2 pink and 2 blue of these skirt tetras, they were sold as pink and blue widows. If I knew about these horrible practices I would never have bought them. Next time I will research first!
With its naturally occurring colors the Colored Skirt Tetra is a beauty, developed by breeders to bring out the best of its soft pastels!
Hi I have two blue skirt tetra's and one has something wrong with it's one eye,since i got them this has bin a problem with my one tera now. It started by looking like pop eye then the eye is still poped out and blood filled?? Can anyone give me an idea as to what i'm dealing with?!
Could be from an injury or water conditions. Did he come from the pet store like this?
So what do you guys think of slowing down the production of dyed white skirt tetras in your area
plz get back to me asap
i would buy as much of these fish as you can and breed them so they dont get a chance of being dyed again by another fish store lisen to me no one has a chance of stoping tetras glofish exc from being dyed but you can make the fish hapier by only bredding it with non painted white skirt tetras that will eventually cause the colored skirt tetra to be less and less populer in your area
I bought four of these fish because they looked cool. I've heard of fish being injected with dye but never dawned on me that this breed could be one that they do this two. I have a green, blue, and pink ones. My fish seem to be healthy but I would have never bought them had I known that. I guess I'll do the research before I buy anymore fish. This is truely horrible
Yes, I was a little shocked too. Doesn't sound great to me. However, it is done and you have your fish so just enjoy them. Maybe the coloring came about through the foods.
I can't get it. My tetra just looks like it's original form plain white. But my aunt have her tetra fish now look like a balk skirt tetra. How did that happene? Reply please. My aunt is annoying me please reply ASAP as soon as posible
Attached is article from Animal World and it will tell you more about the colored skirt tetra - including color additives for the fish. The link is
http://animal-world.com/encyclo/fresh/characins/ColoredSkirtTetra.php
Hope that helps
Not all of the color tetra are dyed using syringes and dye. I have a pink one and it simply gains its color from the food its fed. I use Tetra Color plus. Its specialized food for fish hat have colors. It enchaces their color naturaly.
Didn't know you could do that - thanks
I couldn't believe what I have learned after reading several posts and several sites about these "fruit Tetras" we however bought 7 of them at our local Petsmart, not knowing what kind of fish they were, I did some research. After I was done, I was sick inside. The torture these little fish have to go through to become these "pretty" fish is horrible. I will never buy or support this cruel procedure again. I could see walmart doing something like this, but not petsmart. If enough people that read these posts, before they buy, we maybe can stop this from happening to these poor fish. Nobody buys, so now they can't be sold.
I also bought some tetras. Eleven of them from Kahoots, but they're called painted tetras. I bought them because they are soo beautiful, but as mentioned in previous comments, if I would have known I would not have purchased them. This is terrible. What I don't understand is how are the pet stores allowed to sell them? A part of me wants to take them back and get a refund, but at the same time I don't, because I'm sure they will either resale or kill them. Any suggestions?
I have two of the rainbow tetras, about 1 year now, the blue has a fat rib cage and the pink never looks bigger. This week I have noticed that the blue is chasing the pink around the tank. I haven't separated them from the tank and wanted to know if they are in the breed process or egg laying process? I don't see any eggs. And I can't tell by the dorsal fin who is the male.
Generally when breeding colored skirt tetras (Gymnocorymbus ternetzi), you would want to keep the males and females separated until they are primed for spawning. Once ready to spawn, it usually occurs within a few days, and you will want to remove the parents immediately so that they do not egg their eggs. It is possible that they have been spawning this week, however you need to keep an eye out for eggs (usually landing on the plants). If you have not seen any eggs, then they may not actually be breeding, they may still be in the process of breeding, or they have already finished breeding and have eaten their eggs. Continue to watch them closely and make sure to remove them from the tank if you see any eggs.
I am new to having fish (2 days) and I bought them for my daughter so of course we got the "pretty" fish at Walmart. They all died that night except one blue one. I have been trying to learn more about them before the next shipment comes in and I buy more. Now I am horrified to discover this site and what they go through. I will not be buying more. I guess we will live with the goldfish and koo we currently have until we find a natural "pretty" fish we like.
I feel terrible :( I just bought 2 pink and 2 blue of these skirt tetras, they were sold as pink and blue widows. If I knew about these horrible practices I would never have bought them. Next time I will research first!